Former Harper’s Bazaar editor Kellie Hush joins The Volte as creative director
Former editor-in-chief of Harper’s Bazaar Kellie Hush has just joined luxury dress-sharing platform The Volte as creative director, effective immediately.
Hush, who was at the glossy publication for six years, and recently the acting CEO of The Australian Fashion Council, said she made the move as she sees sustainability and the circular economy as the key to the future of fashion.
Kellie Hush
The Volte has gained popularity in the past 12 months, with bookings doubling in the last quarter alone, with more than 250,000 monthly users now on the platform and 100,000 items listed, with that number growing daily, according to the platform.
About the move, Hush said: “A sustainable circular economy is key to the survival of the fashion industry.
“Every fashion business with a touchpoint in both the supply chain and product life cycle must recognise their responsibility and actively contribute to textile circularity and reduction of waste.
“The Volte is a pioneer in the peer-to-peer fashion rental space and is changing how Australian consumers approach fashion. It’s an exciting space to be working in as we can already see the consumer shift away from fast fashion, which for too long has promoted overshopping and a disposable approach to fashion.”
The fashion industry is now the second-largest contributor to CO2 emissions, second only to the oil industry, which is why its environmental impact cannot be ignored and businesses like The Volte are having a positive impact.
According to a survey facilitated by the platform, there’s been a shift in designer fashion in the last 12 months, with new data showing a 300% increase in the amount Australians who purchase designer fashion as opposed to fast fashion as they can now earn income from their wardrobes.
The average Australian purchases two pieces of designer clothing, yet when offered the opportunity to make money on those big-ticket items, they will instead purchase four pieces – one every three to four months according to new data from designer dress sharing platform The Volte.
“This highlights how consumers now see fashion as an investment rather than as disposable. This has the potential to dramatically disrupt the $3 trillion fast fashion industry,” said Bernadette Olivier, co-founder of The Volte.
“There’s this realisation that you can buy that Zimmermann dress and it pays itself off – so that dress can easily become cost-neutral, or an investment making money.”
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