Madame Mathilde Loisel, from Guy De Maupassant's short story The Necklace, has been making men and women vigilant for ages about the perils of coveting luxury items, which in her case cost 10 years of her life to pay for one night of radiance, all because of a borrowed diamond necklace that she lost.

Businesspeople in China, however, are taking advantage of similar cravings and trying to turn them into a business by offering the modern equivalents of Madame Loisel access to the luxury items that they think they deserve but can't afford.

Two domestic e-commerce websites - one a startup and the other a veteran player - have launched luxury rental businesses in early July, making aspirational luxury items attainable, at a fraction of their hefty prices, for a week or two.