From Gore-Tex to Gamers, New Categories, Locations Driving Growth of reCommerce

Whether it’s the desire to skip the “hassle of packing” big, bulky clothes, or the reality that you may only hit the slopes once a year, the case for renting your ski outfits can make a lot of sense, both financially, logistically and environmentally.

That’s the thinking behind the expansion of “Outerwear on Demand,” an apparel rental program from fabric-maker Gore-Tex that is now available at 15 select resort and retail locations in North America, with plans to add more reCommerce opportunities in the future.

In calling apparel rental “the best choice” for consumers looking to bundle convenience, performance and changing weather conditions, Gore-Tex said the program marks “the next step in making it easier to enjoy outdoor winter sports.

“We’ve set out to create a very technical, very durable line of clothing that will stand up to frequent use and cleaning,” Chris Brennan, product specialist – innovation, Fabrics Division at Gore-Tex said in a statement, calling the reCommerce choice a “convenient alternative to purchasing when it comes to outfitting themselves for winter adventure.”

While renting skis, boots, poles and a helmet (or comparable snowboarding equipment) is standard slope-side commerce, the idea of renting your clothing is a completely new option.

But with a typical ski jacket costing anywhere from $300 to $800 from a variety of outerwear retailers and eCommerce sellers, plus an equivalent investment in a quality pair of pants, the fractional cost of suiting up in rented gear versus an outright purchase is an attractive option that also makes the costly winter sport a bit more accessible.

From Gowns to Games

The Gore-Tex reCommerce program comes at a time when all manner of retail brands and designers are embracing circular commerce to give consumers — especially young ones — an option that they increasingly want and need.

Last month, for example, fashion house Oscar de la Renta announced plans to expand its Encore resale division, within a high-end segment that includes reCommerce players such as The RealReal, Poshmark and thredUp that is now estimated to be worth $130 billion.

“We think about resale as a way for us to acquire new customers and most importantly retain existing customers,” Oscar de la Renta CEO Alex Bolen said, calling reCommerce a “fundamental change in luxury fashion” where used apparel has gone from being a consumable or disposable product to an asset that can be resold — especially higher price point garments.

And it’s not just apparel, as numerous other industries are also hearing the call from consumers to rethink the way they manufacture and sell their goods.  UK-based musicMagpie, for example, is expanding its stable of secondhand gear from cellphones and tablets to Xbox or PlayStation gaming consoles.

It’s all part of a broader trend PYMNTS CEO Karen Webster laid out in early January, predicting the resale space was set to undergo a burst of expansion and a range of innovation to make the format more available and easier for consumers to transact than ever.

“2022 will be the year that luxury brands strike back and use payments to help them reinvent the reCommerce experience,” Webster wrote in her 10-point digital transformation outlook that was published Jan. 10.

Read the full report: 10 Things Will Define the Digital Transformation in 2022

Whether goods are being resold in physical locations near major ski areas, or via upstart platforms such as StockX that resell sneakers, or through third-party sellers that manage the process for brands, it’s clear that “hot new thing” in retail is actually not new at all.