Suits retailer and hire company Moss Bros is launching a new fashion rental subscription service on 20 April.
Moss Bros will run the service on CaaStle’s rental technology platform, following the US-based company’s newly agreed partnership with Advanced Clothing Solutions (ACS).
The subscription service, called Moss Box, will offer customers two styles and unlimited swaps for a flat fee of £65 per month. Participating consumers will have the option to select from a variety of men’s clothing that is currently stocked by Moss Bros, including Ted Baker and Hugo Boss-branded items.
It comes as ACS – which carries out out the entire cleaning and fulfilment operations for Moss Bros Hire from its menswear, womenswear and baby wear rental distribution centre (DC) in Scotland – announced a partnership with Caastle that aims to encourage more rental subscription services in the UK.
CaaStle will leverage ACS’s reverse logistics and DC to offer UK retailers what it describes as a “turnkey subscription rental solution” that includes a white-label front-end technology, IT integration, and end-to-end order management and fulfilment.
Partnering with CaaStle allows retailers to integrate a rental fashion subscription offering alongside their existing eCommerce operation. ACS and Caastle said rental models of this nature minimise the risk of excess inventory for retailers while helping encourage fashion consumers into more circular thinking.
CaaStle said its tech gives consumers a chance to rent unlimited bundles, but turn their hire into a permanent purchase if they fall in love with the item.
ACS said womenswear brand LK Bennett is next in line to benefit from the rental subscription technology, following in the footsteps of Moss Bros. Further details on LK Bennett’s subscription service will be announced this summer.
CaaStle is already supporting Ralph Lauren’s new rental subscription service in the US, which launched earlier this year. Green Retail World covered the story at the time.
Andrew Rough, chief financial officer of ACS, predicted the partnership between his company and CaaStle would resonate, amid a “shift from ownership to usership” as consumers and retailers aim to be more sustainable.
