Price of clothes

[Suburbanqueen]

Is anyone else surprised by the money some Mumsnetters spend on an item of clothing as if it were a mere bagatelle?
I would never have dreamed of paying the ridiculous prices for things discussed on here sometimes. ( Even when I had money).
An example.....£125 for a bag for a teenage girl to use for school. If we all refused to pay for these things prices would have to fall.

I’m not sure I agree, my 27 year old daughter still wears her school leavers hoodie for example round the house, 😂 over the last few years I’ve bought her some lovely pieces, an example as part of her Xmas , as a surprise I bought her two me + em cashmere / wool jumpers. She loves them, and as long as she continues to wash carefully I’d imagine she will be wearing them for years to come. They will always be quality jumpers.

i often give her some of my clothes as well, so Reiss, me and em etc, and as much as they were not bought for her, she wears them regularly. And I’ve also bought her some really expensive handbags, which she uses for work etc. they last her years, she doesn’t buy this stuff for herself, but she absolutely appreciates it when gifted it, and takes excellent care.

I bought her her first Massimo Dutti leather jacket at 17 or 18 and she’s worn it to death, and even though I subsequently bought her a Reiss one, the Dutti one she still wears with jeans, as it’s now so faded and vintage looking and still loves it.

the Xmas I bought her the Reiss jacket, she was I think 23 or 24, and which I think was 400 pound, I gave her that and a couple of small openers, and we spent Xmas with family and her cousins had the same amount spent on them, but it was an Avalanche of fast fashion, none of which are still worn or even with their owners any more, it all went done or out of fashion. My daughters leather jacket still looks like new and is worn regularly 3 or 4 years later. On a cost per wear basis hers was the cheapest option.

sure she wears high fashion, but some things, like a good leather bag, a good wool coat or leather jacket, or jumper doesn’t go out of fashion as long as you buy in a classic, paired down style, and as long as cared for, should last her for many years and the cost per wear will be minimal.

ive never perceived oh you’re young so you can’t have quality stuff, ive always considered it a treat and investment for her.

Yeah, I think the odd investment piece is ok, especially once in mid-late 20s. I also remember buying a leather jacket for £300 around the age of 26, which I still have (but no longer fits!). However, the vast majority of my clothes would have been much much cheaper.

Now, I don’t buy any cheap clothes, except perhaps the odd WFH/loungwear type thing from M&S. I don’t buy super expensive designer stuff either, but more what I would call mid-range high street. More Sézane/White Company/Jigsaw type prices than New Look or Dorothy Perkins.

People have different budgets and value different things. I’m surprised people are surprised at that.

As for the thread about the £125 bag for school, it’s hardly a huge amount and was for a birthday present anyway. The way some people talked, you’d think the OP was spending thousands on a school bag. I think some of that comes from certain adults thinking children shouldn’t have anything nice til they’re earning.

@BetsyRegards Mingling is fine,I just feel people should respect the perspective of the OP: no snide remarks when she's got a different style or different budget (whether much higher or much lower) from you: sort of 'her thread, her rules'. You seem to be the helpful kind of poster who doesn't rubbish in-budget suggestions for my hypothetical interview candidate, call them 'horrid' and 'cheap looking' and finish by saying that if someone wants to make a good impression she needs to spend ££ more than the OP has available.

I will confess that I'm not a million miles from your hypothetical outraged shoe buyer. I don't buy clothes very often and I'm always taken aback by how much prices have increased since I last needed something. Trousers similar to my beloved linen trousers, finally retired after 10 years of service, now seems to cost roughly twice as much (I kid you not).

How many pairs of jeans at this price point have you bought?

@Wildgoat
Obviously in very broad terms paying more gets you better quality, but the relationship isn't straightforward and it feels as if there are parts of the market or price range where paying more doesn't seem to get you much extra quality and also the converse - there's a leap in quality for a relatively modest increase in price. If you're not an avid clothes purchaser it's hard to know when spending more of your limited budget is really worthwhile and when it isn't going to make much difference. Especially if you are shopping online and can't feel the fabric or check the stitching - and opportunities for side by side comparison are restricted.

I'm much more knowledgeable about technical clothing for the sports I do than I am about 'fashion' clothing. I could tell someone how to get best bang for her buck buying cycling or running clothes and shoes, but I'm not confident of finding good value for non-sports clothes.

I don't care if people spend a fortune on their clothes, good for them if they have the option (although I do have a chuckle when someone recommends a £500 Hessian sack dress!).
I am abit over the superiority that sometimes comes across though. Like how the more expensive a company is the more ethical it is or the better quality it is. Alot of the time it's just an assumption as well, people haven't actually checked the credentials of a company.
As to quality price isn't a guarantee either. I mean sure, some things....real leather will always last longer then fake leather but my Primark and Amazon gym gear gets worn and washed every week and is still in good nick. IME most cheaper clothes will last if you take care of them.

I think once you’ve started buying most of your clothes in charity shops, then the price of new clothes seems astronomical.

I do buy decent and new walking boots and trainers though.

Yes I agree with the stipulation only if you don’t know the brand, if you know the brand you tend to know the quality, and whether it is worth it or not. If you don’t know it’s a risk

for example I wear leggings and a gym top I got from Amazon, for the gym, they are a knock off of lulumon which I didn’t know when I bought them, they are excellent quality, I’ve never seen the real thing, but I don’t care.

https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B0B7H3PRNN?ref_=ppx_hzsearch_conn_dt_b_fed_asin_title_1&th=1&psc=1

https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B0B4G3TQRG?ref_=ppx_hzsearch_conn_dt_b_fed_asin_title_1&th=1&psc=1

however I also know I have quite a lot of me + em clothes. And the stuff you get in H&M, river island, markies, Sainsbury’s , even boden, doesn’t come close in terms of quality, you can see it a mile off, there is no comparison. Everything from the material to the cut to the stitching,

I haven't bought clothes for over 6 years. I didn't even buy maternity clothes. So yes it does shock me.

@PinsAndThrums I think it’s perfectly acceptable to offer frank opinions on theoretical clothes on an anonymous forum.

There is an enormous amount to choose from at every price. If someone suggests an item that I judge to be nasty, and it also happens to be very cheap, I am not implying that every cheap garment must necessarily be nasty. I’m saying look for something better at that price - whether new or pre-owned, begged or borrowed.

Leaving aside the Vinted/Ebay/charity shop question (important as it is) and concentrating on new clothes:

I don't think they've ever been so cheap.

In the early 1990s, as a student, I would buy jeans for £20 from Dorothy Perkins. They were pretty decent quality jeans.

With inflation, that £20 would be about £50 today. But Dorothy Perkins jeans are only about £30 now (actually more like £20-£25 with their ubiquitous discounts). And - unsurprisingly - I don't think they're of such good quality as they were.

This pattern seems to hold all across the High Street. We've got used to poorer quality and (effectively) lower prices. So anything like the quality and price point that I expected back then as a fairly penniless student seems almost like a premium item now.

So: I could spend £50 on a pair of jeans, which would be the equivalent of the way I shopped as a student. But I actually have a decent income now, as opposed to a student grant. And I like clothes, and I want to keep them for many years, and I want natural fabrics and some degree of sustainability. So I'm probably going to end up buying pieces which seem vastly expensive when they're compared to current High Street prices.

I've said this many times before but in the early 80s I had two beautiful, well cut wool dresses from M&S. They were £25 and £35. That quality no longer exists in M&S not even in the Autograph or Jaeger ranges and the standard ranges have tons of dresses for less than £40 (£30) a year or so ago. A dress like the 80s ones would probably cost £200 now. Quality on the High Street hss crashed with the prices. I also remember paying about £100 for Ferragamo classic shoes; they are £695 now.

In my view, I dress pretty cheaply and cheerfully day to day and for work: Seasalt, White Stuff, Boden, M&S, Whistles/Jigsaw a bit better. Many would disagree that that's cheap and cheerful: some woukd think ot pricey, others that it's cheap and nasty.

I.like nice bags but wouldn't soend thousands: Coach and similar price points are my go to.

I would agree, you can buy items really cheaply now, so I’m really unsure rhe point the op is trying to make. Other than she wants better quality for lower prices.

i can’t see the logic in it, the quality will drop, and we all have to buy cheap products till quality manufacturers get the message? Then everything is mass produced, it doesn’t make sense. It would only make sense if you could only buy expensive clothes, but that’s far from the case.

What makes you assume OP is speaking from a place of envy?

The line "If we all refused to pay for these things prices would have to fall"

That's not how the economy works.

Exclusive brands keep their prices high because they can, you never even see adverts for a Rolls Royce, yet alone them having a sale.

Yeah to be fair it might be as it doesn’t make a lot of logical sense, she is saying the price will fall of these expensive items if we all stop buying them.

Which would only make sense if you couldn’t buy cheap versions, so whay she’s saying is she wants the high quality items at a Lower price, and as she shops in charity shops, (although accept she says she only does this as an act of service) it would that just maybe she can’t afford the higher quality items. But still wants them.

which could be she doesn’t like the quality of the lower cost items, but as she mentions how others spend, it could also be envy,

Hmm, that line didn't speak to me of envy. It felt more like frustration at needlessly rip-off high prices. And you've just perfectly demonstrated how they get away with it.

I’m not sure I agree it’s a rip off. It feels like that’s something said by someone who can’t afford it. The people who can clearly don’t feel they are being ripped off. Sure if something is poor quality for the money everyone feels like it’s a rip off, but I don’t think anyone says that about things like rolls Royce.

Hmm. Seems like the old 'reassuringly expensive' adage is still alive and kicking. Or could it be that a lot of people who have more money than most are still really invested in the concept of status symbols? Surely not...

That feels just very bitter now. The assumption thay people who can afford it don’t recognise quality and what is not quality.

i think yes, when it comes to cars, some are status symbols but quite frankly if you’re in that financial bracket you’re not in need of a status symbol. Let’s face it, if you can afford a rolls Royce you don’t need to be running round in a Vauxhall. Why shouldn’t you have it, it’s not like they are crap cars.

See, now you're assuming I'm bitter, which presumably means you're assuming I can't afford to buy the things I would like to own, and without a shred of knowledge about my finances. A bit insulting, wouldn't you say?

And as far as quality is concerned, I'm sure most people know it when they see it. But the tone of the responses to me on this thread so far today is giving me the feeling that some people do still buy expensive things not predominantly for their quality, but as indicators of wealth. And that's up to them, but it's crass imo to assume, as a pp appeared to be doing, that if people complain about high prices they must be bitter because they can't afford the things they want.

And I think it’s crass to think people just buy it for the sake of it.

Cars are interesting because there is a reasonable correlation between quality and price. This is not the case in luxury fashion, however, where prices are very much pitched at what the market is thought to be able to bear. There is no guarantee (see recent prosecution of Dior) that workers making luxury goods will be treated any better than than those making supermarket clothes for a fraction of the price.
If you care about the quality of clothing, you have to inspect in person. For ethics, you just have to do your research - the B Corp certification is a reasonable but not infallible guide. And remember that recycled polyester is basically a con and Lycra doesn’t biodegrade.

I think there are shades of grey here, as you’ve moved to designer, where often it’s about the label, I am not sure the quality is much better than that of a luxury brand, ie me and em. I don’t know the designers well enough but from what I do know I don’t think so.

but we have now moved from quality to luxury and designer.