Some products show up everywhere — subway ads, Instagram, celeb endorsements. With this series, we're testing such products to conclude one thing: Does it live up to the hype?
Nuuly, a monthly clothing rental subscription from URBN (the company behind Urban Outfitters, Anthropologie and Free People).
Nuuly launched last spring with a compelling price point: rent six items per month for $88 with the option to add on more items for an additional charge. At the end of each month, subscribers send back all the items, or buy the ones they liked at a 20 to 40% discount from the retail price. The range of brands Nuuly offers extends beyond the URBN stock, with new labels hitting the digital racks all the time.
- Over 30K Instagram followers
- Reviews from Buzzfeed News, Business Insider, Bustle
While I've tried food subscription boxes like Blue Apron and HungryRoot, I'm a clothing-subscription newbie. I enlisted two fashionable coworkers — beauty editor Ashley Phillips and lifestyle editor Zarah Kavarana — to see how the service works for varying body types, and we all started with a free month thanks to the Nuuly PR rep.
I filtered the 3,000-plus clothing listings for my size and starting paging through the results. My strategy was to find a few playful pieces that I wouldn't normally buy since I had the luxury of sending them back after a few wears. I also wanted to rent a few workwear pieces to throw on any day of the week. I'm typically between a medium and large top and anywhere from 6 to 10 in bottoms, with a long inseam preferred. There were about 2,800 items available in my size, and I found the search results in each category to be manageable: Right now there are about 650 tops, 700 dresses, and 400 jackets listed in my size.
The process of crawling through pages and adding things to my bag totally satisfied the "I feel like online shopping" itch I get from time to time, and I had fun strategically adding, subtracting and visualizing my looks. It was a little stressful to research and pick the right size for each brand, as some of the new items on the site don't have many user-submitted images or reviews, and you can only pick one size per item.
After I narrowed down my finalists to six, I confirmed the order and waited a few days for my Nuuly reusable zip-up bag to arrive. I give major props to the packaging: the heaps of plastic bags and cardboard that are so common in e-commerce orders and other subscription boxes are nowhere in sight. It's super easy to unbox, wear these clothes for a month, and send them back unwashed with a shipping label that's included.
All six items in my first box miraculously fit! Granted, the bar for a perfect fit is lower because I'm not keeping these clothes forever. I wasn't as annoyed that the pants slid down throughout the day and the boho dress bunched a little weirdly at the waistline. I wore the pieces at every opportunity within the month and then sent them packing. I've paid for 2 more months out of my own pocket and decided that tops, sweaters, and statement coats are my sweet spot — I can count on these categories to have the best fit and most wearability. I'd rather wear one of the tried-and-true pants I own and spice up my look with a cute rented shirt.
While I had luck finding things in my size that I liked, my coworkers struggled. Read our reviews to see how Nuuly worked for different body types and style:
Nuuly is reframing how I think about my closet. I'm compelled to continue to invest time and research into buying go-to bottoms, and I'm equally happy to peruse Nuuly to rent the sparkly, furry, trendy tops and occasional dresses that give me a pep in my step each month. I've liked a majority of the items I've rented, so I feel confident sending sign-up codes to my sisters and referring my pregnant friends to its maternity section.
I'm hopeful the variety and sizing will continue to expand to give everyone more options that fit, and that the feedback loop with user reviews grows so that we can judge size selections better. I've decided to keep my subscription running until the arrival of that Nuuly transport bag no longer makes me feel like an influencer doing an unboxing vid.
Read More:
The Best Beauty Subscription Boxes So You Can Try Before You Buy
Slay All 9 Months With These Stylish Maternity Clothing Brands
30+ Great Gifts to Buy for Yourself — Because You Deserve Something Special, Too
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