There is no love lost with mainstream retailers as of late.
Don’t get me wrong, I still covet things like this amazing Banana Republic goddess maxi dress I bought in cobalt blue and received a ton of compliments on as a general casual dress…
….or this stunning nature-inspired maxi I picked up for a wedding, but in general, it has been ho-hum in the stores.
Frankly, I’m bored.
DISCOUNTS ARE TIRING & A SHAM
40% off!
30% off!
Half price today!
UGH.
They’re discounting all the time and while I understand its business need it annoys me greatly when I see that I bought something let’s say for 40% off, only to see it marked down and on sale AGAIN another 3 weeks later at another 20% off.
Seriously?
Why don’t you just price this stuff as if it’s always on sale, and give a smaller discount?
I get that it’s hard to pull back from giving 40% (people wait and wait and wait for that sale), but something has to be done. It is frustrating.
QUALITY HAS GONE DOWN THE DRAIN
Things are unlined, everything is in polyester, the fit is all off (too short, too long, too low cut).
I mean, I am expecting something better than 100% polyester and unlined, almost see-through for $150. Why does polyester even crop up in expensive pieces?
$150!
No way. No how.
The fabrics are thin, they colours are strange, the prints are cheap… no thanks.
THE STYLE IS NOT CURRENT
They have missed the boat of what women want to wear.
The colours I see in store are sick chalky pastels, strange mud colours, things that look terrible on most skin tones unless you’re a specific white alabaster (and even THEN!).
Colours that women want to wear are simple: Black, Ivories/Whites, Jewel tones (cobalt blue is always a winner), and beautiful greys in charcoal and pearl grays, or navy or midnight blues.
The dresses, bottoms, tops are also not current shapes or styles.
I don’t wear miniskirts (who does except if you’re a teen), and I want skirts to at least reach my knees, the waist to be a little looser, and I want to see quality details like a nice sewn in waistband, not some cheap elastic ruching to make it stretchy, and little things that make it feel and look luxe.
THRIFTING IS A MUCH BETTER DEAL & GREENER
You save the environment by reusing, and you save a lot more money as well.
Here are my observations from 2 weeks of thrifting and here is what I have found for $182 with another $200 for tailoring which is well spent.
$382 for amazing wool skirts & dresses and jackets? DONE.
You pay $10 for a dress (no taxes) when in stores it would cost at least $50 even on sale, or higher at $150!
That is insanity.
When you thrift, you can also buy secondhand designer goods that are at least of higher quality than H&M, Forever 21, Zara for instance, but even then, it is questionable depending on what it looks like. Not all designer items are worth buying or wearing either.
THAT SAID!
You can find really great designer items for the price of a new cheap polyester dress at your local retailer.
MY STYLE HAS ALSO CHANGED
I am moving way towards what I could term minimalist femininity with some colourful touches in accessories mostly, or very stylish, graphic prints that aren’t juvenile.
I don’t see any of that in the stores, and when I do, it is too expensive to consider for 100% polyester.
What I want, simply doesn’t exist.
If I could, I would just create my own Sherry Shops store and design what I want to wear and be done with it, but that’s another story for another day.
