Startup of the Month: Clothify
The extended quarantine had us all at home for weeks on end and while some shifted to working from home—and some spent long hours binge-watching Netflix—others spent their time looking for new ways to address the quickly changing marketplace, which is exactly what three engineers from Seville did. We spoke with Pablo Candau, one of the founders of Clothify, to learn more about this new project.
What is Clothify?
Clothify is a fashion marketplace which allows people to access clothing that might otherwise be out of their price range. Our model allows people to rent clothing items, as opposed to having to buy them and then let them languish in their closet.
What is the concept of this project?
The idea is that people who want up-market clothing items can find them on our platform at a fraction of the retail price. For example, imagine you would like to wear a dress or a jacket for a special occasion that would normally cost you 90 euros or more to purchase. That’s quite an investment if you only plan to wear it a handful of times. On Clothify you can pay significantly less for it, enjoy it for the time you want to use it and then return it. We then have it professionally cleaned and, provided it is still in excellent condition, we offer it again on our website—good as new!
What happens to clothes that have been rented many times?
Well part of our project aims to help, in our own small way, to close the circle in the garment industry. People want to wear the latest models, but they are also becoming more conscious of the toll “fast fashion” is taking on the planet and are looking for ways to make more ethical choices. Clothify allows the consumer to pay for the actual use of a garment, no more, no less, and then “recycle” that garment. If a garment no longer meets our quality standards due to wear and tear, then it is taken out of circulation. We work with a number of nonprofits that then donate the clothing to those in need.
How did this idea come about?
This idea was developed over the many days of confinement, during which we had plenty of time to explore our project ideas!
I was speaking with one of the (now) founders of Clothify about a trip I had taken to the Philippines. Seeing how little people there cared about possessing material things made a deep impression on me. We were discussing the wastefulness of the fashion industry and thinking about sustainability and logistics and began to talk about the possibility of creating a business to address these issues, and this is how Clothify was born.
Sustainability is clearly very important to you; can you speak to that?
Yes, the textile industry is one of the most polluting industries on the planet, so creating a platform that can help empower consumers to make more sustainable purchasing choices is very exciting for us. We’re also very excited to be working with non-profit organizations to make sure that garments that are no longer suitable for rental can be given a new life with someone who really needs them.
If you would like to know more about Clothify, you can visit the website at clothify.es and follow on Instagram at @clothify.spain.