Hennes & Mauritz AB (H&M) is testing a clothing rental service as the fashion industry faces mounting criticism for waste and pollution.
As of yesterday, consumers could rent garments for 350 kronor (US$36.65) a week in a refurbished flagship store on Sergels Torg in central Stockholm.
The Swedish retailer follows Gap Inc’s Banana Republic and Urban Outfitters Inc, which both launched similar services earlier this year to tap into a market that reached US$1 billion last year.
Web sites such as Vinted and Hurr Collective are expanding in Europe, offering consumers a way to sell or rent used clothes.
H&M’s rental model is limited to a collection of 50 garments offered to members of the company’s loyalty program. It is to assess the trial in three months before expanding any further.
The shop, which is testing new concepts, is also to feature clothing repair services, a coffee shop and a beauty bar.
“We have a huge belief in rental, but we still want to test and learn quite a lot, and do tweaks and changes,” H&M head of business development Daniel Claesson said in a presentation at the flagship store.
Credit Suisse analyst Simon Irwin said that he has doubts about the plan.
“I’d be surprised if you can really make it work as a business model,” Irwin said. “I can’t see that the kind of labor cost involved in a rental model at those price points really makes sense.”
The clothing industry has come under increasing scrutiny as it is responsible for as much as 10 percent of global greenhouse gas emissions, and it consumes more energy than aviation and shipping combined, according to UN data.
By 2040, H&M intends to reach the point that its greenhouse gas emissions go negative, meaning that it would offset more than it produces.
Polytronics Technology Corp (聚鼎科技) yesterday announced that it is buying Henkel AG’s thermal clad dielectric material (TCLAD) business division for US$26 million as the Taiwanese firm aims to improve its technology, product portfolio and revenue performance. Polytronics, headquartered in the Hsinchu Science Park (新竹科學園區), is a supplier of protection components and heat dissipation materials. The firm entered the metallic heat-dissipation substrate market in 2007 and developed a unique solventless production process. Its board of directors approved signing an agreement with Henkel to acquire the German chemical firm’s TCLAD division in the US. The purchase includes all assets and business interests, including equipment,
ELECTRIC FARMLAND: TSMC’s proposal to clear 230 hectares of reforested land for what would become Taiwan’s largest photovoltaic solar farm has generated concerns New rules curbing solar farms built on agricultural land sparked fierce debate at a packed public hearing at the Legislative Yuan yesterday, with industry representatives saying that the new restrictions would endanger President Tsai Ing-wen’s (蔡英文) green energy goals, while agricultural officials emphasized the importance of protecting farmers and the environment. The Tsai administration has set a target to generate 20 percent of the nation’s power from renewable sources by 2025, by which time it also aims to install 20 gigawatts (GW) of solar power, including 6GW from rooftop solar systems and 14GW from ground-mounted solar farms. Although rooftop solar systems are
Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co (TSMC, 台積電) yesterday posted monthly revenue that suggested second-quarter sales surpassed analysts’ estimates, underscoring how its technological lead is helping the chipmaker weather the COVID-19 pandemic and US sanctions on its second-biggest customer Huawei Technologies Co (華為). Apple Inc’s main iPhone chipmaker posted sales of NT$120.88 billion (US$4.08 billion) for last month, up 40.8 percent year-on-year and bringing its revenue for the second quarter to NT$310.7 billion, beating the NT$308.8 billion analysts expected on average. TSMC, a barometer for the industry thanks to its heft in the global supply chain, had previously lowered its revenue outlook for this
‘SENSITIVE MARKETS’: The previously unannounced project would involve the company handing over control of data to a third party to sidestep privacy concerns Google has abandoned plans to offer a major new cloud service in China and other politically sensitive countries due in part to concerns over geopolitical tensions and the COVID-19 pandemic, two employees familiar with the matter said, revealing the challenges for US tech giants to secure business in those markets. In May, the search giant shut down the initiative, known as “Isolated Region” and which sought to address nations’ desires to control data within their borders, the employees said. The action was considered a “massive strategy shift,” said one of the employees, who added that Isolated Region had involved hundreds of employees
RSS