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If there were a personal possession I'd like transformed into a service, I think it might be clothing rather than furniture. With furniture, once you have the

If there were a personal possession I'd like transformed into a service, I think it might be clothing rather than furniture. With furniture, once you have the appropriate pieces, you don't really need to do much with them. Also, it's easy enough to buy / sell furniture as needed, i.e. whenever you feel like moving. As for clothing - with changing seasons, drycleaning, different dress codes, polishing shoes, etc, etc... wish there were something where I could order the next week or two's clothing for hire, and send it back dirty, and let someone else figure out when it needs replacing, polishing, etc.

dingaling 10y ago
Yes, clothes drive me mad. I'd find something comfortable in a decent fit and buy half-a-dozen of them all at the same time, then attempt to wear them until they wore-out. But when I went back to the store they'd changed 'seasons' or 'styles' and the same items were no longer available. I'd defer searching for and purchasing new items until my wife would force me to do so due to holes in my pullovers etc. I'm not sure how Steve Jobs overcame this problem with his turtle-necks, unless he had them custom-made. My solution to this was to start shopping in country-life ( farming / horse-riding etc ) and workwear shops. Not only do the items last longer but those ranges have much lower churn. Not as fashionable as high-street stores I suppose but functionally sufficient and less stressful for me overall. In comparison furniture has zero cognitive burden for me once selected and installed. I've moved house once and it was just a case of hiring a removals company with a big van, they did all the work.
- dagw 10y ago
  But when I went back to the store they'd changed 'seasons' or 'styles' and the same items were no longer available Stick to classic designs from classic brands and you won't have that problem. The basic white dress shirt/blouse for example works for all occasions and if you find a fit that works for you from an established brand you'll never have to worry about fit again (until you change size).
  - mrexroad 10y ago
    This. I buy 2 pair of Levi's 501 on sale each year for ~$35, a single brand/style of underwear, single style/brand under shirt, single brand/style of athletic socks, 2 pair minimum of any style/design of non-athletic socks, etc. Button up shirts purchased as needed (trying to limit to 5-7) from same brand, and all matching jeans. I can blindly grab first item in each stack and have consistent results. haven't felt need to simplify any further. I try and stock up on the socks/undergarments during sales, and then replace in drawer once showing signs of excessive wear. so far so good.
- joncrocks 10y ago
  Jobs struck up a friendship with Issey Miyake, who apparently made them for him and sent him a whole bunch. http://www.cultofmac.com/122575/why-steve-jobs-wore-turtlenecks/ http://www.cultofmac.com/122575/why-steve-jobs-wore-turtlene...
rahoulb 10y ago
Cleaning aside, this is actually a thing. Stores like Primark and H&M basically deal in "disposable fashion" - clothes that are up to the minute style-wise but made (and sold) incredibly cheaply, so you don't mind the fact that they disintegrate after a few weeks or months, and then just buy next month's style instead.
- lgieron 10y ago
  In my experience, the more expensive brands are no more reliable. Cotton t-shirt is a cotton t-shirt, there isn't much you can make to make it more durable. You could use a thicker fabric, but then it would not be the same t-shirt. The only option available that comes to my mind is using more resilient dyes.
  - dagw 10y ago
    using a higher thread count and better stitching has a significant effect on the durability of a t-shirt. But those aspects are only weakly correlated to price.
dagw 10y ago
I've dreamt of that exact same clothing service.
TheGrumpyBrit 10y ago
For business wear or a capsule style wardrobe, that could easily be a viable business in a large city. Select your style and collection schedule, and pay a monthly fee. Hangers have integrated buttons that update your account with what you've worn so far (using the same principle as Amazon Dash Buttons), and replacements get added into your next delivery. Add in a regular delivery of disposable underwear, and a range of occasional wear with same/next day delivery and you've got an ideal service for the busy professional.
- cauterized 10y ago
  I've thought about this a couple times and want it to work, but also think it's a non-starter. At least for women. The problem isn't style. It's fit. I can order a half dozen blouses online - from a brand that I buy frequently and that represents a third of my closet. And I'll be lucky if two thirds of them fit my individual combination of dimensions. Of the ones that fit, only half will be flattering - the rest would look better on someone with narrower shoulders or a larger bust or whatever. Shopping unfamiliar brands is even worse. Whoever solves THAT problem scalably will make billions.
jamessb 10y ago
This sounds like Rent the Runway: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rent_the_Runway https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rent_the_Runway https://www.renttherunway.com/ https://www.renttherunway.com/
mrexroad 10y ago
My wife loves Le Tote [1]. Over the past few years, we've talked a lot about the potential you've described and she's tried various services (ThreadUp, StitchFix); Le Tote is the first one i've noticed that really seems to bring her "joy." [1] https://letote.com https://letote.com

dingaling 10y ago

Yes, clothes drive me mad. I'd find something comfortable in a decent fit and buy half-a-dozen of them all at the same time, then attempt to wear them until they wore-out. But when I went back to the store they'd changed 'seasons' or 'styles' and the same items were no longer available. I'd defer searching for and purchasing new items until my wife would force me to do so due to holes in my pullovers etc. I'm not sure how Steve Jobs overcame this problem with his turtle-necks, unless he had them custom-made. My solution to this was to start shopping in country-life ( farming / horse-riding etc ) and workwear shops. Not only do the items last longer but those ranges have much lower churn. Not as fashionable as high-street stores I suppose but functionally sufficient and less stressful for me overall. In comparison furniture has zero cognitive burden for me once selected and installed. I've moved house once and it was just a case of hiring a removals company with a big van, they did all the work.

dagw 10y ago
But when I went back to the store they'd changed 'seasons' or 'styles' and the same items were no longer available Stick to classic designs from classic brands and you won't have that problem. The basic white dress shirt/blouse for example works for all occasions and if you find a fit that works for you from an established brand you'll never have to worry about fit again (until you change size).
- mrexroad 10y ago
  This. I buy 2 pair of Levi's 501 on sale each year for ~$35, a single brand/style of underwear, single style/brand under shirt, single brand/style of athletic socks, 2 pair minimum of any style/design of non-athletic socks, etc. Button up shirts purchased as needed (trying to limit to 5-7) from same brand, and all matching jeans. I can blindly grab first item in each stack and have consistent results. haven't felt need to simplify any further. I try and stock up on the socks/undergarments during sales, and then replace in drawer once showing signs of excessive wear. so far so good.
joncrocks 10y ago
Jobs struck up a friendship with Issey Miyake, who apparently made them for him and sent him a whole bunch. http://www.cultofmac.com/122575/why-steve-jobs-wore-turtlenecks/ http://www.cultofmac.com/122575/why-steve-jobs-wore-turtlene...

rahoulb 10y ago

Cleaning aside, this is actually a thing. Stores like Primark and H&M basically deal in "disposable fashion" - clothes that are up to the minute style-wise but made (and sold) incredibly cheaply, so you don't mind the fact that they disintegrate after a few weeks or months, and then just buy next month's style instead.

lgieron 10y ago
In my experience, the more expensive brands are no more reliable. Cotton t-shirt is a cotton t-shirt, there isn't much you can make to make it more durable. You could use a thicker fabric, but then it would not be the same t-shirt. The only option available that comes to my mind is using more resilient dyes.
- dagw 10y ago
  using a higher thread count and better stitching has a significant effect on the durability of a t-shirt. But those aspects are only weakly correlated to price.

dagw 10y ago

I've dreamt of that exact same clothing service.

TheGrumpyBrit 10y ago

For business wear or a capsule style wardrobe, that could easily be a viable business in a large city. Select your style and collection schedule, and pay a monthly fee. Hangers have integrated buttons that update your account with what you've worn so far (using the same principle as Amazon Dash Buttons), and replacements get added into your next delivery. Add in a regular delivery of disposable underwear, and a range of occasional wear with same/next day delivery and you've got an ideal service for the busy professional.

cauterized 10y ago
I've thought about this a couple times and want it to work, but also think it's a non-starter. At least for women. The problem isn't style. It's fit. I can order a half dozen blouses online - from a brand that I buy frequently and that represents a third of my closet. And I'll be lucky if two thirds of them fit my individual combination of dimensions. Of the ones that fit, only half will be flattering - the rest would look better on someone with narrower shoulders or a larger bust or whatever. Shopping unfamiliar brands is even worse. Whoever solves THAT problem scalably will make billions.

jamessb 10y ago

This sounds like Rent the Runway: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rent_the_Runway https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rent_the_Runway https://www.renttherunway.com/ https://www.renttherunway.com/

mrexroad 10y ago

My wife loves Le Tote [1]. Over the past few years, we've talked a lot about the potential you've described and she's tried various services (ThreadUp, StitchFix); Le Tote is the first one i've noticed that really seems to bring her "joy." [1] https://letote.com https://letote.com