Episode 18 – Eve Kekeh of Bundlee

What we talk about

[02:20] Eve tells us about how she noticed that baby clothes created a problem, wondering how someone so small needed so much stuff, that is then outgrown very quickly. Eve lived in the US for a year, and had rented clothes from Rent the Runway, which had ‘normalised’ the idea of renting clothes.

Eve researched the problem as part of her Masters degree in Enterprise, discovering that babies grow through 7 sizes of clothes in their first two years. She set up a small-scale pilot with 8 families, with 2 ‘rounds’ of clothing over six months.

Getting started – funding and quality challenges

[10:19] Then we talk about early-stage funding, and the surprising challenges for product quality.  Finding that modern baby clothes, like many other clothes, are not designed to last, Eve decided to make clothes specifically for Bundlee to rent.

We discuss how the fashion industry is gradually starting to experiment with rental and resale, and the challenges of proving authenticity for high-value clothing.

Learnings from the pilot and early stages

[11:56] Eve shares some of the learnings from the pilot, and how she realised that to achieve the right quality and durability, Bundlee would have to make its own clothing range.

[16:10] We talk about reverse logistics, and the other aspects of circulating clothing that meets quality standards for durability and hygiene, and of course looks great.

The next phase for Bundlee

[18:09] Eve tells us about her plans for raising funds, scaling to a wider market, and clothes for toddlers.  She also plans to talk to brands that might be suitable for a rental model.

The mindset shift – baby-steps towards sustainability

[20:42] We talk about the customer decision process, and how the rental model makes so much sense for busy parents who are keen to embed sustainability into their buying decisions.  They think Bundlee and renting is such a cool concept, it’s both easy and convenient, and they love the quality of the clothes. Overall, it’s better quality at a more affordable price, yet sustainability is what the parents mention first. They are so delighted with the service that most of Bundlee’s marketing is through word-of-mouth recommendations.

[21:35] We talk about the mindset shift that’s happened over the last year or so, with more and more people wanting to engage with sustainable ways of living and working. Eve believes that billions of people making little changes can have a big impact.

Eve’s top tips for circular economy strategies

[24:55] Eve advises businesses to focus on the value you’re providing your customer – beyond the sustainability – for someone to make the switch from their usual product, service or buying habit, you need to offer additional value. For example, is it more convenient, better quality, better value etc.

[25:56] We discuss the importance of building a strong business case for all the stakeholders. Customers expect brands and manufacturers to be doing the right thing now – they don’t see why they should pay more for ethical sourcing, safe, non-polluting materials and so on. But in addition to the business case for your customer, you may have to persuade investors, board members, employees, suppliers and so on.