Aussie fashion startup The Volte has announced several key signings, with fashion powerhouse Kellie Hush (pictured, centre) taking on the role of creative director and stylist Suzy Eskander joining as head of business development and designer liaison.
The signings come after a drastic shift in designer fashion in the last 12 months, with new data showing a 300% increase in the amount Australians who purchase designer fashion as opposed to fast fashion as they can now earn income from their wardrobes.
The average Australian purchases two pieces of designer clothing, yet when offered the opportunity to make money on those big-ticket items, they will instead purchase four pieces – one every three to four months according to new data from designer dress sharing platform The Volte.
“This highlights how consumers now see fashion as an investment rather than as disposable. This has the potential to dramatically disrupt the $3 trillion fast fashion industry,” said Bernadette Olivier (pictured, centre right), co-founder of The Volte.
“There’s this realisation that you can buy that Zimmermann dress and it pays itself off – so that dress can easily become cost-neutral, or an investment making money.”
The platform has exploded in popularity in the past 12 months, with bookings doubling in the last quarter alone, with more than 250,000 monthly users now on the platform and almost 100,000 items listed, with that number growing daily.
About the move, Hush said: “A sustainable circular economy is key to the survival of the fashion industry.
“Every fashion business with a touchpoint in both the supply chain and product life cycle must recognise their responsibility and actively contribute to textile circularity and reduction of waste.
“The Volte is a pioneer in the peer-to-peer fashion rental space and is changing how Australian consumers approach fashion. It’s an exciting space to be working in as we can already see the consumer shift away from fast fashion, which for too long has promoted overshopping and a disposable approach to fashion.”
