Brands, Pricetags and Pedigree

[Get Smart]

on a similar thought to Fok's "Price Resistance" thread...

If you have a $200 limit on a sweater, when you go to a store does a sweater that costs $200 at retail have less/more/same desirability as a sweater that is on sale for $200, down from $400 retail?

For me, I see something I like, I try it on to gauge fit and finish, then I look at the pricetag and see where we're at. So a $400 sweater on sale for $200 isnt a better buy than a $200 at full retail necessarily, depending on fit and finish and intangibles.

and if a shirt like a white oxford BoO costs $200, made in USA was sitting next to an otherwise identical shirt (thick white oxford, MoP buttons, same slim fit) but made in China/Mexico/Romania/Tunisia etc and cost $75 which would you honestly buy?

curious to hear people's spending habits

 

[Lel]

This is a difficult question and there's lot's of answers.

However, one for me, the small sized bargain shopper, is that I look at purchases as an opportunity. Say I have $300, I walk into a store and see that $600 sweater marked down to $200 in my size. Now the obvious thought is that blowing 2/3's of your money is pretty stupid. However, if I really want that sweater I will buy it because eventually, I will make $200 back. However that sweater will not be $200 ever again, and maybe not even made again. Money is continuous, clothes however are not.

As for your last question, I would buy the second shirt. I like BoO, but I like it because of the details that are copied. Sure when I see a sweater that says "Dior Homme" I go crazy for the brand but it's because I know that the brand will offer my a good fit and good quality. Seeing a random Yoox brand sweater does nothing to me at all because I don't know about it's fit or quality.

 

[kiya]

The more expensive the item the better, i also never buy anything on sale.

 

[robbie]

I tend to go with the cheaper option. I don't have a lot to spend, so I try to make what I have go as far as possible. If I see two identical shirts with the options I am wanting, I will take the cheaper option.

I tend to jump at redlines because they fell as though they are a better deal.

 

[jet]

Originally Posted by kiya

The more expensive the item the better, i also never buy anything on sale.

+1, except I private sale often or use the homey hookup unless it's something I have to have then and there which is usually beginning of deliveries

I pick up good beaters on deep sales also.

 

[whodini]

On paper spending $200 retail vs. $200 on sale for a similar quality item should be the same; problem is, it RARELY feels that way. You either feel great about picking up something at full retail because it was too good to pass up or you feel great about getting a steal.

But I'm with Jas. I think I feel comfortable enough around clothes that I can inspect and try out an item to build a mental pricetag before checking out the sticker. If it's about where I figured it would be at retail then I'd probably be inclined to purchase. If the retail price is out on Mars but then discounted at or near my mental pricetag then I'd be even more inclined to purchase. I'm just weird like that.

Also, I sometimes might go for the $80 shirt over the $200, especially if it's of similar fit/quality. Sometimes it can be a great way to get introduced to a brand I'd otherwise ignore. Sometimes.

 

[constant struggle]

I always look to see the items I want, regardless of price..
I wait and see if they fall in my price range at some point, at that moment I buy them.

I will never pay full retail unless I know thats the only way I am going to get it.

Once I know a store has sales, I wait for those sales

Coupon codes are my friend.

A good example, at the beginning of the winter, I wanted the NDG High Neck Sweater which cost around $350... now $350 is way out of my sweater range, and I knew I wanted this piece.

I waited for maybe 3 months and picked it up for $180ish, it was probably the last one in my size anywhere that I could find, got it from a store in England, but it was worth the wait, and worth saving the $170...

This is how I go about almost all my clothing buys...

 

[jaydc7]

For me it depends on the item. Lets say the maximum I am willing to spend on the following items is $200 for a shirt, $300 for jeans, and $400 for shoes.

Although those are the maximums I would much rather pay the $75 for a shirt of comparable quiality to a $200 BoO shirt or wait for a sale or order it from another country to get a deal.

When it comes to jeans and shoes, I figure that these are items which are worth paying extra for, and don't have a problem with paying the maximum I have set. Of course I would like to pay less for these items but chances are they won't be going on any drastic sale. I'm not going to stop buying jeans from Self Edge because I can't get them for 50% off.

I think this is also due to being picker about how my jeans and shoes fit more so than how a shirt fits.

 

[Get Smart]

Originally Posted by whodini

Also, I sometimes might go for the $80 shirt over the $200, especially if it's of similar fit/quality. Sometimes it can be a great way to get introduced to a brand I'd otherwise ignore. Sometimes.

good point. For me that happened with Unis....that was a brand I had heard of in passing, forgot about them, then saw some items that immediately interested me at a local store. Looked at the price for some shirts, it seemed downright cheap at $85 (reasonable at $170 full retail, great deal on sale), tried it on and it fit well, now it's a brand that I would keep my eye out for whereas a couple years ago it wouldnt have even registered on my radar.

 

[Black Cherry]

I can't remember the last time I bought anything at retail price. Because my budget is so small I'm always looking to maximize value/quality/fit for the cost. Lots of ebay prowling and waiting for online sales. I also try to save up and make one big purchase of something I've researched/thought about extensively and will get as much use out of as possible. I have my major clothing purchases of 2009 plotted out and budgeted already, with the most expensive piece being a Filson coat around 200$. Which will be the most I've ever spent on a single garment.

 

[Get Smart]

Originally Posted by kiya

The more expensive the item the better, i also never buy anything on sale.

i think if I didnt go to London after Xmas for THEIR sales, I would probably never buy anything on sale here in LA either. Other than Paul Smith, I cant think of anything I've bought on sale (hookups not included) locally in a long time

 

[AR_Six]

It's more of a brand thing than a price thing... say I've got a 400 dollar item discounted to 200 from a brand I have heard good things about but own nothing from, and a 200 dollar item from a brand I know or don't know, at retail. I may jump on the opportunity to try the former brand at a discount, whereas I know I can always get the other at full retail should I need it enough to pay full retail.

I have been just as happy with the purchase of new KWxTaT OCBDs every time a new colour's been brought out, at full price, as I was for example to pick up a new Apolis jacket recently for $84, which I consider a steal. I'd say it's nice to get things for less than they're supposedly "worth", but while it's an incentive it doesn't govern purchasing decisions in any major way.

 

[Epaulet]

I don't really have the time or patience to be a huge sale shopper anymore. Being a shop owner, I do get spoiled with buying my personal stuff at wholesale too.

I think that age has a lot to do with it. Younger guys in my store usually gravitate towards the sale section and are more into the discounts. Guys in their early 30's and older typically buy the things they like without a lot of regard to whether it's full price or not. They've got more disposable income, less available time to shop, and a bigger existing wardrobe at home.

It's interesting to see how my male customers shop as a whole. Despite having all of my Fall merchandise on sale, I still sold more full-price things throughout the holidays: like peacoats, boots, denim, and my in-house shirts. Clearly a lot of customers think like you, Jason.

 

[Using Technology]

I almost never buy full retail. Not for nice clothes.

Only exception is a place like Uniqlo where the clothes are pretty cheap as it is.

In your sample situation I would certainly buy the shirt with no branding that was less than 50% the cost if they were indeed equal.

I'm likely to be persuaded a bit by brands...and certainly by sales/deals.

so if that BOO was on sale for 75 and the other shirt was 60, I might spend the extra 15 to get the on sale BOO. Otherwise, I would not pay a lot more for the same shirt.