I don’t think I need to tell you this (I’m going to anyway), but times are tough. So many people are still unemployed, jobs still aren’t as secure as they once were and really? Looking your best has never been more important. Unfortunately buying clothes for a new job, interview or just because you need them can get really expensive, really quickly if you’re not careful. If you don’t actively look for ways to save on clothes, they can easily become one of the biggest expenses that we all have unless you want to wear worn out and “ugly” clothing. I can’t think of a single person who wants to do that so the only option that we all have for looking our best is to try to save on clothing the best that we can.
If you’ve tried to save on clothing before but haven’t done well at it, you’re probably pretty discouraged. I know that I personally get discouraged when I know I could have saved money on something but didn’t or when I don’t do as well as I think I should have. Clothing is one of those grey areas for a lot of people because the type of clothes that we all need for business or other “important” functions usually isn’t the type that we wear on a daily basis. This can make it so that we argue with ourselves and completely talk ourselves out of a purchase that we actually need for things like job interviews and more.
Save on Clothes – How to Save Money on Clothes
There also seems to be a misconception out there that if you save on clothes, that you’re buying cheap clothing that won’t last, constantly wearing knock-off’s and more. This couldn’t be farther from the truth. In fact, you should absolutely stay away from “cheap” clothing that is cheap just for the sake of being cheap. Those items don’t last because they aren’t made as well. You’ll actually waste more money in buying cheaper clothes sold at a particular large boxed store than you would paying three times more at a higher end store. The higher end item will most likely last much longer letting you truly get your monies worth out of it.
Save money on clothes by shopping with a gift card – If you can, taking the time to earn free gift cards can really help you rack up the savings. I personally earn at least $225/mo in gift cards and extra cash in just 2-3 hours per day. These gift cards can be used for anything that you need to save on including your clothing budget.
Save on clothes by shopping online consignment stores – Did you know that there is a huge, wide vast of online consignment stores out there that can help you save money on clothes in a big way? Just because you buy from a consignment shop doesn’t mean that the clothing will be used. A lot of them, like ThredUp, Swap and Schoola, actually sell new with tags items that people have sent in to consign so you can piece together a very nice wardrobe of brand names while saving money at the same time.
Save money on clothes by holding a clothing swap – Do you have friends who are around the same size as you? Hold a clothing swap with them using the items that you no longer want or need can be a fantastic way to save on clothing. I’d be willing to bet that you would be able to score at least a few pieces of very nice clothing on a budget by doing this and even better? Girls night!
Save on clothing by shopping thrift stores – Local thrift stores are great places to shop because a lot of people forget they even exist. The key to saving money on clothes at a thrift store is finding a quality one and being ready to do some digging. You don’t always have to buy used at a thrift store either. Good ones will also have new with tags items. Make sure that you go with a budget in mind and that you brush up on thrift store shopping tips so that you can find the best deals possible. They can also help you earn money for your clothing budget if you take the time to learn how to earn money from thrift stores. Some people have created very successful business from their local thrift stores and there is no reason that you can not too.
Save money on clothes by shopping in the off-season – If you want really know how to save money on clothes and to be able to buy without going broke, do your clothes shopping in the off-season. Shop for summer clothes as soon as school clothes come out or once the weather turns cold. Shop for winter clothes when the first spark of spring shows up. Retailers mark their off season items off by as much as 75% making it a great way to buy clothes on a budget.
Hunt down clearance deals to save on clothes – Shopping clearance may seem like a no-brainer to most of you, but you would be surprised how many deals get missed. Retailers like to hide their clearance items in the back of the store or in between whole price items. This can make it really hard to find. Make sure to check all the sale racks, the racks or tables in the middle of the aisles, endcaps and to look for a specific clearance aisle when you’re trying to save on clothes. They get buried very easily. It’s totally worth taking the time to do because you never know what you’ll find!
Save on clothing by combing retailer coupons and promos – Another huge way to save on clothes is to always be on the lookout for a coupon, coupon code or other promo. Even thrift stores run promos such as a specific colored tag being marked 50% off or fill a bag days. Online consignment shops offer them too. ThredUp offers a $10 or $15 credit when you sign up. Schoola offers a free credit as well as free shipping promos. Swap offers free shipping promos too as well as percent off savings. On top of that, most big retailers offer coupon codes too meaning you can really cash in on the savings if you look hard enough. Stack the savings as high as you can so that your out of pocket cost is less.
Put Rakuten to work for you when looking for ways to save money on clothes – Nothing is better than getting money back on what you spend and that is exactly what you get when you shop through Rakuten. Getting cash back is a huge way to increase the amount of money that you save on clothing (or anything really). They gets a portion of money for every item that sells through them. Instead of keeping that money, they give it back to you! You can shop hundreds of online stores and get up to 20% of everything you have spent back to you. In fact, ThredUp is a store you can shop through Rakuten, so on top of a thrifty discount, you can get 2.5% back on every purchase once you’re signed up! New members a free $10 gift card of their choice once they make their first $25.00 purchase (or more) so the savings just keep stacking up. If Rakuten isn’t the “right” cash back shopping site for you or youi’re looking to add more to your money saving arsenal, TopCashBack is another great option. I generally use both and will shop through whichever one provides me with the most cash back at the time for what I’m looking for.
Save money on clothes by shopping around – Take advantage of online retailers like Amazon and eBay as well as the other stores that you frequently shop. You can find bulk deals on eBay of really nice clothing for a fraction of the price in store and a lot of the time they’re new with tags. On top of really great prices, both Amazon and eBay can sometimes be combined with a coupon code helping you to really stack up the savings.