A STYLISH CIRCULAR MODEL
A STYLISH CIRCULAR MODEL
Fling is a completely circular model, serving rental fashion in the real world.
For local economies, for local high-streets and for local fashion-lovers.
As a woman, trying an outfit on for size, fit and feel is a crucial part of the fashion experience. Of feeling beautiful.
So I decided to bring fashion rentals
to real life with an
in-store rental concept.
Why?
I created fling when I was online shopping for a wedding guest outfit and realised that renting a designer dress from an online platform would cost me a couple of hundred pounds, without knowing if it fit me.
Unlike regular online shopping, online rental orders don’t come with a guarantee of a refund if you don’t like it or it doesn’t fit, and consumers have to pay for the shipping on top.
Fling is a concession model, supplying our brand and rental stock to local fashion retailers.
What?
A completely circular model for a local economy.
We don’t buy our stock, instead, it’s supplied by local women, using the garments in their wardrobes that they no longer wear but don’t want to sell. This means we don’t put extra pressure on the environment through further demand on fashion production, and instead keep what already exists in circulation.
We then supply the stock to our retailers under the Fling brand, allowing customers to shop rentals in-store, trying on as many pieces as they like, and returning the ones they love when they’re finished with them.
Online rentals run the risk of having to budget for one item and hoping it’s right.
In-store rentals offer the same accessibility and opportunity that high-street shopping does, with the beauty of affordable, sustainable outfits.
Who?
Our customers are local women who want an affordable option to:
Wear designer outfits
Wear outfits just once, sustainably
Wear different outfits to their social events
The Professional
The professional woman has many corporate events to go to, she’s a lawyer or a director, and fashion isn’t necessarily her priority. She has the bank account for new outfits but not the interest of investing in it, she knows there are smarter investments to make.
The Holly Golightly
Our Holly Golightly’s have all the love of fashion but without the budget to buy it. She wants to wear new outfits often, but is fed up of her ever-growing Klarna debt. So she rents with us to experience designer fashion whenever she wants.
The Wedding Guest
Our wedding guest is at the age when all of her friends are getting married. She bought a gorgeous designer dress when she got the first invite through her door, but realised she can’t re-wear it to the rest of the friendship group’s nuptials.
Our Community
With a well-knit fashion community in Leeds, we’ve built a brilliant, engaged audience who love our concept and our growth.
Events
From fashion influencers and content creators to fashion entrepreneurs and stylists, we’re cultivating a passionate community who root for Fling and what we’re creating.
Fling x Pinot and Picasso
7 months after launch, we had an influencer event in collaboration with global sip and paint studio brand, Pinot and Picasso. The night was a PR event that saw 30 influencers dress up in our rental stock, paint their own artworks from their outfits and share the fun on social media.
York Fashion Week
1 year after we first started working on the concept, we had our first trunk show at York Fashion Week. The fashion show and Founder Q&A was attended by almost 30 guests, who purchased tickets to see the latest in Yorkshire’s circular fashion business.
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This number only represents the view count we’re privvy to from collaborative content. The content published by creators that we can’t see the analytics from means this number is even higher!
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The combined Instagram audience of our attendees.
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The number of businesses who collaborated on the event for free.
Fling’s Future
Years 1 -2
Local independent retailers
Years 3-5
North of England department stores
Years 5-10
Nation-wide high street stores