Icky or inspired: rentable maternity wear
Icky or inspired: rentable maternity wear
When we got a press release from rentmaternitywear.com, a business by California “mompreneur” Marcelle Costello that leases special occasion dresses to pregnant women for $35 to $75, we thought it was a brilliant idea. But then we wondered, isn’t renting maternity wear a little sketchy, kind of like buying second-hand lingerie? Don’t get us wrong: pregnant women glow in that magical hormonally imbalanced way and deserve to flaunt it in flirty summer frocks. However, it’s an undeniable fact that along with the glow, there’s increased flow—of pee, sweat and vomit. Maybe Costello thought of that, too. For an extra $25, queasier moms-to-be will be guaranteed that a dress has been worn only once.
I feel like Ms Heinrichs is having it both ways: renting formal wear to pregnant women is “a brilliant idea” and also “icky”…but it seems she is leaning towards the latter. Which is it? Are you really suggesting that pregnant women go around peeing, sweating and vomiting in their evening gowns?
If this service rented formal wear in plus-sizes to obese people, would you suggest that it was “icky”? I’m sure they sweat more too…
Would knowing that the previous wearer of a dress used the bathroom four times instead of three times actually make a difference to one’s enjoyment of the dress?! If so, don’t wear a dress that might have been worn by a) the elderly b) anyone with a urinary tract infection c) any woman who’s had many children d) anyone on their period.
Renting maternity wear is no more “icky” than renting any other type of clothing. For some of us it’s a great idea, and for other, more fastidious people, it’s not. But the difference is in the eye of the renter, and shouldn’t depend on the pregnancy status of the wearer!
Bravo Jessica.
I don’t usually weigh in, but when a writer paints a picture of pregnant women as overly peeing, vomiting, and sweating human beings as if they have some sort of “icky” disease, I can’t sit silent. I am the “Costello” referred to in this article. In my 7th month of carrying twins, I wore a beautiful gown to the opening of the SF Opera. (They performed a Wagner, so it was a long 6 hour performance plus dinner served at midnight.) I assure you, despite having morning sickness nearly every day of my pregnancy, neither I nor my dress was overwhelmed with pee, vomit, or sweat. Nor was the dress of any other opera patron, pregnant or otherwise. In fact, I wish I still had my dress.
Our customers are wonderfully thoughtful and careful. In fact, several have returned their dresses carefully re-wrapped in the original tissue paper! I find wearing a rented dress for a few hours at a wedding no different from wearing a purchase that has been tried on during the sales at Neiman Marcus, Nordstrom, Marshalls, Target, Walmart etc.
Sellers on Ebay command a premium for dresses NWT (new with tags) and so do we. Everyone loves to wear something when it is brand new, and since all of our dresses come direct from the manufacturers and designers, we take the opportunity to make a little more profit should a customer value that option. Interestingly, to date, not one of our customers has paid the additional $25 for a guaranteed brand new dress. Instead, much to my delight, I hear how happy they are to have found our company online, and sales have shown this.
To answer this writer’s question, judging from the response to RentMaternityWear.com, I would say “icky” isn’t the word, but I am also too modest to call the idea “brilliant.” It’s just classic business — find a need, and fill it.
Sincerely,
Marcelle Costello
Founder, RentMaternityWear.com