What is an outlet store? Long ago, factories where consumer goods were made were actually situated in the United States, and shoppers could visit factory stores to find overruns, merchandise with tiny errors, and other wonderful cut-rate goodness. (As an exciting bonus, if you took a wrong turn, you could end up on the factory floor.) Outlet malls have proliferated, but there are few factories left in America. Today, a store proclaiming itself to be an "outlet" is more likely to be peddling lower-quality merchandise under a well-known brand name. So how do you know when an outlet isn't offering any true deals?
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This isn't just outlet stores. it's everywhere.
ReplyDeleteThe trick is this-- they put something out on the floor for a few days at a ridiculous price, knowing they won't sell any at that price, but it establishes the 'original' price.
Then they mark it down by a large percentage to what they really meant to sell it for, and put red tags on it.
Then, somebody like my wife comes by and says "Look! This is 40% off!" and grabs it, then brings it home and tells me what a good deal it was. A polo shirt that was originally $40 (what idiot is going to pay that for a polo shirt?), marked down to $19.99 (still too high) that she will be able to buy a little later at the same store in the mall for $10-12.
Look at the item. Say to yourself "What is this worth?" Then look at the price. If the price is fair, buy it. If not, walk away.
And don't bother with the "outlet" stores. That's just a con job. That's why so many places have put 'outlet' in their name-- it's working.
You never "save" money unless you put it into the bank.
ReplyDeleteManufactures produce lower quality merchandise for their outlet stores. The shirt you buy at an outlet store may have fewer stitches per inch than one of the same brand bought in a department store. Any quality overruns, leftovers are now sold to liquidators such as Marshall's.
ReplyDeleteOutlet malls are not any cheaper than the regular mall.
ReplyDeleteIn fact I've found the same items much cheaper at a regular mall than the outlet.