The Iconic has rolled out a first-of-its-kind innovation that allows customers to resell, rent or recycle their preloved fashion items using the AirRobe Circular Wardrobe.
Created in partnership with Australian re-commerce platform, AirRobe, The Iconic has become the first major online retailer globally to integrate one-click functionality that allows customers to extend the life of their preloved fashion items with all details from product description and images, to suggested price, taken care of during the transaction process.
The Iconic CEO, Erica Berchtold said the retailer has been known as the pioneer, innovator and disrupter of retail in Australia and New Zealand since 2011.
“In our 10th year, this is still in our DNA as we announce a game-changing new partnership with AirRobe. Together we join forces to accelerate the circular fashion movement, by providing our customers with a seamless solution to shop more responsibly, extend the life cycle of their preloved fashion items and reduce the overall cost of their garments,” she said.
“This milestone brings us one step closer to addressing industry-wide sustainability challenges, and further demonstrates our commitment to becoming the most planet positive retailer in ANZ.”
Partnering with The Iconic has been described as a “great moment” for AirRobe with the leading ecommerce retail platform high on the hit list from the beginning, according to AirRobe founder and CEO, Hannon Comazzetto.
“The Iconic has a history of innovating and showing market leadership with a strong customer following so we are delighted to be able to bring AirRobe to such a wide and diverse audience across Australia. It’s a chance to give those shoppers a simple and fun way to enter the circular economy,” Comazzetto told Retailbiz.
She explained that there are a lot of benefits for retailers to integrate AirRobe into their platform.
“On the financial side, our partners are seeing great results in improving their ecommerce metrics and attracting new customers who are excited by using AirRobe and joining the circular economy,” she said.
“On the sustainability side, AirRobe is a low touch solution which allows retailers to enter the circular economy and encourage their customers to do the same. From the retailer’s perspective, integrating with AirRobe means improving brand loyalty, driving sales metrics and having a meaningful environmental impact. It’s also easy to install and we can have new brands up and running in a matter of hours.”
The idea for the AirRobe Circular Wardrobe was born from a desire to make shopping for preloved items as easy and joyful as shopping for new.
“When I was starting up AirRobe I spent almost a year looking at the solutions available for fashion sustainability and spoke to a lot of experts including fashion designers, brands, shop owners and manufacturers. I focused closely on the opportunities in the circular fashion economy and found that there was a real lack of solutions that enabled fashion brands and retailers to take part in and monetise the booming re-commerce industry,” Comazzetto said.
“On the flip side, speaking to consumers, I kept receiving the same feedback that people buy things with the intention to re-sell them, but they never end up doing it because they don’t have the time or the energy to list them. That’s when it struck me that we needed a solution to address this gap between retailers and consumers.”
Comazzetto believes the circular economy is at a tipping point with an increasing consumer awareness of the environmental benefits of going circular, which is driving huge demand for more sustainable solutions and platforms.
“Retailers and the broader fashion industry is finally waking up and looking for solutions to meet that demand and help them retain customers and drive brand loyalty. The knock-on effect is we now have innovation in the space and the building of products like AirRobe which make it easy to join the circular economy,” she said.