Empowering Fashion Choices: Kate Rand's Vision for COCOON's Impact on Women's Confidence and Sustainable Luxury

COCOON isn't just another fashion rental service—it’s a movement towards accessible luxury, sustainable fashion, and empowering women to feel confident in their choices. In this conversation, COCOON's co-founder Kate Rand opens up about the vision behind their innovative membership model, the care that goes into maintaining their iconic bag collection, and their commitment to reshaping fashion consumption.

Learn how COCOON combines luxury with inclusivity, making it possible for members to access the confidence-boosting power of designer bags without the heavy investment and environmental footprint.

Nicolle: How does COCOON's membership model aim to empower women in their fashion choices?

Kate: We want to empower anyone passionate about bags. I feel quite strongly about giving everyone equal footing in work, and part of that is providing the confidence a status bag can give you when you’re in that pitch or the important meeting. These days not many people can afford, or want to invest in one single very expensive luxury bag, but when you’re the only woman in a board room, it can be the difference between main character energy and imposter syndrome.

Any outfit can be elevated with a bag, and now we’ve removed the socio-economic barrier to that. As a woman who used to be the only senior female in a room full of men, I’d have really appreciated this!

Nicolle: What makes COCOON's membership service "fuss-free" and adaptable to members' lifestyles?

Kate: For our members, you pay the monthly fee and you can choose up to two different bags a month. If we’re delivering within zone 3, which over 65% of our members do, we offer what’s called a “direct swap” which is a same-day pick-up and drop off, so you never need to be in that awkward phase without a bag, they’ll literally hand you the new one and take the old one.

Nicolle: Can you elaborate on COCOON's commitment to a circular fashion future and how it impacts your business practices?

Kate: Our commitment runs deep! It starts with our focus on the supply chain; we want to be part of the solution to the luxury fashion industry’s overstock problem, not a business that encourages people to purchase to make income through rental. We celebrate people’s entrepreneurship but unfortunately encouraging purchasing in this manner has a counterproductive effect compared to providing brands with a discreet and alternative solution to overstock and seconds that otherwise would be destroyed, in landfill or stored. We also use our presence to amplify other circular brands, when we do shoots for our assets we partner with sustainable brands like Tala, My Wardrobe HQ and Newless. We also use no-emission delivery where possible and recyclable cardboard packaging.

Nicolle: How does COCOON ensure the quality and longevity of the bags in its collection, especially when it comes to repairs and maintenance?

Kate: We are proud to prolong our bag’s lives up to 1.8 X their usual wear through correct storage and servicing and we do a special protection routine on them when they first come to the club. We have a care and repair team who are certified leather experts, and every handbag gets a full inspection and service once it returns from a member. For hardware repairs, we usually go back directly to the brand.

It’s a little-known fact that luxury brands will repair your items for you even if you have bought them indirectly, but it does cost, a brand repair to a bag’s hardware or a replacement strap usually starts at £100. The best advice I could give someone who wants their bag to last a long time is to stuff it when it’s in storage, keep it out of sunlight and give the base and handles a clean with a fabric cloth now and again.

Nicolle: What role does COCOON’s predominantly female, multinational team play in shaping the company’s vision and values?

Kate: The whole team are female, except for Matt the chairman. We’re a small team, only 11, so we are lucky in that we have that small cohesive team feel. There is a lot of feminine energy in there but it’s one of camaraderie, there is lots of fixing of clothes that goes on! 

I’ve worked in all-female environments before, people assume it will be great just because it doesn’t have a male leader but values and vision play a key part in setting the culture and channelling the energy in the right direction unfortunately due to social norms and the patriarchy historically, women can often feel they need to compete with other women if the environment doesn’t help remove that friction. We’ve absorbed the patriarchal view of ourselves and it takes some time to undo it. 

At COCOON it’s really important to me to encourage women to lift each other up and build a high-performance team where everyone’s strengths are appreciated. We also believe in having bad days and off days. Running a start-up is hard, toxic positivity has no place there!

Nicolle: How does COCOON balance being an accessible membership service with offering luxury fashion pieces?

Kate: We refer to ourselves as a luxury offering with a premium price point. Our model gives members value in the price because we’re able to partner with brands directly, I am proud that there is nowhere else that provides the same level of service and bag collection at the price we offer, sometimes people ask if the bags are real because it seems to good to be true but it's real!

Nicolle: What steps is COCOON taking to improve its sustainability practices, and how do you plan to inform your community of progress?

Kate: Most recently in August we’ve launched the emissionless zone 3 direct swaps which is a great moment for us. We’re so small and still very much in that start-up mode, so it’s hard for us to commit to five-year goals but we inform our members whenever we make a new step forward. Sustainability is part of our DNA, so the care and repair side of our business is so key to what we do.

Nicolle: How does COCOON’s approach to "styles designed to endure" differentiate it from other fashion subscription services?

Kate: We used to have a tagline about “this bag, you’ve seen it on 5 other members” as a way to highlight that it’s a club, not a subscription and that our bags live a good life with the members. We have a lot of debate in the office about which bags to buy because styles designed to endure should be bags that can be cared for and repaired, not ones made from fabrics that disintegrate quickly, however,r some brands have released lower price points (still over 1-2K) products in plastics meaning they can´t be prolonged, and consumers want us to stock them.

It’s a fine line between educating on what is designed to endure, and therefore luxury, and what is a marketing ploy by a brand.

Nicolle: In what ways does COCOON encourage its members to rethink their fashion consumption and embrace a more sustainable mindset?

Kate: We want people to embrace rental and borrowing! One of our members recently said “You don’t need ten designer bags in your cupboard at any one time” and it’s so true. If we can encourage people to see the value in having access to luxury, well-made bags, that are cared for as a service rather than the need to own one, we can get enough scale to convince more brands that there is an alternative way to drive revenue from their goods without over manufacturing

From stylish, accessible luxury bags to a commitment to sustainability, COCOON is more than just a service; it's a reimagined approach to modern fashion. Kate’s insights reveal a brand dedicated to breaking barriers and empowering women in every setting, all while supporting a circular future in fashion. As COCOON continues to expand, it’s clear that the brand’s commitment to inclusivity, environmental responsibility, and quality will keep it at the forefront of the luxury rental landscape.

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Nicolle Knapova is a little bit of everything. She is a freelance translator, content creator and social media executive for The C Word Mag. She loves indie music and is always browsing through Spotify to find the next amazing artist to obsess over. Her love for storytelling means she’s always writing something and she’s not afraid of any genre. Her biggest dream is to be a published author. If she’s not writing her fan fiction, she’s writing her poetry and sharing it on her Instagram @elisecaverly.