5 ms·

>Only people in the US will pay $25+ for a t-shirt that costs $1 to $4 to produce. As a Westerner this drives me nuts about about buying clothes. Every time I

>Only people in the US will pay $25+ for a t-shirt that costs $1 to $4 to produce. As a Westerner this drives me nuts about about buying clothes. Every time I buy any article of clothing I feel it right in the sphincter, getting ripped off 10x - 100x. Is there any way for folks in NA/Europe/etc to get clothes at or near cost?

latchkey 8y ago
You should be annoyed. I routinely buy 'name brand' clothes here in Vietnam and I pay $4-5 for a shirt or shorts that have $50 price tags attached to them.
- nopinsight 8y ago
  Just curious. Are they made with the same specs or are they lower-quality counterfeits? I used to check out some cheap knock-offs in another SE Asian country and they were all lower quality than genuine items.
  - latchkey 8y ago
    The answer is 'it depends'. There is different grades of knockoffs and it is pretty easy to spot low quality ones. The fabric is thinner, the sewing isn't quite right. So far, I've only had issues with poorly made cheap shoes falling apart. Regular clothes have generally been excellent and I can't tell the difference.
pjmlp 8y ago
Yes, you buy them directly from the Asian companies, just don't expect being able to change if they don't fit, becaus1 even when they accept to do it the round trip takes too long.
arethuza 8y ago
Don't know about the US, but here in the UK places like Primark and Mountain Warehouse have t-shirts for £6.
- isostatic 8y ago
  I haven't bought clothes in the states for a while, but I did go to a "TJ Max" (apparently unrealated to TK Maxx) and from memory didn't seem terrible prices. Bought some underwear from a Duane Reade in NY just before Hurricane Sandy hit which was a reasonable price -- I was on the last flight into Newark, but my suitcase wasn't. That was the last time I've checked luggage.
  - ptha 8y ago
    Actually they are related, renamed in Britain to avoid confusion with a British retailer. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/TK_Maxx https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/TK_Maxx
topmonk 8y ago
Why don't you buy clothes from a thrift store? Maybe you (or maybe not...) don't want to look like a hobo. Why does wearing clothes from a thrift store make you look like a hobo? Because they are so cheap, people with very little money can buy them. That is why clothes are so expensive. They, to a certain degree, flaunt your wealth, or at least show that you probably aren't a hobo. This is pretty important to people, or no one would pay so much for clothes.
- ed_balls 8y ago
  I have a dozen black t-shirts from Primark for about 2.50£ per t-shirt. > Why don't you buy clothes from a thrift store? It will drive the price up and hurt people with very little money.
  - jeromegv 8y ago
    Not really, donation clothing is skyrocketing (because people consume more and more clothing from cheap brands like H&M) and stores like Value Village or Good Will can't actually accept every piece of clothing donated to them. Lots of it end up on cargos back to Africa or Asia. Buy from thrift stores, this is a good thing and good for environment.
  - topmonk 8y ago
    My questions were rhetorical. I was trying to explain why I believe clothes are expensive in wealthy areas, not asking about you personally.
  - noir_lord 8y ago
    > I have a dozen black t-shirts A man after my own heart. > from Primark. Try Tesco, they are 2 for £8 but they last forever, dont fade and look the same after a couple dozen washes as they did new, also they never run. I find the fit better and they keep their shape without going saggy around the collar.
isostatic 8y ago
https://www.amazon.co.uk/Blu-Cherry-Premium-Assorted-Multicolor/dp/B06Y5VDWJJ https://www.amazon.co.uk/Blu-Cherry-Premium-Assorted-Multico... 3 tshirts for £13.50 delivered next day to your door. That's $5.80 each. I have no idea where you'd pay 4 times that. On the other hand I couldn't find a pair of socks in Nairobi last month for under about $15. Clearly I didn't know where to look, but it goes to show that there's always stores charging shocking amounts. (https://www.amazon.co.uk/FIND-Socks-Mixed-Stripe-Medium/dp/B072Q7JLRV https://www.amazon.co.uk/FIND-Socks-Mixed-Stripe-Medium/dp/B... -- $2/pair
ksec 8y ago
It is not that you are getting Rip-Off, There is at least $15 going into Retail Rental, Staff, Operation, All these cost are 10x higher in US than Vietnam.

latchkey 8y ago

You should be annoyed. I routinely buy 'name brand' clothes here in Vietnam and I pay $4-5 for a shirt or shorts that have $50 price tags attached to them.

nopinsight 8y ago
Just curious. Are they made with the same specs or are they lower-quality counterfeits? I used to check out some cheap knock-offs in another SE Asian country and they were all lower quality than genuine items.
- latchkey 8y ago
  The answer is 'it depends'. There is different grades of knockoffs and it is pretty easy to spot low quality ones. The fabric is thinner, the sewing isn't quite right. So far, I've only had issues with poorly made cheap shoes falling apart. Regular clothes have generally been excellent and I can't tell the difference.

pjmlp 8y ago

Yes, you buy them directly from the Asian companies, just don't expect being able to change if they don't fit, becaus1 even when they accept to do it the round trip takes too long.

arethuza 8y ago

Don't know about the US, but here in the UK places like Primark and Mountain Warehouse have t-shirts for £6.

isostatic 8y ago
I haven't bought clothes in the states for a while, but I did go to a "TJ Max" (apparently unrealated to TK Maxx) and from memory didn't seem terrible prices. Bought some underwear from a Duane Reade in NY just before Hurricane Sandy hit which was a reasonable price -- I was on the last flight into Newark, but my suitcase wasn't. That was the last time I've checked luggage.
- ptha 8y ago
  Actually they are related, renamed in Britain to avoid confusion with a British retailer. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/TK_Maxx https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/TK_Maxx

topmonk 8y ago

Why don't you buy clothes from a thrift store? Maybe you (or maybe not...) don't want to look like a hobo. Why does wearing clothes from a thrift store make you look like a hobo? Because they are so cheap, people with very little money can buy them. That is why clothes are so expensive. They, to a certain degree, flaunt your wealth, or at least show that you probably aren't a hobo. This is pretty important to people, or no one would pay so much for clothes.

ed_balls 8y ago
I have a dozen black t-shirts from Primark for about 2.50£ per t-shirt. > Why don't you buy clothes from a thrift store? It will drive the price up and hurt people with very little money.
- jeromegv 8y ago
  Not really, donation clothing is skyrocketing (because people consume more and more clothing from cheap brands like H&M) and stores like Value Village or Good Will can't actually accept every piece of clothing donated to them. Lots of it end up on cargos back to Africa or Asia. Buy from thrift stores, this is a good thing and good for environment.
- topmonk 8y ago
  My questions were rhetorical. I was trying to explain why I believe clothes are expensive in wealthy areas, not asking about you personally.
- noir_lord 8y ago
  > I have a dozen black t-shirts A man after my own heart. > from Primark. Try Tesco, they are 2 for £8 but they last forever, dont fade and look the same after a couple dozen washes as they did new, also they never run. I find the fit better and they keep their shape without going saggy around the collar.

isostatic 8y ago

https://www.amazon.co.uk/Blu-Cherry-Premium-Assorted-Multicolor/dp/B06Y5VDWJJ https://www.amazon.co.uk/Blu-Cherry-Premium-Assorted-Multico... 3 tshirts for £13.50 delivered next day to your door. That's $5.80 each. I have no idea where you'd pay 4 times that. On the other hand I couldn't find a pair of socks in Nairobi last month for under about $15. Clearly I didn't know where to look, but it goes to show that there's always stores charging shocking amounts. (https://www.amazon.co.uk/FIND-Socks-Mixed-Stripe-Medium/dp/B072Q7JLRV https://www.amazon.co.uk/FIND-Socks-Mixed-Stripe-Medium/dp/B... -- $2/pair

ksec 8y ago

It is not that you are getting Rip-Off, There is at least $15 going into Retail Rental, Staff, Operation, All these cost are 10x higher in US than Vietnam.