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Elizabeth occurred to say lately that she’s tried a couple of clothes rental firms for workplace garments, and provided to spherical up her experiences. Questioning if Nuuly or Hire the Runway is best for workplace garments? Learn on… and we would love to listen to your ideas additionally! – Kat.
I’ve been in a little bit of a clothes droop lately. I’m out of the section of life the place each weekend is consumed by showers, bachelorette events, weddings, and the like, however which means my weekdays are likely to comply with the identical outfit method (blazer + shirt + pants) and my weekends are spent in comfortable T-shirt attire and athleisure.
Just a few months in the past, I had a number of occasions proper in a row — a child bathe, two milestone birthday events, and a long-awaited women’ journey — and I made a decision to liven issues up a bit.
I’d been getting tons of focused advertisements for Nuuly, a clothes rental service that guarantees you may decide 6 on-trend items to maintain for a month, for lower than $100. I discovered a coupon code on-line that introduced it right down to about $80 for the primary month and determined to go for it.
(If you would like $30 off your first month’s subscription, here is Elizabeth’s referral code.)
I’ve used different clothes rental companies previously. I had a Hire the Runway Limitless subscription that I canceled in March 2020 and by no means restarted. I additionally tried Gywnnie Bee again in 2015 and canceled after one disappointing supply.
Past the rental companies, I additionally tried Sew Repair a number of years in the past after I was attempting to construct up a brand new work wardrobe for a brand new job. The thought is that you simply describe your type and what sorts of garments you want and a “stylist” sends you a field full of things, and you’ll decide which of them you’d prefer to buy.
{associated: the place to lease maternity workwear}
General, whereas I preferred a few of the items from Sew Repair, I discovered that the costs had been too excessive for the standard. And a few of the stylists had been deeply confused about what constituted “professional” apparel. (I really like a sequin, however in all probability not for a deposition!)
I went with Nuuly this time as a result of the worth was affordable and it appeared to have extra choices out there in my measurement. (For reference, I’m a cusp measurement, typically a misses measurement 16–18, typically a plus measurement 14–18, all in fixed flux relying on the section of the moon or the whims of the clothes producer.)
Nuuly vs. Hire the Runway: Which is Higher for Renting Workplace Garments?
Listed below are my ideas on Nuuly and Hire the Runway:
How the Companies Work
Nuuly solely has one subscription possibility. You choose 6 kinds for a month at a flat charge of $98 + tax. You retain these 6 kinds all month and ship them again on the finish. As soon as UPS scans your return, you may decide your objects for the following month.
That is barely completely different from RTR, which has a couple of subscriptions out there at completely different worth factors. All of them assist you to preserve 5 objects at a time, however you may pay additional for the choice to obtain a couple of cargo per 30 days. So for instance, for $144/month, you get 5 objects at a time, however you may return them partway by the month and get a second cargo. For $235/month, you may have as much as 4 shipments.
The Choice
The largest distinction that I seen instantly is that whereas the RTR Limitless subscription contains equipment and purses, Nuuly solely contains clothes. I’d additionally word that whereas there may be some model crossover between the 2 firms, RTR tends to have extra high-end designers. Nuuly is an URBN model, which is the umbrella that features Anthropologie, Free Folks, and City Outfitters, so in case your type skews in that path, Nuuly is likely to be an incredible possibility.
After I used RTR, I labored in a way more formal workplace, so I liked utilizing it for designer attire and blazers for work. I additionally received some incredible outerwear items that brightened up a really dreary winter, and some formal attire I wore to weddings. Over the previous couple of months, I’ve used Nuuly to get a mixture of informal and enterprise informal objects, together with some beautiful Anthropologie attire that I wore on trip and a cashmere hoodie that I remorse sending again.
Each RTR and Nuuly give you the choice to buy objects at a reduction if you happen to fully fall in love with them. I’m at the moment carrying a pair of pants that I simply couldn’t bear to ship again to Nuuly in April.
{associated: probably the most reasonably priced workplace garments for ladies in 2024: our listing}
General Expertise
I don’t suppose it’s honest for me to present a full evaluation of RTR as a result of it’s been a couple of years since I used it, however total I used to be fairly proud of the expertise. I skipped it this time due to the worth. The bottom-price possibility was $94/month and solely offers you entry to their “limited” closet. If I had been working in a extra formal workplace or had plenty of formal occasions in my life, I’d make room in my price range to attempt it once more.
The Nuuly expertise has been overwhelmingly optimistic for me up to now. I’ve tried out some new silhouettes that I’d have been hesitant to purchase for myself and received some nice items for one-time occasions. The vast majority of the objects that I’ve acquired have been in new or like-new situation, many with tags nonetheless on. Just a few had slight indicators of wear and tear, however nothing notably noticeable.
I did have one subject the place an merchandise I chosen wasn’t out there to ship on the final minute and a distinct merchandise was substituted. After I emailed to ask about it, the customer support rep apologized and gave me the choice to pick an additional merchandise the following month without spending a dime.
{associated: what’s YOUR annual garments price range?}
I referred a pal to Nuuly final month, and she or he stated that she liked the garments however they had been extra noticeably worn than what I acquired. Her concept was that she had fastidiously chosen objects that had a ton of nice opinions, however then realized that tons of opinions in all probability meant tons of wear and tear.
She additionally famous that the best way that Nuuly ships the objects (neatly rolled up right into a reusable bag) ends in extra wrinkles than with what she’s acquired from RTR previously. Regardless, she was proud of the expertise and stated she’d do it once more.
General, I feel each choices are incredible if you happen to’re wanting so as to add some new items to your wardrobe for one-time occasions or simply get some enjoyable fundamentals to check out for some time.
Readers, do inform: Which do you suppose are the perfect clothes rental firms for workplace garments, special-occasion outfits, and extra? Which firms have you ever had detrimental experiences with, and which of them have you ever discovered to provide the finest worth?
(If you would like $30 off your first month’s subscription, here is Elizabeth’s referral code for Nuuly. )
(Need $30 off your first Hire the Runway order? Here is Kat’s referral code.)
Inventory photograph by way of Pexels / Mikhail Nilov.