Flyrobe Revolutionizes Sustainable Fashion: Aanchal Saini on Building India’s Largest Fashion Rental Empire
The modern closet presents a strange paradox: it is overflowing with clothes, yet we often feel we have nothing to wear. This isn't just a lack of organization—it's the "worn once" dilemma. In an age of social media where an outfit is "done" the moment it hits Instagram, the traditional model of buying expensive ethnic and occasion wear is becoming a financial and environmental burden. For millennials and Gen Z, the mantra is shifting from "ownership" to "access."
Enter Aanchal Saini, the CEO of Flyrobe. A former lawyer who pivoted to entrepreneurship with her startup **Rent It Bae**, Saini led the strategic acquisition of Flyrobe in 2019 to create India’s largest fashion rental powerhouse. By building an omnichannel ecosystem that blends high-tech logistics with high-touch offline stores, Saini is proving that luxury fashion can be circular. Through her "C2C" marketplace model, she’s turning India's "NPAs" (non-performing assets)—the designer lehengas sitting in bed boxes—into a revenue-generating asset class for everyday women.
The Problem: The 'Closet Paradox' and Wasteful Assets
Aanchal identified a genuine pain point early in her journey: the pressure to never repeat an outfit. For women, this meant closets full of heavy bridal wear that cost tens of thousands but offered zero utility after the wedding day. For men, it meant investing in niche garments like yellow Indo-Western suits for a friend's Haldi ceremony that would ultimately just take up storage space.
"Storage is a hassle, trends change, and the environment is a massive concern," Saini explains. "People want to wear the latest, but they don't want the guilt of waste." This realization led her to pivot the business from simple Western wear to the high-value **Occasion Wear** category, where the cost of purchase is high and the frequency of use is low—the perfect recipe for a rental model.
The Fashion Rental Opportunity
- Access over Ownership: Millennials prefer the freedom of wearing a new designer outfit for every event without the commitment of a ₹50,000 price tag.
- The 'Insta' Effect: Once a dress is photographed and posted, its social utility drops significantly for the owner.
- Sustainability: Renting one garment to multiple users drastically reduces the carbon footprint per wear.
Logistics: Running a 'Hotel Booking System' for Clothes
Running a rental business is significantly more complex than standard e-commerce. While Myntra ships a product and the transaction ends, at Flyrobe, the shipment is just the beginning. "It is like a hotel booking system. One asset is booked by multiple people during different durations," says Saini.
1. The Time-Sensitive Cycle
An outfit might go to User A on Day 1, come back on Day 4, undergo laundry and dry cleaning on Day 5, and be ready for User B on Day 7. Unlike a t-shirt order that can be late, a wedding outfit delivery is critical. A delay of one day is a complete failure.
2. The Customization Challenge
In India, women’s sizes aren't standardized. A 'Medium' in Zara is different from a 'Medium' in a designer label. Flyrobe had to master the art of **remote alterations and fittings**. To bridge the gap, they moved to an omnichannel model where users can "touch and feel" the lehengas and get pinned for perfect alterations in-store.
3. PR & Trust Building
In the early days, Flyrobe spent heavily to overcome the "hygiene" stigma. They sent delivery persons with portable steam irons to users' homes, allowing them to try the outfit while the person waited with an extra size up or down. "It had to be pristine. It couldn't feel like an old cloth," Saini recalls.
The Flyrobe Rental Journey
- Discovery: 70% of users discover the catalog online via the app or Instagram.
- The Fit: Users visit a physical store (often on the 1st or 2nd floor to save on rentals) for trials and alterations.
- The Event: The outfit is delivered dry-cleaned and steam-pressed in luxurious packaging.
- The Return: Flyrobe picks up the outfit; the user doesn't even have to worry about the dry cleaning.
The C2C Revolution: Turning 'NPAs' into Income
The biggest breakthrough for Flyrobe’s profitability was the shift from company-owned inventory to a **Marketplace model**. Saini realized that every Indian woman already had an "inventory" of expensive clothes sitting idle in her 'bed box'.
"Why run after designers when every woman in India has a closet full of assets? We opened the C2C (Customer-to-Customer) model where you can rent out your lehenga and make money," she explains. Flyrobe maintains a high bar, accepting only about **7%** of the outfits submitted to ensure the collection remains on-trend and high-quality. This model allows Flyrobe to scale without the massive debt typically required for inventory-heavy businesses.
Growth and Profitability
10x Growth: Since the acquisition, Flyrobe has turned the corner from a heavy-burn startup to a profitable enterprise. By using equity for growth and moving stores to higher floors with lower rentals, they’ve optimized the P&L for long-term sustainability.
Resilience: Surviving the COVID Freeze
When the pandemic hit, the wedding industry—and by extension, Flyrobe—came to a standstill. Saini admits it was a terrifying time. However, she leaned into the "never give up" mantra. During the total lockdown, 70 people contacted her desperate for wedding outfits. "We opened the warehouses. If you are allowing weddings, you have to allow the outfits. We weren't a 'necessary' service, but for those families, we were essential," she says.
This period strengthened the bond with her core team. "Entrepreneurship is not a one-man show. My team did everything possible to survive. We gave them the respect to make their own decisions, and that thick bond is why we are still here while competitors died."
Advice for Entrepreneurs
No Shortcuts: Aanchal believes that everything you try to sideline or ignore will eventually "come on your face." Handle every challenge as it moves along your path. There are no easy ways to build a legacy brand.
Key Takeaways: The Flyrobe Blueprint
- Asset-Light is Right: Moving from company-owned to C2C and designer-owned marketplaces is the key to scaling fashion tech.
- Omnichannel is Essential: For high-value ethnic wear, the physical store provides the "touch and feel" and trial confidence that pure online can't match.
- Hygiene is the Moat: In rentals, the quality of dry cleaning and the "pristine" feel of the garment is your most important product feature.
- Educate to Convert: Don't just target existing renters; target buyers and show them the math of "10 outfits for the price of 1."
As Aanchal Saini continues to expand Flyrobe across 30+ cities, the message is clear: the future of fashion is not in more production, but in better circulation. By redefining the lehenga as a shared asset rather than a hidden waste, Flyrobe is ensuring that every Indian woman can feel iconic, one rental at a time.
About the Guest
Aanchal Saini is the CEO of Flyrobe. A lawyer by profession with seven years of experience at the Delhi High Court, she transitioned to entrepreneurship by founding **Rent It Bae**. In 2019, she orchestrated the acquisition of Flyrobe, merging the two entities to create India’s largest fashion rental platform. A recognized leader in the circular economy, she recently appeared on Shark Tank India Season 3 and is a vocal advocate for sustainable, accessible luxury.
Flyrobe is India’s first and largest omnichannel fashion rental service. It offers a curated collection of designer ethnic and Western wear for men and women, featuring both a designer marketplace and a unique C2C platform that allows individuals to rent out their premium closets.