The Sarai Family proudly announces the acquisition of Designerex, Australia’s pioneering peer-to-peer designer dress-sharing platform, from voluntary administration. This milestone marks the relaunch of an iconic Australian brand under new leadership with a strong focus on customer service excellence.
Founded in 2016, Designerex revolutionised fashion in Australia by enabling women to share and rent over 50,000 designer dresses, which generated millions of dollars in revenue for its dress Lenders, and reduced the environmental toll of fast fashion, responsible for 10% of global carbon emissions and 85% of textile waste. The platform’s circular economy model allows renters to access luxury dresses without the cost of ownership, while empowering designer dress lenders - from boutique owners to individuals - to monetise their wardrobes, creating economic opportunity in sustainable style.
The business suffered financial difficulties in 2024 following a legal dispute with its technology developer, resulting in delayed payments to lenders and ultimately entering voluntary administration in March 2025.
‘During our due diligence of Designerex, we spoke with a number of lenders impacted by delayed payments, those conversations were not easy. We are thrilled that payments will be resolved via this acquisition and those customers can once again benefit from this leading fashion technology’ said Daisy Sarai, representing the Sarai Family.
The growing popularity of designer dress rental reflects a shift toward sustainable, cost-effective fashion, with consumers increasingly choosing to rent over buy for special occasions. Globally, the online clothing rental market was valued at $3.7 billion in 2024 and is projected to more than double to $7.6 billion by 2033. In Australia, this trend is fuelled by a desire to access luxury items while avoiding the cost of ownership, and eco-conscious renters seeking to reduce the environmental impact of fast fashion.
‘Designerex was the first peer-to-peer luxury dress-sharing platform to scale in Australia, loved by its lender community and renters alike. Thousands of women earn income from their dresses on the platform, with some generating tens of thousands of dollars annually. We are fully committed to settling all outstanding debts to lenders as quickly as possible and relaunching with the exceptional service Designerex was known for,’ said Daisy.
The Sarai Family are a Queensland-based family who have supported business growth initiatives providing positive social impact for many years. Recent ventures include Australian professional services start-up, Infrastructure Nation, which partnered with private equity in 2021 to create a consolidated group of organisations now involved with billions of dollars in infrastructure projects throughout Australia.
For media enquiries, please contact: media@designerex.com