Rent a dress – My recent discovery of Beyond The Runway happened when I saw a local entrepreneur (Mariela Katz) talk about it. I’ve always liked her style and certainly relate to how busy she is and the need for elegant and sophisticated looks.
I’m also in between all kinds of activities and although I love shopping, the constant need for new apparel has always bothered me. I try to be sustainable but with sustainability I’ve also found a lack in options and definitely styles.
Beyond the Runway is a subscription based clothing rental service based in Montreal but servicing anyone across Canada. You can rent per item or with a subscription. This is where it gets really interesting! You can get a SILVER or GOLD subscription which will either allow you to choose any 4 items + 4 items for the month (1 first choice and 1 swap) or 4 items with unlimited swaps (returns and new picks). The company claims the GOLD plan (149$ per month) offers an unlimited dream closet. You can also rent luxury bags and the brands they carry are all amazing!
Reviews on Beyond the Runway – Dress rentals
It works! I’ve been using the gold subscription for almost 2 months now and can I tell you that for the first time of my life I’ve never been bored with what I wore. When I have an event, I always plan my selection from Beyond The Runway accordingly and when I don’t have an event, I get to choose a designer handbag and 3 other amazing dresses or jumpsuits that fit into the style I want for the week & YES blazer renting is a thing too!
They carry the newest collections of a few of my favorite dress designers including Anna Sui, Nicole Miller, Vicky and Lucas, Tadashi Shoji, etc.
Whoo-hoo, no more buying new dresses. With Beyond the Runway, I can even wear more than before!
The service has been really quick too – I’ve received some of my items as fast as the next business day. They come in a stunning garment bag, they are well protected and it truly feels like a treat to self. I never imagined being able to rent designer clothes that easily!
The return is what I had the most questions about and their team was quick to answer my email. Now with experience, it’s a no brainer. After you’ve worn your selection and are ready for the return, put back all of the clothes in the garment bag (without washing because they’ll take care of it) and drop them off to the closest Canada Post or Purolator drop-off point. The garment bag already has a return label on it. Easy peasy – now you can make your selection for your new items that you want to rent.
My Trick
To take advantage of the Gold plan and the unlimited swaps, like many other girls who love shopping online, whenever I have time, I browse their website www.beyondtherunway.ca to choose for my next rental package. I check out the new arrivals (they seem to have new arrivals every two weeks or three) and whenever I find something interesting, I add it to my cart; once I drop off my package to Canada Post, my account gets unlocked and I can place my order immediately. It moves so quickly and gets me on my best fashion sense every time!
My recommendation
I would definitely recommend the gold plan to any woman who likes to look good, who has a liking for exclusive items and wants to be sustainable. I went from spending over 500$ + a month on average quality items to now where I only spend for the 149$ subscription and I get to wear some of the designers I admire the most on the daily. Also when I have an event, I get to rent a formal dress and feel like a million dollars without having to spend more that given month.
Overall, I’ve found that Beyond The Runway has completely innovated the fashion accessibility to women in Montreal but also in Canada. Yes it’s a rental but it’s an amazing quality rental for an extremely accessible cost considering I can swap my items as many times as I want.
PS: they are definitely prom dress rental friendly – they have a beautiful selection of designer labels who’ve created stunning evening gowns!
Renting with Beyond the Runway is as easy as 1-2-3
1: Sign up with your name and email address on their website.
2: Go to My Account and select one renting plan from the 2 options available: Silver or Gold and pay the monthly membership fee with your credit card.
3: Browse and add up to four items to your cart, then checkout and wait for your package to arrive at your door in 1-3 business days for most of Canadian cities.
The order is shipped in a customized Beyond the Runway Garment bag with a prepaid return label.
The best thing is that you can cancel your membership at anytime in My Account. No long term commitment.
You can find more on how it works here
Written by Victoria Ashley
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