Vintage rental is a fragmented market—some of the best vintage designer pieces are cloistered away in private archives, only available for eye-watering auction prices, or kept solely for celebrity red carpet moments. “We talk about democratizing archival fashion,” says Gray. “It’s not about making rare fashion feel diluted or less special—it’s about expanding access in a way that still honors the integrity of the garment and the history behind it.”
Carota first launched IoM as a resale Instagram account, building an archive of rare vintage pieces and hosting pop-ups around New York. Gray attended one of those events in 2022, while reselling vintage furniture. The two quickly became collaborators, then business owners. “What connected us most was a shared perspective on vintage: not as something meant to sit untouched in private collections, but as pieces meant to be worn, lived in, and continuously recirculated,” Carota says.
Frustration with the market made them founders. “So much of archival fashion exists inside insider networks—celebrity stylists, private dealers, collectors,” Gray says. “We became obsessed with creating infrastructure around vintage that felt as accessible, seamless, and trustworthy as modern retail, while still preserving the integrity and history of the garments themselves.” Rather than just an accessible rental platform, their idea was to create a different access model for fashion history.
Access over ownership defines the service; rather than operate solely as resale, the platform focuses on rental. “Rental changes the equation entirely,” Gray says. “Instead of one person owning a piece forever, dozens of women can experience it over time.”
Isle of Monday’s early inventory reflects the current demand for uninhibited glamour and maximalism, as well as late ’90s and early ’00s work designs: Galliano-era Dior, Roberto Cavalli, Vivienne Westwood, Jean Paul Gaultier, Versace, and Blumarine are among the platform’s strongest performers. The women note growing demand for more pared-back pieces, too, and a shift towards the quieter, sensual designs of Tom Ford-era Gucci. Looking ahead, the founders hope to expand deeper into Galliano-era Dior, early McQueen, Prada, Margiela, Alaïa, and Issey Miyake.