Harrods launches fashion rental service, as study reveals high environmental cost of hiring clothes

The luxury store has launched the new service in conjunction with MY WARDROBE HQ

The Attico Feather Dress, available from £91 for a four-day rental at MWHQ at Harrods (MWHQ x Harrods/Stephanie Galea)

Harrods is set to launch its first fashion rental service.

The world-famous luxury department store will offer garments from Italian couture designers, such as Giambattista Valli, to more everyday brands, in a bid to provide customers with access to products in a “more sustainable and conscious way”.

With a focus on “elevated event-wear”, stand-out pieces include feathered gowns by Huishan Zhang and Rotate’s highly sought-after mini dresses.

The new initiative is being launched in partnership with MY WARDROBE HQ (MWHQ), the company that supplied Carrie Johnson’s wedding dress.

Harrods’ Fashion Director Lydia King commended the company for “leading the way in responsible luxury and fashion circularity”.

King said: “By bringing together our second-to-none product curation and MY WARDROBE HQ’s expert rental structure, we are now able to offer our clients a rotating wardrobe of beautiful pieces.

“I am so proud to present the edit that we have curated, a collection of dresses that can be effortlessly styled for any occasion.”

Chair of MWHQ, Jane Shepherson, said the partnership was “a dream”.

“We look forward to seeing customers enjoying the most exquisite designer pieces in the most sustainable way,” she added.

Customers can access the service in Harrods’ Knightsbridge store and on MWHQ’s website, with garments starting form £24 and available to rent for four, seven, 10 or 14 day periods.

The news comes on the back of a new study which found that renting clothes has more of an environmental impact than throwing them away.

The study, published in the Finnish scientific journal Environmental Research Letters concluded that renting clothes had the highest climate impact due to the hidden environmental cost of delivery, packaging and transportation, while dry cleaning is also harmful to the environment.

It added that the most sustainable way to consume fashion is to buy fewer items and wear them for as long as possible.