Cilla Hire & Co is an Adelaide-based dress rental business built around the idea that women should not have to spend hundreds of dollars on outfits they only wear once. Founder Cilla started the business after noticing there were limited local options for trendy occasionwear at affordable prices.
Today, the business rents out mini dresses, gowns, matching sets, and statement pieces for birthdays, weddings, formals, graduations, and nights out, mainly serving women aged 17 to 30.
As the business grew, managing bookings through Instagram became difficult. Enquiries were spread across direct messages, availability had to be checked manually, and there was a constant risk of double bookings. Cilla needed a more reliable system that could support showroom appointments, deliveries across Australia, and a professional clothing rental website.
After exploring different rental software options, Booqable stood out because it combined online bookings, inventory management, and a clothing website templates in one place. The website template, automated booking calendar, and mobile app helped Cilla Hire & Co grow into a more organized and reliable dress rental business with nationwide reach.
Creating a professional clothing rental website
Before using Booqable, Cilla Hire & Co relied heavily on Instagram messages to handle bookings and customer communication. While social media helped attract attention, it was not enough to run a growing dress rental business efficiently. Customers often had to wait for replies about sizing and availability, and there was no central place where bookings could be managed.
Using Booqable’s rental website builder gave the business a much clearer and more professional booking experience. Cilla was able to set up a branded clothing rental website using a custom domain and Booqable’s website template without needing technical experience. Customers can now browse available outfits, select rental dates, and secure bookings directly online.
The clothing rental website now helps Cilla Hire & Co:
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Display available dresses and matching sets in one organised catalogue
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Accept online bookings and payments for both local pickups and Australia-wide shipping
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Give customers clear information about rental dates, returns, and availability
The change solved one of the business’s biggest frustrations: relying on Instagram messages to manage every enquiry manually. Customers can now place bookings themselves through the clothing rental website, while Cilla spends less time answering repetitive questions and more time focusing on styling, customer service, and growing the collection.
Managing bookings with Booqable’s automated calendar
As bookings increased, manually tracking rental periods became harder to manage. Because multiple customers were often interested in the same styles for weekends and events, there was a real risk of overlapping bookings and missed details. For a fast-moving dress rental business, keeping accurate availability records was becoming essential.
Booqable’s automated booking calendar gave Cilla Hire & Co a much easier way to manage rentals behind the scenes while also improving the customer experience on the front end. When a customer books through the clothing rental website, the calendar automatically updates product availability and blocks those dates from being booked again.
Cilla can quickly view pickup times, return dates, and rental durations from one dashboard, while customers only see items that are available for their selected dates. Cilla says the automated booking calendar has made the business “more organised and reliable” while helping prevent double bookings completely. Combined with Booqable’s Mobile Point of Sale, she can also check upcoming orders and deposit reminders while away from the showroom.
The automated calendar now helps the business:
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Prevent double bookings automatically
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Keep customer information and rental durations organised in one place
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Manage showroom appointments and delivery orders more confidently
For Cilla Hire & Co, this has removed much of the stress that came with managing a growing dress rental business manually. The automated system gives customers faster confirmations through the clothing rental website while helping the business maintain accurate bookings during busy event seasons.
Expanding a growing dress rental brand
Today, Cilla Hire & Co manages both showroom appointments and Australia-wide deliveries through Booqable. Customers can browse and book through the clothing rental website, while prepaid return satchels make the rental process easier to manage for interstate orders.
Looking ahead, Cilla plans to grow the dress rental business into a recognized high-end rental brand with a larger collection and expanded delivery services across Australia, while continuing to promote a more sustainable approach to fashion.
For Cilla, Booqable has helped create a more reliable booking experience for both the business and its customers. By combining a professional clothing rental website with automated booking tools, Cilla Hire & Co has built a modern rental experience that supports continued growth.
