Leading the movement to fix fast fashion

As a college student, Jennifer Hyman founded a clothing rental service that reimagined how people interact with the fashion industry.

Whether you favor a capsule wardrobe or embrace maximalism, fashion is more than just how we clothe ourselves: It's a form of self-expression and a reflection of our culture and society. But today, when we pack our agendas with obligations that demand everything from black-tie attire to business casual to activewear, our wallets strain to keep up with rapidly changing trends, which can quickly lead to overconsumption and unnecessary waste.

Jennifer Hyman saw this dilemma firsthand in 2009 when her sister, Becky, admitted she'd spent $2,000 on a designer dress she'd wear a single time for an upcoming wedding — and that the purchase was sending her into debt. Hyman began exploring sustainable ways to meet event wardrobe expectations without emptying her bank account, and alongside her Harvard classmate, Jenny Fleis, Hyman founded the clothing rental service Rent the Runway to provide everyday women with access to designer clothing at a fraction of the cost.

"Hyman reimagined the way women interact with fashion, shifting the idea of 'ownership' to 'access,'" says Professor of Management and Entrepreneurship Chris Neck.

An expert in leadership, self-leadership, employee and executive fitness, self-managing teams, and group decision-making processes, Neck describes Hyman's leadership styles as falling into three categories: visionary leadership, transformational leadership, and servant leadership.

"She didn't just build a company," Neck says. "She changed how an entire industry thinks about clothing, sustainability, and inclusivity."

Built on purpose, not just profit

Hyman and Fleis began building their business by creating a pop-up shop on Harvard's campus, which allowed students to try on dresses in person, and by pitching Rent the Runway to luxury designers. While Hyman and Fleis were initially met with skepticism as designers feared the partnership could hurt sales, they eventually found their first partner in Diane von Fürstenberg, which prompted collaboration from more designers.

Before Rent the Runway, fashion was about ownership, but Hyman and Fleis' business model prioritized accessibility.

"She popularized the idea of access: Customers could rent designer clothing for a fraction of the retail cost, which disrupted traditional retail," Neck says.

Rent the Runway continued to expand, adding accessories to its inventory in 2010 and offering inclusive sizing in 2013. The company's pivot to a subscription service in 2016 expanded its distribution, with customers now able to rotate items for special events, work, social events, and everyday life every month.

Hyman is a visionary leader for how she reimagined the way people interact with clothing, and is a transformational leader for how she changed the way the fashion industry views sustainability and inclusivity. The popularity of fast fashion has made the fashion industry one of the worst polluters in the world, but Rent the Runway — and companies that adopted its business model, like Nuuly, FashionPass, and Armoire — aid in reducing fast fashion by allowing many different people to reuse the same garments multiple times.

Recent research by Juanita and Phil Francis Faculty Fellow and Professor of Marketing Neeru Paharia, writing in Fortune, suggests that fast-fashion brands like Shein have succeeded largely because of a cognitive bias known as temporal discounting — our tendency to prioritize immediate rewards, such as low prices and instant gratification, over long-term value and sustainability. By encouraging consumers to think differently about clothing ownership, Hyman’s model helps counter that bias, promoting reuse and long-term satisfaction rather than short-lived consumption.

Throughout her time at Rent the Runway, where she currently serves as CEO and chair of the board of directors, Hyman has demonstrated servant leadership by prioritizing her employees, customers, and community. In 2015, Hyman partnered with UBS to launch the Rent the Runway Foundation and Project Entrepreneur to provide women founders with education, mentorship, and access to funding networks. She also advocated for all Rent the Runway employees, from corporate to warehouse, to have equal access to benefits, and implemented paid family leave for all employees, including hourly workers.

"This emphasis on empowerment shaped her servant leadership style," Neck says. "Success wasn't just about her company, but about changing the landscape for women in business."

A leader who breaks the mold

When Rent the Runway went public in October 2021, it was the first in the U.S. to do so with a woman founder and CEO, a woman chief operations officer, and a woman chief financial officer.

"This moment was groundbreaking in an industry where less than 3%of venture capital funding goes to female-led startups," he says.

Hyman made TIME's 100 Most Influential People in the World in 2019 and People magazine's Women Changing the World in 2020, recognitions that emphasized her roles as an innovator and mentor, and highlighted how Rent the Runway wasn't just a business but a cultural shift in how women approach fashion and sustainability.

"These recognitions do more than celebrate her personally: They send a signal to investors, designers, and consumers that her mission has legitimacy and lasting influence," says Neck.

If Hyman were just getting started today, Neck says her leadership styles would continue to help her thrive, especially because her emphasis on inclusivity and values would resonate strongly with Gen Z and millennial consumers, who appreciate businesses with strong missions that stand for something beyond profits.

"Visionary leadership is essential in a marketplace where consumers are redefining ownership, sustainability, and access, and adaptive leadership is even more important in the wake of global supply chain disruptions and the rise of hybrid consumer habits," says Neck.

Throughout her career, Hyman has shown strong self-leadership. She turned a personal observation into a billion-dollar company, became a change agent by implementing the Rent the Runway subscription model that redefined the organization's identity, restructured the company during an operational crisis it experienced in 2019, and worked to balance investor expectations with customer experience while preparing the company to go public.

"These examples show how she aligned her actions with her values, held herself accountable, and stayed resilient through ups and downs," says Neck. "Her evolution shows her adaptability as a leader who grew alongside the company."