Retail Stores.
They can be expensive, up selling, and bank account draining places for men who want to upgrade their wardrobe.
One of the questions I get asked a lot is, “How can I upgrade my wardrobe without going bankrupt?”
Before I share some great tips with you, it’s important to note that no matter what you do – you need to save your money and purchase quality over time.
Rebuilding your wardrobe is a marathon, not a sprint. Don’t go into debt buying clothes on impulse.
Plan ahead and piece together a great wardrobe over time.
Before we get into where to go, there are some tips that you can utilize no matter what store you are shopping at. Let’s call these tips, the “What to buy” tips, and then we can talk about the “Where to buy” tips.
This is a guest post by Travis White. Travis runs the website Unkept Gentleman where he writes about style tips, how to achieve your personal style goals, and why personal image matters.
What to Buy
1. Only Buy What You Need
About three years ago – when I started paying more attention to my style, I walked into an Express and they were having a sale.
There were signs everywhere, “50% OFF EVERYTHING!”
They were clearing out to make way for their new season inventory.
So what did I do?
I said “50% OFF? I NEED EVERYTHING!”
Did I really need everything? No, not by a long shot.
I had originally gone to the mall for a couple shirts to upgrade my wardrobe for a new internship that required a business casual dress code.
After leaving the store, I ended up with a bill of $300 bucks and random items I only wore once. If I had stuck to only the things I needed I would’ve spent about $50.
Just because there is a sale doesn’t mean you need the clothes, because guess what, YOU ARE STILL SPENDING MONEY.
The most important thing to understand is that you should be getting staple items of the core wardrobe first.
These are a couple of my staple recommendations:
- White button down shirt (2-3 of them)
- Dress shoes (Black & Brown)
- A nice watch
- Dark denim jeans
- Khaki or navy dress pants/chinos
- A gray or navy suit
- A tie
- Black & Brown belt
These are all items that at some point in your life you will need to utilize. Even if you have a job that requires wearing sweats every day, you will still use these at some point. Whether it is a college graduation, a wedding, or a fancy date with your spouse, you will need these items.
So now that you understand the staples what can you do to not get carried away?
Well this brings me to my next point.
2. Plan Ahead & Leave Emotion At The Door
Have you ever gone to the grocery store without a list of what to buy when you are hungry?
Not a good idea!
You will buy on emotion. You’re hungry, everything looks so delicious, and you start dumping unnecessary junk food into your cart that you would never eat.
The same holds true when shopping for clothes.
Don’t start browsing the internet or shopping in the store without a list, because you will buy on emotion.
I make a list for nearly everything I do in life so I don’t get overwhelmed.
If you don’t shop with a plan it will inevitably lead to unnecessary purchases that could’ve been avoided.
3. Understand Style
So by this point you may be saying, “Travis, I already have the staple items, I need to know what else I can buy to compliment my current wardrobe.”
This is where I will tell you to do some research and educate yourself first. There are tons of great resources like this website that I am guest writing for.
Browse around Antonio’s website a little bit before making your next list of items to get.
Maybe you want to get into pattern mixing, or start buying different outfits for different occasions. Learn about those things and make your next list.
Now that you know what to buy let’s talk a little bit about where you can go to further your savings.
Where to Buy
4. High Quality Outlets
What are outlet stores?
Think of an outlet store as the warehouse version of the retail store.
They sell the same name brand clothing that their retail counterpart sells, only at a discount due to under or over production.
If you stick to the outlets of high end retailers, you can get the same quality for less. If you live in major metropolitan areas search your favorite retailers and see if they have outlet stores near you. If you don’t live near brick and mortar outlet stores check for some online outlet stores.
A lot of department stores now offer online outlets due to the growing demand of online shopping.
5. End of Seasons & Clearance Prices
Did you know that retailers and outlet stores have leftover inventory at the end of every season? Well, they sure don’t want to keep it for a year and sell it when that season comes rolling around again.
So what do they do? They put them on the clearance racks! They discount all those items you paid retail price for when the season started.
Let’s talk about when these items go on clearance.
Most stores usually time their new inventory with New York Fashion Week which happens in February and September every year. So what can we deduct from this?
February is the end of winter, and beginning of Spring/Summer lines, so you can shop for winter clearance in February. September is the end of summer and the beginning of Fall/Winter lines. So you can shop for summer clearance in September.
Another general rule of thumb to follow is that most stores keep premium prices for about seven weeks before moving to clearance. So at the start of a season, try to hold off for about six or seven weeks before heading to the store.
Make sure you know the return policy on clearance items. They are usually non-returnable items.
6. Free Subscriptions Coupons
Menswear stores love to reward their loyal shoppers with coupons.
Pick your favorites and subscribe to their email list. If you don’t want to get spammed to your main inbox all the time, create a separate email account just for coupons & subscriptions.
Some will even send you catalogs in the mail. Those are FULL of awesome discounts & surprises.
Most coupons are anywhere from 20-30% off.
7. Explore Thrift Stores
Thrift stores sell previously owned goods for next to nothing. How does the saying go? “One man’s trash is another man’s treasure.” Some people get rid of some amazing quality clothing.
I can’t tell you how many times I have stumbled upon amazing pieces while thrifting, and paid pocket change for them.
I’ve personally bought an originally priced $500 leather biker jacket for $50 because I got it from a thrift store.
They are also great because a lot of the items are vintage, meaning you’ll be the only one who is wearing that item. Talk about originality!
8. Shop at High-Quality But Affordable Stores
There are special stores who occupy an amazing niche. They have managed to sell equally high quality products for cheaper than their name brand competitors.
They do this by selling quality, instead of a name. When you pay lots of money for designer clothing you are really just buying a name.
The places who push quality first and name second have found a beautiful harmony of affordable and high quality items.
These are some of my favorite menswear stores that are decently priced and high quality in alphabetical order:
Aldo (Shoes)
Asos
Banana Republic
Bar 3 (In Macy’s)
Bonobos
Brooks Brothers
Eddie Bauer
Crew
Kenneth Cole
Men’s Wearhouse
Peter Manning (Geared towards guys 5’8 and under)
REI (For Outdoors wear)
Southern Gents (Accessories)
Stag – Provisions for Men
Suit Supply
The Tie Bar (Accessories)
Uniqlo
Zara
Bonus 9th tip: Combine Tips
Try putting some of these tips to use in combination to create winning formulas.
For example:
- Shop at Outlets (Tip 4)
- At the End of the Season (Tip 5),
or
- Shop at Outlets (Tip 4)
- With the Coupons They Email You (Tip 6)
This is a guest post by Travis White. Travis runs the website Unkept Gentleman where he writes about style tips, how to achieve your personal style goals, and why personal image matters.
