How to Avoid Substandard Clothing Quality When Shopping Sales

Everybody loves a good deal and many people don’t even go shopping unless there’s a sale. But sales are instruments that department stores use to unload tons of cheap clothing that will soon feed the discount store shelves and keep the cash flow moving after the holidays. So be careful that you’re really getting a good deal and the money you’re saving is a premium on what you really want to own rather than being nothing but a lower price for lesser quality.

Instructions

Difficulty: Moderately Easy

1. The best way to benefit from a sale is to know it’s coming and do your shopping before the sale arrives. Place it on hold and only execute the transaction during the sale. This way you have a better chance of getting the best value and you’re not in a rush without any help from a good salesman. Be very careful about a sale you just stumble upon while you’re walking around the mall.
2. Pay attention to what’s on sale. Tables or racks where everything is marked down may indicate that those items were brought in for the sale only. Look closely at the quality of their construction and compare against the regularly stocked clothing in the store. Ask what will happen to these items after the sale. Department stores often bring in inexpensive clothing they don’t normally stock for the sale, then move out what they don’t sell a couple of weeks later to a discount channel.
3. Look for clothing that was previously stocked and is now marked down. If that same article will be returned to its normal pricing after the sale is over, then its value is much greater if you like it and it’s a good fit.
4. Be careful that sale items do not incur additional charges for tailoring. There’s no point in saving money for the clothes if you have to pay it back to get it fitted correctly.
5. Last, ask about the guarantee on quality. Many sales do not allow returns, but the better stores won’t differentiate between sale and regularly priced items when it comes to customer satisfaction. After all, it may be a returned item already that had a flaw that was hard to detect or a problem that makes it basically second-hand clothing.