For some students, college is the first time they’ll be able to leave those horrid uniforms behind and dress for school whichever way they may choose. For other students, it’s the time to step it up a notch. Whatever kind of student you are, finding quality clothes on a budget may seem nearly impossible, but with the right strategy, you’re sure to find a few knockout outfits on the low-low.
The Mission
What sort of high quality items could I purchase for this upcoming semester with a budget of $250, without resorting to fast-fashion stores like Forever 21 or Wet Seal? I decided to find out by researching which stores had student discounts and looking out for clearance sales and promotions. I also made sure to use up any gift cards I had from previous holidays or birthdays.
The Journey
I began my adventure at Banana Republic, since I knew I needed a nice outfit for those occasional class presentations. There was a promotion going on for pants that slashed the price from $98 to $58.80. It was still a bit expensive, but I decided to buy the pants. The major downside? Because these pants were on sale, I couldn’t get the student discount on top of it. If these pants had been regular price, then I could have applied the discount, but it wouldn’t have been as good of a deal. I checked the store’s clearance section, but had no luck considering my budget and how big of a dent these pants caused.
From there, I went to Abercrombie & Fitch, mainly to reminisce about my teenage years and enjoy the heavily scented store. As I was perusing their clearance section, which was pretty empty, I managed to find a shirt and skirt in my size. When I went to check out, to my surprise I had spent a total of $24.49.
Immediately, I knew this was going to be the best snag of the day.
Feeling confident, I went into Macy’s to scour through their many sales racks. They had racks with clothing from 40% to 60% off regular pricing. Unfortunately, no student discounts are offered here. The bulk of my budget was spent at Macy’s even with a gift card. I managed to purchase eight items: two dresses, a three-piece gym outfit, and three tops. The clothes would’ve cost me $163.23, but with that handy-dandy gift card from my step-aunt I only paid $140.30.
I finished my shopping spree at J. Crew with a pair of shorts that were originally $39.50, but because of a promotion and my 15% student discount I paid $25.18.
Final tally
In total I managed to spend $248.77 on tax-free weekend, which saved me on that extra 6%, $14.92. Keep in mind that this budget didn’t cover shoes.
So, is $250 really enough to create a college wardrobe? Yes and no. Yes, because it could be a whole new wardrobe at a fast-fashion store like Forever 21, whose clothes have a reputation for being of lower quality. No, because purchasing high quality items, regardless of promotions and discounts, are still going to be a little pricier.
At the end of the day, a student doesn’t need a whole new wardrobe each school year anyway. Students can have x-amount of clothes but wear the items in y-amount of ways. As we get older and start entering the workforce, we’re going to need those nice items that can easily transition from a day at work to a night out. So, to get a few snags on a tight budget, we college students should practice shopping for high quality items at bargain prices.
