Buy or Hire a Designer Dress? An Honest Comparison

If you have an event coming up, you may be weighing up whether to hire a dress or buy one. Dressed Up used to hire designer dresses and now sells them, so we have thought about this a lot. Here is an honest look at both options, and why buying a designer dress below RRP often makes more sense.

What hiring involves

You pay a fee for a fixed period, and you have to return the dress on time.
You need to look after the dress and return it clean and undamaged.
Late returns, damage and cleaning can add to the cost.
The dress is not yours, so you cannot alter it or wear it again.

What buying a designer dress involves

You pay once and the dress is yours to keep.
You can wear it to more than one event, and style it differently each time.
You can have it altered to fit you well.
There are no return dates, no late fees and no worrying about a mark on a borrowed dress.

When buying makes more sense

If you go to several events a year, such as weddings, the races and Christmas parties, one designer dress that you can wear more than once is good value. Buying also suits you if you want the dress to fit perfectly or if you like to keep the pieces you love.

Designer dresses below RRP

Buying does not have to mean paying full price. Our dresses are up to 50% off RRP, and you can choose new with tags or pre-loved. Every dress is authentic, and any fault not shown in the listing is fully refunded. Browse all dresses on sale, or see our dress hire page for more about the switch from hiring to selling.