Kelly McFarland
We recently wrote about a cool new way to make money from your clothes called Our Closet UK. Through Our Closet, you can rent out your clothes to others to make some extra cash or even rent something yourself for a special occasion.
A couple of weeks ago we got the chance to sit down with founder and CEO Rosie De Malmanche and find out more about the concept.
The day we meet Rosie it’s pretty overcast but still warm. We meet at the Bluebird Cafe in Chelsea London. Rosie is lovely and very personable. She explains that she’s just moved to the UK from Australia literally days before we interview her. “I got off the plane and went straight to work on Our Closet, “I’m so excited to move but I’m also really nervous as Our Closet means so much to me. There are so many cool shops on here [gestures to Kings Road]. I can’t wait to look explore London properly.”
Rosie is wholly dedicated to making Our Closet UK a success. “Renting out clothes is huge in Australia and New Zealand,” she says ” I did it a lot there and so did my friends. I had really good experiences doing it and everyone I rented out my clothes to was so nice and they all came back fine and they took good care of them.”
That’s one thing Rosie is keen to stress with Our Closet UK, all clients who rent their items out will be taken care of. ” I want people that use the service to feel comfortable that their items will be looked after. It’s one of the reasons Rosie says her clients can send the clothes to her and she will deal with everything, from the listing, the posting of the items and the returns and even the dry cleaning. “I’ve tried to make the process as simple as possible so it’s really easy for users of the service to make some money and rent some really cool pieces.”
The idea for Our Closet UK goes hand in hand with Rosie’s passion for making clothing sustainable clothing, she attended an event in the South of France where Leonardo Dicaprio spoke about Climate Change, sustainable living and how we could all help. “It was really inspiring, so I went away and watched the documentary [Before The Flood] he did.”
“We throw away so many clothes that we’ve never worn or just don’t like or want anymore. It’s estimated that in the UK that there is a 30 billion pounds worth of used clothes sitting in peoples wardrobes. And 140 million pounds worth of clothes goes into landfill every year. This takes years to biodegrade and has a big impact on our carbon footprint.”
Our Closet Uk not only lets people wear outfits they may not be able to usually have the chance to wear, but also make money from their own wardrobe. It really is making fashion sustainable and is a win-win for all who use Our Closet UK. Designer dresses, accessories and Handbags are all available on the site to hire. ” I have no clothes” Laughs Rosie “I’ve listed what I have on the site . I’ve seen lots of stuff already that people are asking me to list, that I really want to hire and wear for myself as it’s all so beautiful.”
You can rent most of the clothes for either 4 or 8 days and it’s far cheaper than buying the outfit outright. Our Closet UK has over 150 designers ( Chloe, Prada, Roberto Cavalli, Saint Laurent, Versace etc) listed and has over 300 new items listed every month. “I want it to become one big directory for hiring and lending designers in the UK as I’m working with a few companies already with the site and listing their stock, and I’m having conversations with others,” says Rosie looking to the future. With the growth, Our Closet UK has seen since it’s launch and how it’s being mentioned in national publications like OK Magazine we can really see Rosie’s hard work and determination paying off and it becomes that.
You can see all the gorgeous clothes currently listed for hire or even list your own on the website. And if your not sure what to wear for an event or a special occasion you contact their style team for a consultation and they will help you find the perfect outfit. Also, you can check out the Facebook and Instagram.
Let us know what you think about Our Closet UK in the comments below or over @Fuzzable!
