Yesterday as I was buying a pair of high-waisted army green shorts (pictured at the bottom of this post) for two bucks at a thrift store, I realized that I've gotten pretty good at snagging deals like that over the years. My closet may hate me because I have more clothes than I could actually wear in a reasonable amount of time, but my wallet loves me because I don't spend too much on individual items! So I decided to put together a list of 4 tactics you can use to get great deals on clothes. And please, let me know in the comments what your money-saving strategies are when it comes to shopping!
1. Shop at thrift stores.
I know everyone says this, but thrift stores are really one of the best ways to get amazing deals on unique clothes (like the blouse pictured above, which I scored for $1!). The great thing about thrift stores is that you can visit the same store every week, and find different things each time. In my opinion thrift stores aren’t usually the best place to buy shoes (the quality and selection are pretty low, especially if you have big feet like me!), but they’re great places to stock up on belts and scarves for a buck or two each, and a lot of them have an extensive selection of pants and blouses.
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2. Don’t be afraid to buy clothes that are slightly damaged - you'll always get a discount on them.
Slightly is the key word here – if you want a shirt that has a hole along the seam, or a pair of shoes that has a light scuff mark on the heel, ask for a discount – you’ll always get one. As long as you know it’s a problem you can (and will!) fix when you get home, it’s worth it. And I've found that even at thrift stores, where things are already so inexpensive, they'll still give you a discount on damaged merchandise.
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3. Before you buy something online, google the name of the item.
Brand name items are sold in so many different stores that chances are one of those stores will be having a sale. For instance, I had lusted after the Sam Edelman shoes pictured above for months, and when I finally got to the point where I felt I could no longer live without them, I searched around for a good deal. Instead of paying the full price of $160, I got them for only $70 after searching a few different online retailers. (And if I had waited another two weeks, I could have bought them for only $50!)
Beso is a great resource to use if you want to see different prices for the same item all laid out next to each other.
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4. Buy at the end of the season.
Because stores want to move out their old merchandise and bring in new, seasonally appropriate merchandise, you can get great deals on things like shorts and swimsuits at the end of summer, and wool coats at the end of winter. And in a lot of climates, you’ll still be able to use those discounted winter coats through spring, or wear those inexpensive shorts through fall. I’m still buying shorts even though the warm weather will disappear soon, because I plan on wearing them with tights and boots come fall.
