To be shocked...clothes prices

[fairisleknit]

Luckily I don't like any of the colours or styles at the moment so wouldn't be buying anyway but I am shocked at the prices of womenswear in Fatface! White stuff prices have also gone sky high and joules pretty pricey too. Can't believe as a middle class shopper(!) with some disposable income that I'm nearly priced out of these stores! What's the future for them?

Yes, I’ve noticed this too OP… I wouldn’t mind if the quality was decent (most of us should be buying fewer clothes given what fast fashion is doing to the planet), but 95% of it seems to be polyester tat! Even the natural fibres are mostly thin and shapeless. Who is actually paying these prices for such poor quality?!

There are so many discounts and offers that I don't buy anything full price now unless I really love it because sooner or later it's going to be 20% off or more.

Thing is they are priced for more or less permanent 15% discounts and then half price sales.
I'd never pay full price for anything from Fat Face, White Stuff or Mint Velvet as I know I can get an online discount.

I was equally shocked at Monsoon the other day, 60 quid for a blouse. I think prices everywhere went up like mental, but the quality seems to be going down. I was looking at Jolie Moi dresses the other day, 80 quid for polyester, Boden, 120 quid for polyester, thanks but no thanks.
I have not bought a full price item for ages.

It was Clark's that shocked me - £70 for shoes, not even boots. I'd always thought of them as average high street.

Well joules have gone into administration so I would agree their future doesn't look great

I agree a game of who will blink first re discounting. Monsoon had 30% for 3-4 days over the Black Friday weekend (maybe plus 10% on top I think) which made the prices seem much more reasonable. All the discounting devalues the brand over time as it becomes something no one pays full price for, I think Joules suffered from that.

It's why so many people, myself included are shopping at fast fashion places. Boohoo is now my go to.

I'm pretty ashamed from a moral standpoint of myself. However in all honesty I find them cheaper than even the charity shops in my area.

Joules have been saved by Next.

As for fat face, most of the more decent stuff never hits the sales. The trend based crap does, but you wont find an organic cassie tee, basic jeans or the decent hoodies reduced until a year or 2 later when there's f-all sizes left.

Entirely agree. Clothes shopping is extortionate and dire atm. I’ve had some money to spend but haven’t. It’s the staff do tomorrow night and I’m wearing the dress I wore last year. I don’t mind, it’s beautiful…certainly didn’t find anything close to it this year. Awful fabrics, high prices. Keep an eye on sales but even then…I still feel ripped off.
I miss natural fabric that hangs well.

I laughed out loud at the cheek in Oliver Bonas. Just to myself like.

I find prices have rocketed but then there's always a 10/15% off event, so it's just marketing to make you feel you're getting a deal when the prices have stayed the same in reality.

It's annoying how much synthetic fabrics there are in shops that used to be good quality.

Synthetic fabrics that don’t hang so much as…settle. There’s nothing to them.

What sort of price would you say was 'average high street'? I would have thought £80-£100

yep Saint & Sophia blazer for £200. Who has that kind of money?

I can only think of one item of clothes of recent years that I’ve paid full price for - a dress from Other Stories. I just loved it and was pretty sure it wouldn’t be available in my size in the sale if I waited. Other than that, I never buy with less than 20% off.

I would have thought £45 -£50 for a pair of shoes, £80 -£120for boots.

Ebay or Vinted?

I think 70 quid for a good pair of high street shoes has been around for a bit.

I agree with @ImAvingOops re shoe price's definitely

Agree, Fatface is my go to. I've bought two dresses recently which were v FatFace-esque from Matalan (£15) and Sainsbury's (£18), quality not noticeably worse!

I've gone the other way and bought a few pieces from here thisisunfolded.com/ - annoying having to wait for them, boutiques because higher priced ranges don't seem to have gone up in price as much as cheaper ones and bought a few things from Kettlewell as the quality is good and colours are lovely.

This really. I boughtva White stuff dress in their outlet in a sale. It was £26 from £58. But it's got no bust darts! I get nicer dresses in Sainsbury's

I'm tending to Mooch around the dresses in M&S and buy the ones I like in their sales.

Why would anyone buy a dress for £60 that's only shape comes from a gathered waist?

Agree, it is the everyday high street and cheap tat that has shot up. More expensive items not having altered too much. Most of these stores are teetering if you ask me.
I have one decent dress for special occasions and apart from that I dress like a fisherman's daughter

I’m torn on this. I agree many places I used to go to have now become unaffordable. But I do think clothes became too cheap over the past couple of decades and that’s not good from an environmental or ethical point of view.

I’m not claiming to have the moral high ground here - I have FAR too many clothes, way more than I could ever need, and am very guilty of buying into fast fashion.

I’m now trying to buy mostly second hand (Vinted) which is working out quite well. It would be even better if I could just cut down entirely and wear only what I already have but I’m not quite there yet.