Taylor Swift-mania has reached fever pitch in Australia, with ‘Swifties’ forking out hundreds to thousands of dollars to look like their idol for The Eras Tour in Sydney this weekend.
Taylor’s style is synonymous with her musical eras, and Aussie retail brands such as Glassons, Cotton On, Sportsgirl and Boohoo instantly sold out of their Taylor Swift collections as fans have gone glitter, sequin and rhinestone crazy.
Now, they are snapping up designer gowns worn by the Grammy winner herself from peer-to-peer luxury rental platforms for the upcoming concerts.
Bernadette Olivier, CEO and co-founder of luxury dress sharing platform, The Volte – which has created a Taylor Swift range – says ‘Swiftie-style’ rentals are going bananas, with the platform reporting a 300 per cent spike in dresses with rhinestones, glitter or country flair.
She says this $990 black Dion Lee corset Taylor wore to the Super Bowl to watch new beau Travis Kelce play against the San Francisco 49ers last week is hot property right now, and can be rented for as little as $103 for four days on The Volte.
“I’ve never seen so many Aussies of all ages and sizes dress like this for concerts before – Taylor has great taste and the outfits are seriously stunning,” says Bernadette.
“Everything sparkly, sequined, fringed and feathered is flying out as groups of friends and family are going all out for the concerts.”
Sydney student Sophie Bruckner, 18, and friend, Layla Wilson are getting their sparkle on for this weekend’s concert, with Sophie hiring the same $1000 rainbow sequin Retrofête Gabrielle dress Tay Tay wore to launch her single Me! in 2019 from The Volte for just $195.
More than a dozen stars have been spotted in the sexy sequined robe including Jennifer Lopez, Heidi Klum and both Paris and Nicky Hilton, and Sophie says she’s been eyeing it up since last year.
“It took more than three days to get concert tickets to the concert, so we want to look the part too,” Sophie tells HELLO!
“I’ve hired dresses from The Volte before for special occasions and have had this rainbow Retrofête dress marked in my wish list since Taylor was spotted in it, but up until now haven’t had the right occasion to wear it.
“The Eras Tour is perfect.”Sophie’s friend Layla Wilson, is also hiring this pink sequinned Rixo dress from the platform.
Meanwhile, Sydney comms worker Amna Yang, 28, has rented the same Clio Peppiatt Lucina dress TayTay wore on her 34th birthday for the concert from The Volte for just $345 – instead of the hefty $3,589 it would cost new – and plans to pair it with sparkly cowboy boots.
She tells HELLO!, “Taylor’s got such amazing style, and this is a once in a lifetime opportunity so worth spending a bit more on a hire than I normally would.
“Fast fashion damages the environment and I’d rather rent something high-end than get something that I would never wear again.
“I love the fact I’m wearing a dress Taylor has worn, but for a fraction of the cost.”
As well as saving money on Swiftie-style, Aussies are making thousands of dollars from their side hustle renting out their designer dresses.
Brisbane prosthetic dental university student Brittany Courtney, 20, makes up to $15k a month on The Volte.
“We’ve had record hires of people wanting ‘Taylor’-inspired dresses,” says Brittany. “Anything sparkly, pink and purple are proving a hit, and the sequinned Leo & Lin Stefani dress, Albina Dyla Wild Corset silver Dress and Leo Lin Juliette Neptune dress are especially popular.”
Get the lowdown on the biggest, hottest celebrity news, features and profiles coming out of the U.S. Sign up to our HELLO! Hollywood newsletter and get them delivered straight to your inbox.