Most of my clothes are from thrift stores. The ones around here are OK but then there are a lot of people around here who are wealthy. Maybe you should check out the thrift stores closer to the areas with a lot of money. I have not bought any clothes in over a year now. When I was working I had some clothes that were purchased at regular stores (usually on sale) but now I should just let them go because it is unlikely that I will wear some of them again. Markup on clothing in regular stores is really high. That way they can have sales at 50 - 70% off and still make money.
Op shopping rocks. Depends on where you go, but you can really get some good stuff. In more yuppy areas like Freo you can find some pretty popular labeled clothes all the rich kids get bored with. I once got a pair of jeans for $7, where at some markets I've seen similar styles "on sale" for about $40 or more. Though even saying that, op shops are getting more expensive too. You can't beat St Vincent though, ever reliable. <3
I think in America, companies hype up the "retail recommended price" ie rarely sell at that price, and usually give a discount of some sort. Atleast thats what I've felt. Clothes profit margins have to be biggish for a company to survive. The stock is in store for weeks or even months. There are store overheads and distribution costs. And there's a lot of sizes, colours, and "stock risk" ie the retailer wont sell everything, so he has to reflect this in the price structure. And a retailer of cheap clothes often makes more margin than a designer clothes storeowner..
The company is bankrupt now. Guess they could have tried some louder background music to try to improve sales. Or maybe they tried that already and it help put them into bankruptcy.
I think "retail" price is a joke. Most stores I go into have a retail price on the tag and a sale price, which generally never changes, to make the consumer think theyre getting a GREAT deal.
This is why I love thrifting. I actually went yesterday and got six really nice items for just $15. :2thumbsup: I always have better luck going to high income areas though.
They make excellent work pants. And it's not a strictly Wal-Mart brand, either. You can get Dickies at the department stores, too. But you're a fool if you buy them at the department stores when they aren't on sale because they cost twice as much (seriously, not even an exaggeration. Got my pants for $20 at WM, very same pair $40 a few stores down at the department store I shop at).
Back in high school I used to only buy brand name clothes. Places like (American Eagle, Hollister, etc.) Now that I think about it, I can't believe I bought from those stores. Their clothes aren't the greatest quality, and they are sooo expensive. Over the past couple years, I have been going to more thrift stores and I will never go back to AE or Hollister again!
That is actually what they do. Someone I know used to work in retail as loss prevention, and he saw everything. When having a "discounted" sale, the stores will raise the price of the item and then state it is on sale. Everyone is just buying the item for the price it was before it went on sale, which really is not a sale item at all.
I used to live in a Pakistan/Indian heavy area of Calgary. The thrift shops there were the fucking best. They had a whole sari section. Nothing like colourful sari silk for cheap.
And to you people posting about Walmart clothes, most of them are pretty good! I like their Op stuff a lot, and I just got a sweater there a couple weeks ago that is one of my favorites!
One weird thing I saw today is that some shops are doing away with window displays. Infact, one or 2, its hard to work out what they're actually selling, from looking at the outside. The Hollister storefront where I am looks like a Thai beach bar ( bearing in mind its just above freezing where I am). I almost felt worried about going in, thinking I'd get hassled by some ladyboys or something. Then there's this other one, thats just got about 100+- video screens of the sea as its "storefront". 1st time I walked past I didnt have a clue what it was about. Then one day, I saw a sign saying it was "Abercrombie's cousin". Just as well I *didnt* go in. I've since found out it actually only sells girls underwear etc. I mean I don't exactly want people to get some idea I wear women's clothes or some shit like that... Hmm....
It is not that I would not be caught in Walmart clothing, because there is nothing wrong with their clothing. I simply do not purchase anything from Walmart. I will not shop at such a huge corporate store that cares nothing for its employees.
You won't catch me going into a Hollister, which is a good thing because I'm too old for that store anyhow. But the three times or so I've been in there, I never can find the freaking exit and the walls start closing in. Oh and the blasting music and the smell of the horrible fragrances are frightening.
i'm not sure that i've ever been inside a business that cares about its employees. edit: maybe the occasional small local business, but it's getting hard to even find one of those anymore.
I hate going into Hollister anymore! It's sooo dark in there, it's full of pre-teen bitches, and the music is ridiculously loud and horrible. The times I did shop there and buy something, everytime I walked out the door the alarm would go off and they had to check my bags to make sure I was'nt stealing anything. They forgot to take off the ink tag thing. That's happened to me like 5 different times I've been there.