Burberry enters resale and rental market with My Wardrobe HQ

Burberry has launched a rental and resale service with My Wardrobe HQ as the British luxury fashion house steps up on its circular fashion commitments.

Launching today, the new partnership offers customers a selection of offerings including coats, handbags and accessories to rent from My Wardrobe HQ for up to 14 days. Weekly rental prices will range from £41-£170, with customers having the option to buy their rented item for a fraction of retail price. Resale prices will range from £111 for accessories such as scarves, up to £750 for trench coats which retails at £1,990.

While the bulk of inventory is provided by the heritage brand, the rental catalogue includes additional authenticated donations from VIP clients and the My Wardrobe HQ community. The partnership will support Smart Works, a UK charity which provides high quality interview clothes and coaching to disadvantaged unemployed women, by donating 40% of profits from each transaction. The luxury brand has donated inventory to the charity since 2013.

Pam Batty, Burberry VP of corporate responsibility said: "Our partnership with My Wardrobe HQ is complementary to our broader strategy to become climate positive by 2040, supporting the principles of a circular economy for luxury.

"This includes expanding  reuse, repair, donation and recycling routes and developing new partnerships and revaluation solutions."

The move into rental and resale marks the changing attitude among luxury brands in stepping into the fast-growing secondhand sector. Besides its appeal as a circular business model, the rental and resale market allows brands to build loyalty with existing customers and attract new, younger customers looking for luxury investment purchases.

Burberry officially endorsed the secondhand market with a partnership with luxury consignment marketplace, The Realreal in 2019, to promote the benefits of a circular economy for fashion. The luxury brand's entry into the rental market allows Burberry to test the waters in the market, gauging production volumes and recording consumer preferences while keeping its archive collections in circularity.