The Two-Sided Effect of the COVID-19 Pandemic on Online Apparel Renting

The global outbreak of COVID-19 has been affecting consumer behavior in a significant way. The collaborative consumption businesses, such as online rental services, is one of those sectors that have been immensely disrupted by the pandemic because many ‘sharing’ services require high touch and human contact. The purpose of this study is to develop and test a comprehensive model of consumers’ acceptance of online apparel renting (OAR) that can also take account of the pandemic’s effect. To this end, a two-phase, mixed-method study was conducted to identify the specific determinants of OAR (Study 1) and to empirically test the model of OAR acceptance with the pandemic-related moderating variables (Study 2). This study identifies a series of consumer drivers of OAR including affordable access, shopping convenience, try before you buy, never wear same dress twice, and special occasion. It also demonstrates the significant moderating effects of two pandemic-related factors including perceived vulnerability to disease and desire for simplification. The findings provide practical managerial suggestions to OAR retailers and theoretical implications for future studies.