Nuuly is a website that enables people to rent and potentially buy clothing. Once a person subscribes and picks the outfits they want to wear for a month, they receive a shipment (pictured above) (Kara Burke / managing editor).
As suggested by Tom Haverford on “Parks and Rec,” renting clothes for short periods at a time seems to be the new craze sweeping the fashion world. Offering a more sustainable practice, renting clothing allows you to change your wardrobe routinely—whether to keep up with each season’s new trends or because you get bored of the same looks easily. It is less expensive than buying apparel you’ll only wear a few times and you’re often able to rent clothes that cost much more than a service’s annual subscription fee. Sites like Nuuly offer items from dozens of name brand stores for one flat price a month, as well as fast shipping and guaranteed protection against stains and other mishaps.
Nuuly charges subscribers $88 a month, which gets members six items of clothing, free two-day shipping and laundry services upon returning the clothes. This takes the hassle out of going to the store, trying on several different options and then dropping last week’s paycheck on one piece of clothing. From the comfort of your own home, you’re able to browse thousands of options across many different categories and occasions and select six pieces to rent. After four weeks, you send your haul back and are able to select your next six looks.
The brands Nuuly offers include Urban Outfitters, Anthropologie and Free People. These retailers are known to be on the more expensive end of young-adult fashion companies, which is another reason companies like Nuuly have such an appeal. Most individual items from these stores cost more than the monthly Nuuly fee; by renting six items for just $88 you’re guaranteed to be getting a good bang for your buck.
While Nuuly is convenient, there are some issues with the service. If you are someone who struggles to know your size without trying on an item first, you may end up with an ill-fitting item you can’t wear for the month you’re renting it. If this happens with several items, then the service loses its “more bang for your buck” benefits.
The other issue with the service is stains. If you are someone who often stains your clothes, you’ll need to be extra careful when it comes to your Nuuly items. It is recommended that you don’t wash Nuuly clothes, so if you do happen to stain an item you can’t do more than a spot clean. If this is ineffective, you can’t wear the item for the rest of the month.
For a college student, a clothing rental service may be the perfect solution to a number of problems: not being able to get to the mall to buy new clothes, needing to get a new dress for every formal or date party or running out of outfits to wear out on the weekend. Renting clothes for four weeks at a time means you’ll routinely have new options to pick from.
Another appealing thing about Nuuly is that you can by the clothes for a discounted price once you rent them. The discount will range anywhere from 20 percent to 50 percent off depending on how much the item has been rented. One issue with this is that if you think about it, you’re already paying around $15 apiece to rent each item, so while the discount helps, it is not as deep as it seems. Another issue is that if you rent an item and decide you want to buy it but in a different size, you can’t switch out sizes. So, you’d have to rent the item again in the correct size.
If the membership fee seems a little steep, you have a few different options to make it more budget-friendly. First, if friends of yours are already members of the service they can share a code with you for $10 off your first month. Once you become a member yourself, you’ll receive your own discount code that you can pass along. When your friends use your code, you also receive $10 off on your next month’s fee. Another option is to split the fee amongst one or two other friends. If you and your roommate go in on the subscription together, you can cut the fee in half and still be able to rent three styles a month. Nuuly is a viable option to your broke-but-bougie problems.