Two Ex-Googlers Made Resale Fashion Easy with a Digital Wardrobe App

Most of us are thinking twice about tossing out our preloved clothing nowadays, with awareness about fashion waste on the rise. But there’s no denying that having to list and post items on resale platforms—especially if you have multiple pieces—is a tedious task. Two ex-Google employees have decided to solve this problem, of course, with a new app. 

Storey is what they came up with. It’s an app that basically helps you “digitalise” your current wardrobe. It takes all your online purchases through a browser extension and automatically uploads them into your digital closet. Any receipts you have from your old and new purchases in physical stores can also be added in there, building a picture of all the items you have inside, without you really having to do a single thing. 

Storey: a digital wardrobe

“Our mission is to digitize everyone’s wardrobes to make clothes more wearable, shareable, searchable, re-sellable,” the co-founders Nicole Kobilansky and Tak Fung shared.  

Unlike traditional resale fashion apps, that means users don’t need to list each item they want to sell. Users can simply scroll through their digital wardrobe, and pick out the preloved pieces they’d like another person to give a new life to. Plus, there’s no commission fee. 

Users can follow each others’ wardrobes on the app, check out what pieces that other people might have and if there’s a preloved item they love, they can make an offer. That includes pieces that aren’t even listed as “for sale” on a users’ wardrobe—you can make a bid just to try your luck. This, says Storey, is especially handy for vintage fashion hunters or limited-edition pieces.

Read: Reduce and reuse the best way approach to sustainable fashion, study says

‘Thinking about what you’re selling, buying, and why’

According to the founders, Storey is more than just a resale app. It encourages users to purchase and sell secondhand clothes to divert textile waste from landfills, but it also works to build a community of users who think more deeply about the clothes they already own. 

“Resale apps today encourage users to upload items with the goal of selling in mind. Storey asks users to think about what they’re selling and why, and to think about what they’re buying and why,” they explained. 

“We encourage people to upload their entire wardrobe, not just what they’re selling, and to interact with each other’s clothing. In turn, all of our wardrobes become connected, socially. And when things are connected socially we are able to more clearly see their value.”

One part of the app, for example, helps users “restyle” using existing pieces they already own, rather than having to buy another piece—even if it is secondhand. Through the Outfit Collage option, people can match different clothing and accessories they have inside their digital wardrobes, visualising a “new” outfit. 

Read: Check out these 6 Hong Kong-based apps that will help you live greener

Sustainable fashion apps

More consumers are thinking about our fashion footprint, and it’s only timely that more apps are now launching to help people make sustainable fashion choices. In the UK, Bandi has just rolled out to encourage clothes swapping by matching users with their “twin”. 

Another app, called Sojo, has been dubbed the “Deliveroo of clothing repairs”. Registered users can select a tailoring service from a nearby repairs shop, much like ordering a meal on a food delivery platform, and have the item picked up and dropped off once it’s been refurbished.

All images courtesy of Storey.