Confessions of a Shopaholic: should you rent-a-lifestyle instead?

I read Sophie Kinsella’s book ages ago and I could not believe Becky Bloomwood’s shopping addiction.

In a few days, the “Confessions of a Shopaholic” movie will hit the big screen, but I’m curious to see how well it’s going to be received.

I was having a conversation not long ago with a contact of mine and I told her that I had a feeling that given the recent turn of events in the economy, there are a lot of women who won’t want to see the vices that landed them in the poor house on the big screen.

It’s no secret that since October 2008 (when the stock market crashed) the sale of most designer items including high priced handbags and signature shoes has come to a screeching halt because so many people have lost their jobs, seen their retirement funds fizzle into nothingness or seen the value of their house drop by several percent.

It’s gotten a whole lot harder to justify a $2,500 handbag or a $1,600 pair of Christian Louboutin high heel boots … no matter how killer they look on you.

I was watching CNN a few weeks ago when they did a report on how former-fashionistas-turned-recessionistas were finding creative ways of maintaining the appearance they’ve grown accustomed to during the roaring 2002-2008 years.

>>>> Why not rent your lifestyle instead?

One of the fastest growing businesses these days is the designer rental business! That’s right … if you cannot afford it … why not rent it!

Interestingly enough I had asked this question to my friend Joy and our resident product reviewer Eleni way back in August and I had saved their responses to my question in my “idea bank” for a future post and the second I saw the CNN report and remembered that the movie “Confessions of a Shopaholic” was coming out, I had to revisit the topic of “renting a lifestyle”!

Since the recent market crash sites like Bag Borrow and Steal have seen their paid membership go from 250,000 eager women to more than 1,000,000 women willing to dish out several hundred dollars each month to rent their designer handbag of choice.

Bag Borrow and Steal carries an insane inventory of designers like Gucci, Louis Vuitton, Lambertson Truex, Ungaro, Yves Saint Laurent, Dior, Channel, Lulu Guinness, Rebecca Minkoff, Hermes, Burberry … and the list goes on for kilometres.

I’ve been on their site and I’ll openly admit that I was influenced by Jennifer Hudson’s character in the “Sex and the City” movie.

Personally, I find the prices are a bit high for rentals of a handbag that thousands of other hands have touched. I’m really particular about my couture and a bit possessive … basically I don’t want too many other women to have owned what I now own. I say yes to eBay, but have not warmed up to Bag Borrow and Steal yet.

My friends Joy and Eleni (both are Baby Boomers) are sitting on either side of the fence on this and I’ll let you read their different points of view:

Joy’s point of view:

“I’d rather save for an item or buy a less expensive option than rent. I saw the “Sex and the City” movie, but I’d never rent from Bag Borrow and Steal. “

Eleni’s point of view:

“Most of the really cool bags that cost over $2,000 retail can be had for under $35 per week. It can become addictive and you know how fickle those fashionistas are …once you’ve saved up for an “average” bag of say $1,200, there’s another “must-have on the market. All the fashion gurus will be viewing your hard-earned handbag as yesterday’s news.

I like the concept for special events or outfits…I don’t think I’d be continuously trading each week, but you never know. They don’t ship to Canada … otherwise I’d be all over a Chloe or Dior bag even for a week. I love their concept!!!”

>>>> It’s not only handbags that you can borrow/rent!

The CNN report highlighted that there are a number of stores in America where you can rent designer clothing, accessories and EVEN shoes for an evening.

It seems that a number of CNN reports had rented their couture for the Obama inauguration because since so many people were going to see them, they didn’t want to end up buying an expensive outfit that you might not be able to wear twice.

Now, I know of consignment stores that sell secondhand items from women who have several thousands of dollars of monthly shopping allowances and who like to dispose of last season’s style, but I had not heard until recently of stores where you could rent a Chanel dress that might normally retail for $10,000 for a mere $1,000!

You might be screaming at your computer screen now and saying is Krizia on drugs because $1,000 for a dress is outrageously expensive. I agree, $1,000 is far more than I’ve dropped on a dress, but if I wanted a Chanel for one evening, this might be the quickest way to get it.

Since I shop Euro style, I most likely would never allow myself to drop that kind of cash on something I will not own. I shop at a store where they get suits from the exact same fabric mill that produces fabric for  Chanel suits, but the labels are not Chanel, they have another more affordable line. Where you would pay $5,000-$7,000 for a Chanel suit, you could get something of comparable fabric for $2,200. In my book, I’d rather save to own something like that than rent it for $800 for one night … but maybe that’s me.

I also would rather drop the money on a ticket to Paris or Florence to shop for some amazing clothes that I can actually own … at least if I don’t want the clothes anymore, I can sell it off at a consignment store or list it on eBay. I’m blessed to have Euro friends who open their doors to me whenever I’m in Euro withdrawal.

Now, some might argue that renting designer wear for one special evening is no different than renting a wedding dress and a tuxedo for a wedding. In theory, I agree, but practically, I would NOT want to be seen at a party with my wedding dress three months after my wedding. When it comes to buying couture and wearing it more than once … I truly don’t mind. I can easily change it up with accessories. If I were Halle Berry (good Lord her man is FINE) that might be a different story, but I don’t have too many hungry paparazzi chasing me to splash my photos all over the Internet.

>>>> So would you drop $1,000 to rent a dress?

Another interesting about the CNN report was that they went out and interviewed a number of people and asked them if they would rent designer wear. The respondents were on either side of the fence … some people thought it was a brilliant idea and others loaded the concept of dropping so much cash on something that you cannot keep.

One woman expressed my feelings when she said that she would never want to hold (referring to a handbag) or wear something that so many other people had before her.

I’ll go one step further and say that when it comes to renting shoes … the concept makes me cringe. I don’t bowl for one reason – I’m not putting my feet into shoes that many other people have worn and sweated in (period)!

>>> Would you rent a lifestyle? I’d love to hear your position on this post. Leave me a comment to let me know if you agree or disagree.

Photo by MoonSoleil