Peloton CEO, John Foley, announced that the company plans to launch a used bike and treadmill system that could include rentals in the future.
Though it will take some time, talking about it now makes sense – renting stuff is the thing.
And so is responsible consumerism.
“You could sell your bike on Craigslist or eBay and get a pretty hefty portion of your original purchase price,” Foley said in an interview with CNBC.
The goal of such an initiative is to expand the brand’s audience. Providing sporting goods that promote healthy living to consumers at lower prices allows those who haven’t been able to use and try out such machines to do so – also bridging the inequality gap.
Not only will Peloton be more accessible to consumers, this new business model allows customers to try Peloton’s products for a few months before they decide to buy – another excellent way to tend to your customers’ needs.
Meanwhile, the home improvement giant, Lowe’s, is rolling out its first equipment and tool rental department in Charlotte, North Carolina.
The idea is to allow customers to spend less on commercial-grade equipment while freeing up storage space in their homes.
It also comes in response to data showing top Lowe’s search results having to do with customers searching for tool rentals.
Additionally, we think staying true to the brand’s hometown is a great way to show off your brand’s values.
“We could have gone to a lot of different places, but this is our home, and we wanted to make a statement that Charlotte comes first,” said Fred Stokes, senior vice president of Pro Sales and Services for Lowe’s.
Over in the retail landscape, the plus-size clothing store Eloquii, high-end department store Selfridges, and other brands are headed towards the rental market as well.
This month, for instance, Levi’s will collaborate with Ganni to create a sustainable rental fashion brand that reduces the environmental impact when manufacturing clothes.
And by allowing you to check out the items’ renting history by scanning your smartphone on the patch attached to the product – they’re giving these pieces of garment even more character.
“Ganni was the perfect partner to bring this upcycled rental collection to life,” said Karyn Hillman, Levi’s chief product officer.
“Our mutual love for denim and desire to creatively reconstruct vintage 501’s was an incredible jumping-off point.”
Another brand on the rental wagon is luxury jewelry company, Switch. “Switch is a perfect product for rental,” said Switch co-founder, Kadisha Cohn.
“You don’t really feel like it’s ever been worn before. We sanitize it, we polish it, we kind of bring that shine and make it feel like it’s new — and oftentimes, it is new.”
Furthermore, a relatively new rental startup for children’s clothing, Wardrobe, plans to launch in the U.S.
With a P2P model, it allows renters to pick up clothing through Wardrobe Hubs (affiliated dry cleaning companies) after browsing the closets of hundreds of users willing to rent out their clothes.
Another startup tapping into that behavioral shift is TULU, which lets you share high-quality household and lifestyle products with your neighbors on demand.
And there’s nothing like a couple of cool startups to hint you at where the wind might be blowing.
