ACS Clothing raises £2.5m of new equity amid resale and rental boom

ACS Clothing, the UK's largest resale and rental fulfilment facility, has raised £2.5m of new equity from its main shareholder Industrial Lending, managed by BOOST & Co.

The investment comes as the resale and rental market booms in the UK as shoppers are looking for more sustainable ways to shop, as part of a more conscious consumption movement that has been accelerated by the pandemic.

ACS's service includes warehousing, order management, RFID technology integration, powerful and eco-friendly ozone cleaning and sanitisation, expert clothing repairs, and automated picking, packing and dispatch of orders.

The company began as a highland and formal hire business around 25 years ago as one bricks and mortar store. It has grown exponentially over the years and now operates from an 85,000 sq ft, fully automated facility, in North Lanarkshire, which is unique for the UK.

This latest investment will enable ACS to expand its facility further as it onboards new clients.

"The fresh investment of £2.5m will allow us to invest further in our world class facility and grow our team to support our existing and new customers. We wish to thank Kim Martin and Richard Hallett of BOOST & Co for their support in obtaining the new funding and sharing our vision to offer fashion brands an alternative to the linear model they have traditionally adopted," said ACS CFO Andrew Rough.

ACS minimises the barriers to entering the rental or resale market for both emerging and established brands. To offer an end-to-end solution, ACS partner with front-end tech platforms that offer the IT solution and then ACS take care of the order management, cleaning and sanitisation, textile care and repairs and the reverse logistics.

Clients of the business include rental businesses Rotaro, Hirestreet, The Endless Wardrobe, My Wardrobe HQ as well as Next Formal Hire, Slater Menswear and Moss Hire.