HOW TO HIRE · PERSONAL & LIFESTYLE

How to hire a wardrobe consultant in the UK
The checks, the questions and the paperwork.

Wardrobe consultancy is unregulated in the UK. Here is how to check one, agree what leaves your wardrobe, and what the session includes.

  • Search and compare — no account needed
  • Nearest to you first
  • One score from Google, Trustpilot and Locufy reviews

THE 60-SECOND VERSION

Hiring a wardrobe consultant in five steps

  1. You decide what goesKeep, alter, donate, sell — your call on each item.
  2. Agree who takes items awayDonations to charity, or waste through a registered carrier.
  3. Ask for outfits and a gap listPhotos of combinations and a list of what is missing.
  4. Set the session lengthA whole wardrobe can take most of a day.
  5. Check referencesRing a recent client.

BEFORE YOU BOOK

Check before you book

No register applies

No licence, register or required qualification applies to wardrobe consultants in England, Wales, Scotland or Northern Ireland — anyone can offer wardrobe consultancy. So ask what training they have had and from whom, look at before-and-after work, and ring a recent client.

Ask about training, see real client examples, and take a reference.

Basic criminal record check (self-requested)

There is no legal duty on a wardrobe consultant here. Still, a person working in your bedroom and through your belongings can get a basic check on themselves — DBS in England and Wales, a Level 1 disclosure from Disclosure Scotland, or an AccessNI basic check in Northern Ireland — to show you.

Ask whether they have one from the last year, and see it. gov.uk →

Waste carrier registration if they take things away

If a wardrobe consultant takes away clothes for disposal rather than donation, they are transporting waste and must be a registered waste carrier — Environment Agency, Natural Resources Wales, SEPA or NIEA. In England and Wales, section 34 of the Environmental Protection Act 1990 makes you hand household waste only to an authorised person.

Ask where items go; for disposal, check the waste carrier number on the public register. environment.data.gov.uk →

Trader status (Consumer Rights Act 2015)

Your rights — a service done with reasonable care and skill, and a repeat or a price reduction if it is not — apply when the wardrobe consultant trades as a business.

Look for the trader badge on the Locufy profile and ask for a written quote and an invoice.

VAT

Wardrobe edits are standard-rated at 20% from a VAT-registered wardrobe consultant, follow-up shopping included. A consultancy above £90,000 of taxable turnover must register and show the VAT apart on the invoice.

Ask the wardrobe consultant whether they are VAT-registered and for the VAT number on the invoice. gov.uk →

“Who decides what leaves my wardrobe?”

A good answer: You do; the wardrobe consultant advises.

“Where will donated or unwanted clothes go?”

A good answer: Named charities, or a registered waste carrier for anything binned.

“What will I have at the end of the wardrobe session?”

A good answer: Outfit photos, a gap list, and a sorted wardrobe.

“How long will a full wardrobe audit take?”

A good answer: An honest estimate of hours.

“Do you suggest alterations as well as new buys?”

A good answer: Yes, with an idea of what is worth altering.

“Do you earn commission from shops?”

A good answer: A straight answer.

“Can I ring a recent wardrobe client of yours?”

A good answer: A name and number offered.

Getting the quote right

  • Session length and what is included
  • Outfit photos, lookbook or gap list
  • Donation runs or disposal, and the carrier
  • Follow-up shopping as a separate line
  • Travel
  • Who actually attends: the wardrobe consultant you booked, or an assistant for a large wardrobe, and whether that assistant is employed or subcontracted
  • The wardrobe consultant's VAT number, with VAT apart from the session and the follow-up shopping

Walk away if

  • Throwing things away without asking
  • Taking items for disposal with no waste carrier number
  • Pressure to buy replacements
  • Hidden commission
  • No references
  • No outfit notes at the end
LOW
£100
TYPICAL
£300
HIGH
£375

What a wardrobe consultant costs: £100–£375 per session

Wardrobe consultants price by the session, with lookbooks, follow-up shopping and removal of items charged on top. Wardrobe Consultant price guide →

Guide prices compiled by the Locufy team from published Irish and UK provider price lists and 2026/27 cost guides. Updated 2026.

KNOW WHAT TO LOOK FOR? NOW FIND ONE

Wardrobe consultants near you, with the badges that matter shown

ID checked, trader status and one score from every review — on the card, before you message anyone. Nearest first. No account needed to look.

Or post the job free and let them come to you.

  1. BriefLifestyle, goals, budget.
  2. AuditEvery item tried, sorted into keep, alter, donate, sell.
  3. EditYour decisions on each pile.
  4. OutfitsCombinations built and photographed.
  5. Gap list and removalWhat to buy; donations or disposal arranged.

Wardrobe audit
Going through every item.
Edit
Deciding what stays.
Gap list
Items to buy.
Capsule wardrobe
A smaller set that mixes and matches.
Lookbook
Photos of outfits.
Waste carrier
A business registered to transport waste.

AFTER

When the job is done

Check the keep pileNothing you wanted has gone.
Get the donation or disposal recordWhere items went.
Keep the gap list and photosFor shopping later.
Review the bookingSay how the wardrobe session went: only booked jobs carry reviews. Under four stars, you can send the problem to them first to put right.

STEP 1Write to the wardrobe consultant firstDescribe the problem with the session, the date, and the fix you want. Because every service contract carries a term of reasonable care and skill under the Consumer Rights Act 2015, you can require a free repeat or a cut in the price.
STEP 2Ask Locufy to help put it rightWhen you score a booked wardrobe consultant below four stars, you choose whether the wardrobe consultant sees the problem first. We follow it through, then you review.
STEP 3Get consumer adviceWith no ombudsman for wardrobe consultants, advice on the session and a referral to Trading Standards come through Citizens Advice on 0808 223 1133 in England and Wales, Advice Direct Scotland on 0808 800 9060, or Consumerline on 0300 123 6262 in Northern Ireland.
STEP 4Small claims, as a last stepIf the wardrobe consultant still will not refund or put it right, a small claim needs no solicitor: £10,000 is the limit in England and Wales, £5,000 for simple procedure in Scotland, £5,000 in Northern Ireland.

Hiring a wardrobe consultant: questions people ask

No. No licence, register or required qualification applies in any UK nation.

A trader must use reasonable care and skill under the Consumer Rights Act 2015. Agree in writing that you decide what goes.

Donations can go to charity; anything for disposal must go through a registered waste carrier.

£100 to £375 a session, typically around £300. Wardrobe size, time and a lookbook make the difference. Audit, lookbook and follow-up prices are in the wardrobe consultant price guide; add your town above for consultants near you.

No law requires one; they can request their own — DBS, Disclosure Scotland or AccessNI — and show you.

A sorted wardrobe, outfit photos and a gap list, if agreed.

MORE GUIDES

More hiring guides in personal & lifestyle

How to hire: Personal StylistHow to hire: Image ConsultantHow to hire: Personal ShopperHow to hire: Clothing AlterationsHow to hire: Decluttering ServiceHow to hire: Home OrganiserHow to hire: DressmakerHow to hire: Tailor / SeamstressAll 701 hiring guides →

Wardrobe consultants near you

Wardrobe consultants in LondonWardrobe consultants in ManchesterWardrobe consultants in BirminghamWardrobe consultants in GlasgowWardrobe consultants in BelfastAll wardrobe consultants on Locufy →

Sources — checked October 2026

  1. gov.uk — request a basic DBS check
  2. mygov.scot — Level 1 (basic) disclosure
  3. nidirect — apply online for a basic check (AccessNI)
  4. gov.uk — register as a waste carrier, broker or dealer (England)
  5. Environmental Protection Act 1990, section 34 — duty of care
  6. Consumer Rights Act 2015, section 49 — reasonable care and skill
  7. Citizens Advice — more help with a consumer issue
  8. gov.uk — make a court claim for money: court fees
  9. VAT rates — VAT rates for goods and services: standard rate 20% on most goods and services
  10. GOV.UK — Register for VAT: when to register