Question for those who shop at Theory, Vince, Reiss, etc. How do you afford it? People always ask about designer items, which I get too, but I see that their dresses are like $500 a pop. Super curious because that's pretty steep for me but I find their dresses beautiful and am trying to figure out if maybe people have a way to buy their stuff for cheaper or something?

I love Theory and Vince. I always shop at their outlet stores around Black Friday time. Really steep discount.

You know, it’s funny. I was in Intermix recently and wondered “who regularly affords these clothes”? $300 blouses, $600 dresses, $900 heels etc. All super trendy stuff too. I’m 35, did 5+ years in BigLaw/have 10 years of experience and own a few items from the brands you mentioned. They were all splurge *staple* pieces - a Theory suit, Vince heels, and a Reiss blouse I wear often.

Other than that, I also love these brands (and the ones carried at places like intermix), but don’t purchase them often. I like quality clothes, but am not comfortable regularly spending that kind of money on them. (And I see this as a woman with a Chanel bag and some VCA and Cartier.)

I suspect they are purchased by women who simply earn more, like a single woman earning $300k, or a married woman with kids who earns $500k herself.

I also suspect debt and little savings too.

Nordstrom Rack!

I buy those brands on Poshmark for crazy discounts. If you don’t want to buy something that’s been worn before, you can narrow your searches to items that are “new with tags” and still get an amazing discount.

Sample sales, outlets, tjmaxx, or second hand- Poshmark or TRR

I’ve done a complete 180 on shopping for clothing. Or maybe more like a 160 because I’m still working on it. I used to shop at Rack, shop sales, etc. I can’t tell you how many items I’ve purchased that were fine but I didn’t love, which lead to so much filler in my close that I rarely wore those pieces and even had a hard time finding the pieces I love.
I had to do a really painful purge and give myself permission to do a few things:

1. Not feeling guilty about having purchased something I didn’t love/wasn’t worth getting tailored, and giving it to a good home instead, such as Dress for Success. Extra hard to not get stuck thinking about how much money I’d wasted.

2. I don’t go shopping as a hobby or time killer anymore. If there is something I think I really want for my closet, I write it on a list I keep in my closet and each time I believe it would’ve really elevated whatever I was wearing, I put a check next to it. Ex. Houndstooth tweed collarless jacket, round neck navy sweater in a light cashmere or merino, etc.

3. I have permission to buy the version of whatever it is that I love. I’ve realized there are a few pieces such as the orange patent and cognac heels I got at TJ Maxx 10 years ago, or the Chloe Susanna boots I bought in Paris, that I’ve worn so many times that it almost doesn’t matter what I spent on them because the cost per wear of the high end items I love is the same as or lower than the stuff I sort of liked but ultimately didn’t end up wearing. I have Chloe wide leg wool trousers from forever ago that I just had a new set of alterations made to so I can wear them with sneakers or low heels since high heels don’t really work for my feet now. Those trousers have been worn so many times, have held up so well, and will probably hold up a good while longer. Many of the higher end classics can be scored in consignment shops, too, and the higher end stuff like trousers and jackets are usually made so they’re relatively easy to make alterations to vs the cheaper stuff that doesn’t have extra fabric at the seams, etc.

Sample sales and outlet malls! They’re usually not worth full price in my opinion

Just got great Theory pants at TJ Maxx for $60, originally priced at $300

Following I wonder the same

Theory has a site that is dedicated to outlet pricing. I am in New York City, and a couple times a year I will go to the Vince and theory outlets that are in Woodbury common. A lot of the department store off price sites sell them cheaper. Vince is often on sale on gilt group or rue la la.

I will also look for them on websites like the RealReal. I’ve gotten a lot of new with tags stuff from that site.

Sales.

Reiss.com just had a 50-60% off sale. Theory has sales.

In addition to store-specific sales, department stores have sales on these brands. Nordstrom carries theory, Vince, boss. Bloomies carries the others plus Reiss. Nordies is gearing up for their anniversary sale now.

I’m cold on outlet stores - a lot of brands make a separate line sold exclusively at outlet stores. I’m not certain of the absolute quality but the relative quality to the brands’ main line is noticeably different to me. I always wonder if the value is there (where value= quality / cost) in the outlet line, and thus just shop the brand’s main line on sale.

theory has crazy discounts now if you time them right like seasonal sales with additional 25% on certain clothing categories like blazers or pants. I would not pay full price for any of the brands you listed and I still earn a regular banking salary with savings and not in debt

I treat them as investment pieces. I’m definitely not spending that on a dress I’ll only wear once. And I get all my other clothes I don’t care about off of Amazon. I have gotten super cute / great quality leggings, sports bras etc under $10 on Amazon. Even if I start out looking good there’s about a 10 minute window before I turn into a hot mess. It’s not worth spending hundreds on workout / leisure clothes IMO. So I save there and try and buy pieces I really love when I know I have to look nice.

Rent the Runway

Theory had a sample sale the last two weeks at 260 5th but it’s over now. Usually there once or twice a year

Was all new with tags and about 60-70% off. Dresses for example were all $99 instead of tag price of $300 plus

I shop there during sales/sample sales/at the outlets/Nordstrom rack. If there a piece I love, I’ll buy it full price, but I won’t do that for just any piece.

Second what a lot of people said here. Sales! Although now I tend to prefer the 20% off store wide type sales to the sample sales type sales. This is because find I tend to buy things that aren’t exactly what I was looking for when the discounts are steep and it works out less cost effective (in a cost per use way) at the end. Maybe I just have bad self control!

Also don’t forget some people might earn more, have spouses who earn more, have no university debt, have parents who helped with property purchases or have no kids. These things change your ability to spend on luxury items considerably.

Sales and sample sales for sure. Unless I’m completely in love with a piece I won’t buy it at full price. It’s not an affordability issue as I make 700k-800k with no kids. I just think full price is for suckers when it comes to clothes. Most of my clothes are from Zara anyway. I prefer to spend money on classic staples, shoes, bags and travel.

ThredUP! I bought a $500 Theory dress on there for $60!