Interview & Photography by Cherie Birkner

Model Alexandra Gheorghe

Inspired by the Copenhagen street style RE-NT Revolution goes for a look that you could say is trendy, clean, a bit classy, but not too fancy... When Robina, the Founder, started selecting brands she focused mostly on the materials as her sustainability approach is to implement a fully circular system. Longevity and recyclability of the products are in the focus.

Every item has a unique RE-NT ID, which guarantees and tracks the full circular process. During the rental period, all garments are cleaned and repaired to extend the lifetime of the items. Once an item is fully worn-out it will be recycled or upcycled to produce something new out of it.

But how is clothing rental working in times of crisis, when there are no events to go to? For this I asked Robina to give us an interview.

Is the current situation affecting your rental business?

Actually, yes. Luckily, our subscription customers are very loyal - no one paused or cancelled their subscription. But acquiring new one-time or subscription customers became very difficult or impossible. And I totally understand that dinner parties are postponed and events cancelled. And I think in uncertain times you value ownership much higher than in flourishing times.

Therefore, we started to sell some of our beautiful Vintage outfits, which have not been possible before. But the RE-NT promise stays, every garment has its RE-NT ID included, which gives customers the possibility to return an item, whenever it’s broken or they do not like it anymore. We will repair or recycle it.

And now you started to sell upcycled face masks. Can you tell a bit about this project?

Yes, we wanted to do something, to contribute in any way and masks are scarce and important. So we started an upcycling project together with young, independent fashion designers and design students to create facemasks out of our old garments and leftover material. All masks are handmade in Berlin and for each sale, we donate 5 € to doctors without borders.

The masks are quite individual and some are unique ones. Do you have favourite pieces from this collection?

Yes, I really like the model ‘Karl’ designed by the student Hannah Gross. It’s very playful with the long white band but it’s very light cotton, so great for these warm days.

The Model ‘Clear Blue’ from the costume designer Lina Sahl is beautiful and clean. She designed the fabric in 2018 for one of her costumes and had it still at home. Also, she donates 100% of the work to doctors without borders.

‘Flatten the Curve’ by the design student Ana Stamenkova is amazing. This mask is composed of two items, a black face mask and a grey scarf which you can cover above the mask. The scarf is decorated with a black cord, symbolising a flattering curve.

And yes, one of the designs I really like is the mask Leopard. We created it from one of our old blouse which I really, really loved. I was wearing it many, many times, so I am quite nostalgic with this design.

Do you have any advice for people on how to wear the mask correctly?

Yes, first of all, it’s important to wear the mask correctly, it has to cover mouth and nose and there should be no gaps between your face and the mask. Also, it is recommended to wash the mask after every wear and to wash it by at least 60 degrees. And one additional side note, masks are effective only when used in combination with frequent hand-cleaning with soap and water and social distancing. More tips all around the mask you can find on our website.

Thank you for the interview!

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