A consumer survey by consultancy firm Mintel found that transportation remains the most popular segment in the sharing economy. Among the 3,000 consumers polled by the consultancy, 91 percent said they have paid to share car rides or bicycles. In contrast, clothing is the second least popular category, above mother care and baby products, with only 9 percent of the interviewees saying they pay for such services.

Rachel Botsman, the author of What's Mine is Yours: The Rise of Collaborative Consumption, noted in one of her TED talks that the rise of the sharing economy in other fields has provided a basis for the devaluation of ownership in fashion, where there has long been "a stigma behind rental".

According to its website, TED is "a nonpartisan nonprofit (organization) devoted to spreading ideas, usually in the form of short, powerful talks".

"Clothing rental could be the next big revolution for the fashion industry, after the rise of fast fashion and e-commerce," says Tang.