What proper fashion girl doesn’t have bags of old clothes laying in her closets, hallway and car trunk just waiting to be sold or donated? (This fashion girl counts her parents house, a Culver City storage locker and un-used kitchen cabinets as clothing, uh, storage, too.)
Elizabeth Kott, Rachel Zoe’s former manager of marketing and digital content, knows that there are plenty of stylish hoarders to be found. And Closet Rich, her just-launched website, proves it.
The site is designed to turn the standard consignment shop business model on its head, with Kott personally visiting the closets of clients (complimentary, we might add) to peruse their wardrobes for sellable gear. Garb that happens to have a special somethin’ somethin’ — say a designer label, on-trend look or vintage birthday — gets photographed for sale on the website, with clients getting a 50 percent cut when the piece sells.
Items that aren’t exactly right for Kott’s clotheshorse customer base get donated to the Hollywood chapter of Dress for Success, an organization that helps outfit underprivileged women as they embark on careers. And of course, if there’s stuff that clients don’t want to part with, Kott will offer her expert opinion on the art of altering, tailoring and making wardrobes feel current.
“I’m a therapist for their closets,” she joked on the phone earlier today.
Kott began the business after an epiphany had while helping her grandmother move earlier this year. “Your stuff owns you. And there’s a clarity of mind that comes from making room to only have what you need.”
Her new venture is bringing zen to some seriously stylish closets, including that of Kristen Reiter, a close friend who co-authors the way popular blog BleachBlack and is the action sports design director at Nike. According to Closet Rich’s Posterous blog, an Emporio Armani blouse from Reiter’s closet is available now for pre-order. Reiter is also a creative consultant for the site and served as its first model.
Pieces currently yours for the taking include a new pair of Lanvin sunglasses ($75), Derek Lam wood-and-leather T-strap heels ($50) and a cashmere Alexander Wang tank dress ($150), with a smattering of low-key vintage bags from Gucci, Fendi and Neiman Marcus thrown in. The site boasts eight pages of merchandise at the moment, with 140 reserve pieces being rotated in every week. And Kott is in the process of taking on new clients to ensure a constant stream of fresh meat.
“When you like clothes, all of your money is in your closet and no where else. Thats’s where your investment is,” Kott says, hitting the major twenty-something female money woe nail right on the head. “And everything else falls to the wayside. I really want to help my clients make as much of a profit as they can.”
Photo: Kott, right, and Reiter during their Closet Rich photo shoot. Reiter is sporting a pretty redonk pleated dress by Michon Schur, for sale on the site at$70.
