How to Afford a Luxury Designer Dress for Your Next Big Event

If you’re one of those women who drools over the designer fashions that your favorite celebrities wear to glamorous events, this story may interest you.
Thanks to a new Internet fashion company, women who never dreamed they would have a chance to wear famous designer creations now have the opportunity to rent them for a fraction of what it would cost to buy them.

It’s called Rent the Runway and was founded by two recent Harvard Business School graduates, Jennifer Hyman and Jennifer Carter Fleiss.  Ms. Hyman came up with the idea after watching her sister agonize over whether to buy an expensive new outfit to wear to a wedding.  After all, not too many women can afford to spend thousands on a luxury designer outfit that they may only have the opportunity to wear a few times before styles change.

So, they came up with the concept of Rent the Runway.  Now, practically any woman can afford to wear the same styles, from the same high-end design houses that grace celebrities on red carpets.  The site works directly with dozens of designers like Herve Leger, Badgley Mischka, Vera Wang, Calvin Klein and more, bringing its members the latest dresses hot off the runways of Paris and Milan.

The dresses they offer typically sell for thousands of dollars, but their “rental” prices range from only $50 to a few hundred dollars.

The site is also great fun.  You start by registering for a free membership.  Then, enter a date for a big upcoming event, as well as your size and zip code.  Selections of the site’s dresses that will be available for that date are displayed for you on the homepage.  You can then filter through all the choices —by occasion, body type, style type, or designer.  Rent the Runway also rents designer jewelry, purses, and other fabulous accessories to perfectly complete your look.

Of course, sizing varies by designer and the material of the dress.  So, how can you be sure the dress you receive will fit you perfectly?  Rent the Runway solves this dilemma by letting you order two sizes!  That’s right, the second size is absolutely free to ensure the dress you pick will fit, and you can wear it to your event, worry-free.

Lastly, returning your items is a piece of cake.  They provide a pre-paid shipping envelope for you to mail the dress back in.  Just drop it off at any USPS mailbox by noon on the 4th day of your rental. (Rentals options are four or eight days long).  That’s it!  No worrying about postage or dry cleaning, Rent the Runway takes care of all that for you.

Rent the Runway wants all its members to be 100 percent satisfied with the dress they choose.  If for any reason this isn’t the case, contact your stylist (a stylist’s advice and expertise are included in your rental) and they will make absolutely sure you get a dress you love.

Rent the Runway is free to join, and you don’t need your credit card unless you want to rent a dress.  Even if your next event is not for a while, the site will send you out a reminder so that you can check out the newest styles before your event.