Moss Bros rebrands suit hire as rental to reach Millennials, will add app, fast delivery

By

Sandra Halliday

Published
Dec 6, 2016

Moss Bros is aiming to boost growth by investing millions of pounds in its suit hire service and updating it to target a new generation of Millennial men.

The menswear retailer, whose origins are in formal suit hire, is aiming to reach these younger consumers who are less likely to own a suit but will rent one for formal occasion such as weddings and black tie events as well as, increasingly, for job interviews.

CEO Brian Brick told the Evening Standard newspaper that the company’s longstanding hire service will be rebranded as “rental” and added that “the appetite for fashion rental is increasing as younger men in particular want to rent a lifestyle.”

Research by shopping centre giant Westfield has shown that around half of Millennials in the London area are prepared to spend £200 a month or more to rent clothes.

Moss Bros will launch its new approach next spring with an ad campaign to support it and an app due by the end of next year. It will also promise to deliver suits to customers within 90 minutes.

The move comes as fashion rental moves up a gear and Millennial customers are increasingly happy to rent rather than own many of the products they use or wear on a daily basis, from streaming music to renting TV box sets and delaying home ownership. Fashion businesses such as Rent The Runway have also tapped into this trend.