Why do men rent clothes for special occasions?

Product conversation with Shweta Poddar, Candidmen

Oct 17, 2023

I've known Shweta Poddar for nearly twenty years. However, the single hour I dedicated to interviewing her about her business was incredibly enlightening despite the countless hours we've spent talking throughout our lives.

In 2015, Shweta Poddar founded Candidmen, formerly known as Candidknots, a startup specialising in men's fashion rentals. The company provides rental services for special occasion attire, typically worn only a few times, making high-end fashion more accessible and affordable. Men rent outfits from Candidmen for various events, including weddings, graduation ceremonies, annual meetings, interviews, or even GMAT applications. This discussion delves into the realm of men's fashion rentals, exploring the business's stigma, acceptance, scepticism, and financial aspects.

Men are logical buyers, and women are emotional buyers

Why does Candidmen cater only to men?

We initially intended to focus solely on women's fashion. The common perception is that fashion is predominantly a female interest. However, we were fortunate enough to find a talented designer in Bangalore eager to collaborate with us. This led us to expand our scope to include men's fashion. As our business evolved, we discovered men were early adopters of the rental concept. Men tend to approach clothing purchases with a logical mindset, while women are often more emotionally driven. This was one of the key reasons we decided to shift our focus.

Another factor was our financial situation. As a bootstrapped company, we have not yet secured any external funding. Scaling our women's line would require a significant financial investment. In contrast, men's clothing is somewhat simpler. We can refresh our collection with 100 new designs every six months, and our male customers are satisfied. We would need a larger variety of stock-keeping units (SKUs) for women. Considering these factors, we decided to pivot our business model to focus exclusively on men's fashion.

Can you explain the statement Men are logical buyers and women are more emotional buyers?

When it comes to clothing, we've observed distinct differences in consumer behaviour between men and women. Men tend to approach clothing purchases with a practical mindset. Instead of buying a suit for ₹30,000, they might consider renting it to save money. For example, if you rent a ₹30,000 suit, you could get it for ₹3,000 to ₹4,000. They reason that the remaining money could be used for something more enjoyable, like a trip to Thailand for a bachelor's party.

Women, on the other hand, approach clothing purchases differently. Even though they know that they might only wear a dress once or twice, they often emotionally attach to the garment. They want to savour it, to keep it for themselves.

How long did you experiment before focussing just on men's clothing?

During the first six months of our business, we catered to both men and women. Our data showed that 20% of our clothing was for men, and 80% was for women. However, the order ratio was exactly the opposite. Men placed 80% of the orders, while women placed the remaining 20%. Observing this trend, we began to focus more on the male segment, as it appeared to be more profitable for us. Within a year of operating, our focus had already shifted predominantly towards men. We decided to excel in one segment rather than attempting to cater to both and potentially falling short. Therefore, within that first year, we ceased catering to women entirely.

Why are Indians more open to renting now than ever before?

Has the rental market for clothes always existed? How big is the market?

While rental clothing may not have been prominent in cities like Bangalore or Hyderabad, it has been a longstanding practice in cities such as Kolkata, Mumbai, and Delhi. This concept has been around since my father's generation. For instance, my father was aware of this rental concept in Kolkata during his wedding. However, the perception of rental clothing has often been negative. It was generally seen as an option for those who couldn't afford to buy. This perception was reflected in the way rental stores maintained their collections. They didn't strive to stock the trendiest items, knowing that their clientele couldn't afford to buy such clothing. They assumed that these customers would settle for whatever options were available. In today's world, however, the market for rental clothing has expanded significantly. Current data suggests a ₹600 crore market in India, a figure that's likely to grow substantially.

Why are people more open to renting clothes now? What has changed?

One significant trend is that men have recently started experimenting with clothing. In the past, suits were mostly blue, black, or grey. These were the only three colours you would typically see people wearing. However, nowadays, you can observe men experimenting with their clothes and colours on any occasion. Men have become comfortable wearing pink, purple, mauve, and other colours. This shift in men's fashion is one of the reasons the market has changed.

Another reason for this change is generational. We have moved from wanting to own everything to experiencing or experimenting with things. Unlike our parents' generation, which valued ownership and purchasing, we are changing in that respect. The advent of the Instagram generation has also significantly influenced this change. Now, when you wear a dress and post it online, you seem to lose interest in wearing it again because your friends and acquaintances have already seen it. This phenomenon has increased the desire to have more or different dresses for different occasions. Before the Instagram generation, if I had a dress for a wedding, a lehenga, for example, I could wear it once for a function on my mother's side. Then I could reuse it for a function on my father's side and again at a friend's or colleague's function. There would be different groups of people who hadn't seen me wearing that dress, so no one would notice me repeating the dress.

However, with the Instagram generation, once I post a picture of the dress online, everyone who knows me, from my father's to my mother's side, including colleagues or friends, has all seen it. So, I lost interest in wearing it again because everyone had seen it. This is also one of the reasons why people want to change and why dress rental is becoming more popular.

First-time renting and doubts

Who are your customers?

Choosing to wear a suit or a sherwani is not necessary; it's not one of the basic needs. One can opt to wear regular pants and a shirt instead. Therefore, it's not a choice typically made by people in the lower income bracket. Renting these items is a decision made by those who want to present themselves in a certain way and look good. For us, the market segment is primarily the middle class and upper-middle class. Our customer base consists of anyone with monthly earnings ranging from ₹ 50,000 to ₹ 2,00,000.

What questions do your customers have while renting for the first time?

One of the primary concerns is hygiene. Is the item being dry-cleaned? The second consideration is quality. I want to wear it, but I also want to look as good as if I had bought something new. No one should be able to tell that what I'm wearing isn't new or doesn't look great. There should be no question of it appearing cheap or old. So, there are two main factors: hygiene and product quality.

How is Candidmen solving it?

Initially, our business began as an exclusively online platform. We intended to remain online-only but soon realised that our product - high-quality, occasion-specific dresses - required a different approach. Customers, understandably, place a lot of importance on their attire for special events. Therefore, we concluded that we wouldn't be able to succeed with an online-only model.

To better understand the market, I studied the strategies of other online retailers, such as Myntra and Flipkart. I noticed their average cost price in the dress section was around ₹600. I also looked at the average order value for other brands successfully operating online. Customers are generally comfortable purchasing casual t-shirts online due to their lower price points. However, when buying a dress for a significant event, like a sibling's wedding, customers tend to be more cautious and prefer a more hands-on shopping experience.

This insight led us to pivot our business model. We began by inviting customers to our office space for dress trials. At this point, we didn't have a showroom; we simply asked customers to shortlist their preferred dresses from our website and then come in for a fitting.

We opened our first showroom in October of the previous year, marking a year since CandidMen expanded beyond the online space. This transition was driven by the growth we observed when customers started coming in for trials. We have since moved towards having showrooms in every city, maintaining our online presence while also offering a physical space for our customers to try on our products. This evolution from an online-only platform to a hybrid model has significantly affected our business growth.

**A look inside the Candidmen Showroom in Hyderabad**

Fashion rental as a collective experience

Do your customers come alone, or do they bring something along with them to the store?

People seldom come alone. More often, they arrive with friends or family. It's not uncommon for someone to be accompanied by a group of friends while also on a video call with their fiancé or another significant person in their life. Men often bring important women into their lives, such as mothers, sisters, wives, or girlfriends. This is because women frequently play a significant role in deciding what looks good.

However, there are exceptions. People who are very confident, such as event managers, hosts, anchors, or actors, often come alone. This type of audience knows what they want. They understand their bodies and clearly know what they want to wear. These are the only customers we typically see who come alone. The average customer usually brings along someone else.

Do women ensure their men select a colour that matches their dress for an event? I have firsthand experience with this.

Yes, it happens quite frequently. We often have men visit our shop, only to express surprise at the absence of female attire. However, they usually select a female partner's dress first and then decide on a man's outfit based on hers. This pairing is common, especially for events like weddings, sangeet ceremonies, or pre-wedding photoshoots, where the entire concept revolves around coordinating outfits. We have stylists in our showroom who are trained to help customers with this. They know what works with what, and they assist customers in making their selections.

What are some of the surprising contexts in which people have rented?

Pre-wedding and post-wedding photo shoots are currently very popular. It seems that almost everyone is participating in this trend. These shoots primarily showcase the couple's outfits and create memorable photos. This trend represents a significant portion of my market.

Even customers who are hesitant initially, especially those who are financially well-off, are drawn to this service. These customers often come from families where renting outfits for their own weddings is not typically allowed. The decision about what to wear for their wedding is not solely up to the couple. Many family members are also involved in this decision.

However, these same customers are comfortable with the idea of renting outfits for their pre-wedding photo shoots. Even if they choose not to rent their wedding attire from me, they are open to renting for their pre-wedding shoots. Therefore, the pre-wedding photo shoot market is one area where everyone seems to agree when I mention rental.

Business of fashion rental

What is the percentage split between people who order online and those who come to the store?

75% are coming to the store for me right now, 25% are ordering online.

What do you think about the delivery? Is it scheduled, or is it instant?

Yes, our service is primarily scheduled. We also offer instant services, but we generally advise our customers to utilise services like Porter or Dunzo, which are readily available. On our website, customers cannot place orders for the same day. The earliest available delivery slot is for the next day. This is because clothing is not typically an immediate necessity. Most customers plan their clothing needs for their events at least a day or two in advance. However, for those requiring instant service, we offer a feature where requests can be made via WhatsApp or phone. We will then prepare the product for pickup through your chosen courier service.

What is your average order value?

The average order value is ₹2,300 in CandidMen as of now. It could contain one, two or three products, including accessories.

How are you competing with online players like Myntra, who sell apparel at a steep discount?

No, we offer a very good value proposition. Anyone who has tried shopping in that particular segment would understand. What you find on Myntra are very basic blazers or suits in black, blue, or grey. There's nothing more in the suit segment, nothing elaborate. You definitely won't find any workpieces, embroidery, or designer wear. You'll only find simple, plain items that you can use for an occasion.

Even if these items are offered at a dirt-cheap price, they're still priced at 3k. We offer those very simple blazers for ₹899. Our conversation with customers usually goes like this: if you use it more than three to four times, you should buy it. But if you're not going to use it more than three to four times, then renting is still economical, even in that lower section.

There's no debate in the higher section, which includes workpieces. You're definitely saving a substantial amount of money. For instance, if you rent an ₹10,000 dress for ₹1,000, you save ₹9,000. If you're renting an ₹25,000 dress for ₹3,000, you’re saving ₹22,000. As the product becomes more expensive, you save even more by renting. Myntra might be able to compete with us in our ₹899 product segment, but certainly not in our more expensive product range.

The growth hack to increase NPS.

**Duration selection toolbar from the Candidmen website**

I noticed an intriguing option on your website while trying to rent. I could rent for 1 day, 4 days, 8 days, or 16 days. There's a period in which I can select the number of days. However, when I choose one day, a message appears stating that one day actually equates to a four-day cycle. Please clarify this for us.

We offer a four-day rental period to provide our customers with ample time to use and return the product. Typically, this process requires at least three days. For instance, you would want your dress to arrive one day before your event. It wouldn't make sense to receive it on the day of the event.

We initially started offering a four-day cycle to give our customers peace of mind. We want them to have their dress two days before their event. Whether attending a wedding, perhaps your brother's, or even a pre-wedding photoshoot, you wouldn't want to leave everything to the last minute.

From a logistical perspective, it's challenging to deliver your dress on the day of your event, say at 8 or 10 o'clock in the morning if your event is at 4 o'clock. If we deliver your dress two days in advance, we can easily manage logistics. Plus, you'll be more relaxed knowing that you have your dress.

Another advantage of this approach is that it allows for minor fitting adjustments. For example, if you ordered a month ago, you might want a half-inch tuck here or there. If we deliver the dress to you two days in advance, you'll have the flexibility to make these changes. If the dress arrives at the last minute and you need alterations, neither you nor we will have the time to address them.

This is why we encourage our customers to receive their dresses two days before their event and return them one day after. Hence, we offer a four-day rental cycle.

But why not write it as four days? Why do you write it one day?

Indeed, we initially advertised our service as a four-day rental. However, this led to customer dissatisfaction and lower feedback scores. Many clients expressed confusion, questioning why they had to pay for four days when they only needed the item for one.

This setup was more beneficial for customers who actually required a four-day rental. Those who only wanted the item for a single day felt they weren't receiving value for their money. They were prepared to return the item after one day but were still charged for four.

Initially, we clarified that the charge was for a single day, specifically one dry clean wash. However, this explanation didn't resonate with our customers.

To alleviate the confusion, we altered our wording. We now state that the rental is for one day, but we specify in brackets that one day is part of a four-day cycle. This cycle includes the first day for pickup, the second day for addressing potential issues, the third day for wearing the item at the event, and the fourth day for returning it.

Candidmen vs other fashion rental startup

We have seen a lot of fashion rental startups who have raised money have shut down; what worked in your favour despite being a bootstrapped company?

One advantage we have is that most of our designs are created in-house, which gives us a significant margin of control. This is more beneficial than buying from a designer, where there is no concept of an MRP. The cost of designer wear is often high due to the brand or label name. While the material's quality and the design's uniqueness may justify the price, the cost of resources often does not. However, because we primarily produce in-house, we have a cost advantage.

This is one of the factors that has contributed to our success. Additionally, we decided not to cater to both men and women simultaneously, as managing two lines can be challenging. For women's clothing, especially in India, where women tend to be voluptuous, getting the size right for a rental product can be difficult. The more alterations made to a product, the more its value decreases. The only significant sizing aspect for men is the shoulder width, making scaling easier and requiring fewer alterations.

Another strategy we employ is to launch 50 new trending styles every six months rather than producing one piece in one style. We offer a range of sizes in each style. Men prefer clean, crisp options and don't want to be overwhelmed with choices. Therefore, we've streamlined our approach to always launch 50 to 100 good styles, but with a variety of size options. This strategy has also proven beneficial.

Women in a men's business

I have rarely seen a woman founder getting into a men-focused business. What are some of the challenges for you as an entrepreneur?

From a fashion perspective, women have always had a say in what men wear. This influence is evident in our families and elsewhere. I've never felt out of place, or like I'm encroaching on unfamiliar territory. In fact, I've always felt quite comfortable with it.

Consider this: when men go shopping, who often accompanies them? In most cases, it's a woman. Women are often involved in these decisions, whether it's a friend, a sister, a mother, or a partner. Therefore, I am quite justified in advising men on what to wear for various occasions.

What is your goal for CandidMen in the future?

I aspire to elevate CandidMen to the status of a respected brand comparable to retail giants like Manyawar. Our goal is to reach a level where we are recognised for our quality, service, and overall customer experience. We want to change the perception of clothing rental services, ensuring they are never looked down upon. This shift in mindset is happening slowly but surely. Renting clothes is no longer something to be frowned upon; in fact, it's becoming one of the trendiest things to do.

(Fin)