From accounting to runway: How Marley Alles built a fashion rental startup that won TechCrunch Disrupt
Marley Alles thought climbing the corporate ladder was her dream—until reality hit. What began as a side curiosity sparked a startup revolution.
In a candid conversation, the founder of Rax shared her journey from crunching numbers to disrupting fashion. Alles started in accounting, expecting fulfillment at a big firm. The reality? “I was like ‘oh, that’s it?'” she admitted. That moment of disillusionment ignited a pivot into the unknown.
Fueled by curiosity, Alles dove deep into startup culture, consuming podcasts and books voraciously. Her “aha” moment arrived during a pricey wedding season. As she amassed thousands in bridesmaid dresses and bachelorette looks, a friend asked to borrow a gown. The lightbulb went off: What if sharing high-end fashion could scale?
“Have you ever worn that bridesmaid dress again?” Alles thought, eyeing her overflowing closet. Instead of selling—too permanent, too much hassle—she envisioned a peer-to-peer rental model. Enter Rax, which launched earlier this year as a lean marketplace. Unlike traditional rental giants that hoard inventory, Rax connects users directly, allowing them to rent listings without the overhead of ownership.
Alles bootstrapped Rax from the ground up, personally funding the app’s development and launch. Early traction came from her inner circle—friends and family—before word-of-mouth amplified growth. Embracing “building in public,” she shared her创业 process online, cultivating an engaged community that now numbers around 5,000 users.
But Rax isn’t just another Rent-the-Runway clone. While competitors like Pickle (U.S.) and By Rotation (Europe) focus on daily rentals, Alles targets a gap in long-term access. “You can rent up to six months on our platform,” she explained. This solves real pain points: that two-week tropical getaway needs a wardrobe without Daily rates piling up, or a winter jacket for the season shouldn’t break the bank. It’s a smart nod to sustainability, extending garment lifecycles beyond fleeting trends.
Sustainability is core to Rax’s mission. As Alles puts it, “It’s driving the circularity of fashion.” In an era where fast fashion faces scrutiny for environmental impact, rental models offer consumers a guilt-free way to refresh wardrobes. It’s part of a broader shift: buyers are waking up to their carbon footprint, and brands are desperate for eco-friendly avenues to stay relevant.
The big break came at TechCrunch Disrupt in October. Rax not only competed in the Battlefield but snagged the top consumer pitch award. Alles, a longtime TechCrunch fanboy—er, fangirl—entered expecting to learn. Instead, she faced off against heavy hitters: startups boasting hundreds of thousands of users, $20 million rounds, and even Silicon Valley’s star actors as rivals. Victory was unexpected, but transformative.
“The experience was awesome,” Alles said. Beyond the win, it was the human element that resonated. She roamed the floor, shaking hands with fellow founders, attending sessions, and soaking in the networking buzz. “The biggest lesson? In-person interaction,” she emphasized. It builds community, sparks collaborations, and grounds you in the real-world chaos of entrepreneurship.
Now, post-Disrupt, Rax is surging forward. The focus: U.S. expansion, starting with New York, to rival established players. But Alles has bigger plans: a B2B platform empowering fashion designers and retailers to launch their own rental services. “We have the technology, we have the audience,” she declared. Brands hungry for sustainability can leverage Rax’s infrastructure, creating a win-win for profit and planet.
Disrupt isn’t just a conference; it’s a launchpad. For Alles, it validated her bootstrapped hustle and highlighted the power of direct connections in a digital age. As fashion rental gains steam—driven by conscious consumers and circular economics—Rax proves that big ideas often start with a simple question: “Who wants to borrow this?”
In the end, Alles’ story reminds us that fulfillment isn’t found in corner offices but in solving everyday problems with passion. If you’re sitting on unused dresses, passion projects, or untapped curiosity, take a page from her playbook: build boldly, connect authentically, and let the runway come to you.
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