TRENDS IN SUSTAINABLE SHOPPING

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Written by Kim Poldner - Friday, 06 November 2009

With Black Friday quickly approaching, be inspired by these innovative ways to shop!

We have previously reported about companies that let consumers rent expensive clothes instead of buying them. The latest to join the herd is New York-based Rent the Runway, which allows women to rent designer dresses. The concept is simple: you browse through RTR´s collection, order your dress and receive it the next day. The cost is around 10% of the retail price and ranges from USD 50-100. RTR offers customer friendly extra services like the same dress in a second size to ensure it fits and another dress as back-up style for just 25 USD. Brands currently on offer include Just Cavalli, Helmut Lang and Hervé Leger.

Another trend that appeals to transumers is to be part of the creation process of a product. Online indie clothing retailer ModCloth asks its customers to help choose which items to take into production. As the company explains: "Sometimes there are designs that we absolutely adore, but the designer can only put them into production if they make a large quantity. As a small company, it’s difficult for us to make these big inventory commitments without knowing if you will love the designs as much as we do." ModCloth launched the Be The Buyer initiative two weeks ago and encourages its fans to add comments on each design, and to share their voting decisions on Facebook and Twitter, turning the voting process into a useful marketing tool for the company. If a design is taken into production, customers who voted for it receive an email notification as soon as it's available, allowing them to be the first to buy and wear it.

The last trend worth mentioning is shopping in multi designer stores like The Hub Shop. The Hub Shop recently opened in Rotterdam, The Netherlands and rents out empty cube-like boxes under attractive conditions. Any product or service with a sustainable or social touch can be sold at The Hubshop. The concept is not only perfect for small brands and designers who can´t afford a retail space, for customers it´s ideal to find so many ethically made products in one location. We look forward to shops opening at the other 50 Hub locations around the world. Happy shopping!