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Cost Per Wear?

Mo

(website)

Veteran

I was thinking on this after I bought some inexpensive colorful ribbed tanks this morning. What do you reasonably expect to get out of your clothes CPW?

I find I expect my casual tops to be $1, or even less, by the time I toss 'em. These I usually spend the least on and also wear the most. "Dressier" tops may be as much as $5 per wear because they just don't get the mileage in my day to day life. About the same with my dresses. Shoes I figure between $5 and $1 because ideally they are built to hold up to quite a bit of wear. And cheap shoes last less time, so this works both ways. For my wardrobe, I think premium denim and coats and boots would be near the top, nearing $10 range. The only thing I can think that has higher CPW are special occassion dresses or suits.

I have a lot of less expensive stuff that gets into a rotation with many other items, and so it may take a year for something to get worn a dozen times. Many things have not yet seen a dozen wears over the year.

How about you? Do you have more expensive items, yet wear them every week, and so still have similar cost per wear as my 'cheapy' stuff? Or do you have nice stuff, and a lot of it, so your CPW is double or triple what mine is?

General

26 replies

Latest reply was from Mo

Lisa

Veteran

I've never tracked CPW for my clothing so I'm not sure how to answer. Let's see. My premium denim jeans, all my blazers, my shoes/boots, cashmere sweaters and Brooks Brothers shirts are probably my priciest items, and the one's I expect to last season to season. They are also the items that are generally washed the least. I certainly do not wash my jeans after every wear. My jeans are worn close to 7 days a week, so I get a lot of CPW from them.

My layering items: long sleeve and short sleeve T's, thin weight sweaters, tank tops, and dresses are items I wash after every wear. These are the items against my skin and most prone to getting sweat or deoderant on them. I don't spend as much on these items as I do the above items, and I don't expect these items to last past one season. In general they typcially do, but this is probably because I stock up on these items (except the dresses) and then they get washed less frequently because of the volume of what I have.

Mo

(website)

Veteran

I have to say I've never really tracked it either, but just ballpark guesses have me at those figures. My $160 jeans have been worn about 15 times I'd guess. One of my latest $13 tanks has been worn 4 times, etc. I think if I'm ever to get to the point of quality over quantity I have to think in terms of CPW to make it easier for me to break out of the bargain hunting mode. I know the tanks I bought today will get worn over 10 times each by the end of summer and they were a measly $4 - no brainer. But when it comes to, say the $50 chiffon blouse I recently bought, it took me a month to convince myself. It will need to get 10 wears before it feels cost effective to me, does that make sense? Right now it feels extravagant because I've worn it just once lol.

rae

(website)

Veteran

I honestly never think in terms of cost-per-wear for myself. I get bored easily, so I require a larger wardrobe with high turnover. Since this is the case, I am more mindful of resale value, because I hardly ever wear anything out.

chewyspaghetti

Veteran

I don't ever figure out an actual cost per wear of items. I do know that I hate to buy things that wear out quickly and have to keep replacing them. I'd rather have a few nicer things, and not have to constantly be looking for replacements. But shopping is very difficult for me due to location, so I take that into consideration, too.

Mo

(website)

Veteran

I guess I'm wondering if my CPW expectations are in line or simply too low to encompass a quality wardrobe. Maybe I've been buying on deep discount so long I can't fathom a row of items in my wardrobe that may be $30, $40, or higher CPW after owning them for a full year, you know? Rae has an interesting perspective with the resale angle. I never resell. It's usually either too worn or just not current or anything someone would want by the time I toss things lol.

Queen Mum

Veteran

I don't keep track, but in my mind I like to think that an item will work out to roughly $1-$2 per wear. I know have have some things that probably won't make it down that far, but other things that have probably whittled down to even less than that. So, before I plunk down $50 for a blouse, I ask myself if I think I will wear it 30-50 times over the next couple of years. This is why I'm really trying to keep a relatively small wardrobe.

Aziraphale

Veteran

Mo, that's a really interesting question. I do sort of think of clothing items in terms of cost per wear (especially when I'm considering forking over for an expensive item), but I've never actually tried to work it out.

An acquaintance recently said, "You have so many pairs of cute shoes! Where do you do your shoe shopping?" It was an awkward question because my shoes are, without a doubt, the most expensive items in my wardrobe, and I know this woman does not have the budget to shop where I shop. (I should also mention that I'm not especially wealthy, so I can't spend on a single item of clothing what I might on a pair of shoes).

What I replied is that I try to buy the best shoes I can, and I've been working on my shoe collection for years. Once you have a certain number of pairs, and they are all in rotation (as in, you don't wear the same two pairs all the time), they last FOREVER. Because with shoes in particular, you get what you pay for -- the good quality ones last a long time even if you do wear them every day.

I don't even have an obscene number of shoes. I maybe have 30 pairs total, including my gym shoes and Sorrell winter boots. But I try to wear them all, and some I've had for a decade, so it would be really difficult to work out cost per wear!

The only area I think I differ from you in terms of clothing cost-per-wear is with jeans and coats. I think my jeans get down to about $1 to $2 per wear. I generally don't spend more than about $100 on jeans, and I'm sure I wear them at least 100 times before they're done. As for coats, I only have a few, and with the exception of my black leather duster which, let's face it, can't come out to play all that often in rainy Vancouver, they all get worn all the time.

Heather

Veteran

Malina, this CPW is a very interesting thought....one I best not ponder or calculate.....O_O!

krishnidoux

Veteran

CPW! Very clever!

Mo

(website)

Veteran

He he, Heather! Kim and Elisabeth, it's good to know I have company in the $1 to $2 range I was curious to see if I was way off base from others or if we had a whole range here. I think in my mind over $10 CPW gets to be in the 'expensive' range, for me.

EDIT: I plan on my premium jeans eventually reaching the $1 or $2 mark but since they were purchased just last year and I'm in such a hot climate, I think it will be several years before I get there.

Isis

Veteran

Mo, is your CPW really $10 for premium denim???? You only wear your $160 jeans 16 times?

I think I wear mine a lot more than that, but I've never counted! I do know that some of my $100 shoes have lasted for years, wearing 2 x/ week during the winter months, bringing them to less than $1/wear.....

It's interesting to think about!

Mo

(website)

Veteran

Ha Isis, we were thinking the same thing at the same time! I was editing my post as you posted. Yes, right now they are still up at $10 or so. It is 93 degrees right now. I think it will be November before I can pull them out again.

Isis

Veteran

Got it; they aren't worn out yet, and the cost will go down!

It's hard to wear jeans when it's hot though!

lyn*

(website)

Veteran

Out of my heels I get down to about 30-cents a wear.
Out of my boots I get down to about 50-cents a wear.
Out of my jackets I get down to about 50-cents a wear.

My bottoms I get down to about 20-cents a wear.
My tops I get down to maybe 30-cents a wear.

I like sales.

Mo

(website)

Veteran

Wow, Lyn you really have that CPW down to pennies!! And you look great - so it goes to show you can look a million bucks on pennies a day lol!

Kim

Veteran

You know, I'm alot like you Mo, I love me a good bargain and have never owned a pair of jeans that cost more than 25 bucks til this year! LOL Now I buy Gap jeans and I wait til they go on sale at 40 percent off, because the Gap is good about having that sale often!

I never really thought about cost per wear *specifically* until I picked up those cute leopard pumps after SYC. They cost me over $100.00 and I have *never* paid that for a pair of shoes. I justified them in many ways (they fit, they were the cutest shoe I could find, I adored them, they were comfy, they had the right heel height etc. There were NO compromises on these babies whatsoever.

The cost was my only problem....

It was a big leap for bargain hunting me, but I decided that good shoes were worth the money *and* if I wear them once a week this year along (I can realistically wear them starting now until about November) thats about 30 wears in just one year. (I don't wear shoes in the winter and pumps around the daycare might look a little funny...LOL)

If I wear them twice a week that's 60 or so times just this year. The cost per wear now about $2.00. But I"ll FEEL FAB IN THEM EVERY TIME I WEAR THEM, so I forked over the cash and never looked back. Best two bucks I've ever spent. Just waiting now for a non-rainy day to wear them out grocery shopping!! LOL

rosee

Veteran

That's a good question, but there is too much math involved in my case. I'm assuming most items I own are down to $1 per wear -- some thrifted items considerably less so. My suit pieces would be more, but I did wear them as separate pieces several times, so I'm guessing at most in the $5 to $10 range. My coats are new so they are higher right now, but I plan to keep them for about 10 years or so. My old coat (I still have it for very casual use) is 10 years old and I wore it at least 50 times per year, so it averages about $1 (the most expensive item I have ever bought to date, the new coats were a better deal).
I try not to own an excessive amount of clothing so I wear things a fair bit -- extras get donated or sold /consigned. Like Rae, I also consider the resale value for some items (usually trendier pieces) b/c I like to "trade in" sometimes at consignment stores.
Shoes are investment purchases so the CPW is higher, but a lot are down to $1pw too. I only allow myself to own 30 pairs (total, including athletic shoes, flip flops, rubber boots, etc). But I've probably owned over 100 pairs during my lifetime at this size. I've learned that for me it's worth it to pay for shoes that are comfortable enough to wear for a very long time. Unfortunately, not all expensive shoes are always comfortable -- that I've learned the hard way. I tend to stalk things to see if they will go on sale before my size is sold out.
Interestingly, I have some cheaper items -- either retail sale or thrift -- which were impulse purchases that have a relatively higher CPW considering the original purchase price compared to few times worn. These are on my "donate / sell" list.

Kristine

Veteran

I've never really thought about it, I would guess $1 a wear is in the ballpark. Some of my workhorses (navy dress pants for example) are probably lower, maybe .50 or even .25 a wear. My well-worn dog park jeans are probably paying me at this point.

Some of my nicer pieces (Karen Kane wool jacket for example) are thrifted which probably puts them in the $.50/wear range instead of the $10/wear range (let's say I paid $7 instead of $140 and wear it 14 times).

It's an interesting way to look at things.

MsMary

Veteran

I don't keep track of cost per wear, but one could calculate one's clothing cost per day based on one's annual clothing budget. Which could be divided by the average number of pieces worn per day to produce an average cost per wear, right?

So, if I spent $2,500 on clothes and accessories last year, that was about $7 per day, divided by -- what? Top, bottom, shoes, bag, maybe one more piece (jacket, scarf, belt, whatever). That's less than $1.50 per wear, per item. Obviously it would be lower for some items than others, but it's a way to get an idea of your average daily clothing costs.

But I guess that only works if you replaced your whole wardrobe last year, like I did.

Now I'm all confused...

Diana

Veteran

Hmm... I don't really keep track of CPW but I found it interesting, Mo, that you have the highest CPW for premium denim, boots, and coats, because I think those are my lowest CPW items... They are also actually the items I'm willing to pay most for, probably since I know I'll wear them to death over multiple seasons.
I have a lot of clothes, but I'm also a serious, serious bargain shopper, so I'd say that my CPW for most things, excluding special occasion wear, is fairly low.

Mo

(website)

Veteran

I suppose part of my CPW variables are a) living in two distinctly opposite climates every other year and b) wearing a uniform when I am working in CA. So, while I am a definite bargain hunter (even my premium jeans were roughly half price at $160) I end up wearing different types things in varying amounts. I do hold on to stuff FOREVER so that helps. But most of my clothing, save for jeans, is not worn daily for a job. So that skews things. Big time. Lol.
I just wanted to get a feel for if my $1 - $5 was like eating Ramen noodles every night for dinner while others were having filet Thanks for all the input, everyone!

Jonesy

Veteran

It's interesting to think about...but I never really think this way, unless I am trying to justify buying something quite expensive. If it's in the ballpark of what I'm willing to spend, then I just go for it and don't really think about the CPW. I guess I like to keep it simple :).

Elly

Veteran

My cost per wear is pennies. The jeans I currently have on probably have a month of wear left and are down to 16 cents or less a wear. I always get really dissapointed in things when they don't wear well, because I tend to wear most of my clothes into the GROUND. My shoes are usually between 75 and 100 bucks and I usually get about 130-160 all day wears out of them.

However, if I factor in clothes that sit unworn (which right now is just a couple of very old blouses and my skirts and some shoes) cost per wear goes up. I guess for me it balances out. I may have worn the life out of my jeans and daily shoes, but I do have 100 dollar pairs of shoes that have failed because of comfort issues, and orphan skirts.

lyn*

(website)

Veteran

Mo - it's not hard if you get a say, dress shirt for $15. You don't have to wear it very many times to get it down to pennies. More than 15. There's definitely > 15 ways to wear a dress shirt and you say can wear it for 2 years. That's only 7.5 wears a year!

Kate

Veteran

Ok, so I DO keep track. Here's the average cost per wear for each category of clothes, given the price when I bought it and the number of wears since Nov. 8, 2010. Note that some items were worn MANY times before Nov 8, but I haven't kept track of those. Also, the 16 items purchased in 2008 or earlier, or received as gifts are counted as $0 cost.

trousers $1.45
jeans $0.40
skirts $9.22
dresses $19.93
blazers $7.34
cardigans $3.60
tops $3.22

A lot of these numbers are driven up by recent investment purchases (especially the $125 dress, $100 dress, $140 blazer, and several skirts).

Also, the cost per wear on my everyday footwear (for the same time period):
brown knee high boots $0.96
cognac booties $4.02
tan sandals $4.53

When I make purchases I expect that they make it to $1 CPW and hope that they make it to at least $0.50. I am so proud of my jeans CPW, and hope that by the time I've been tracking for a year that my other categories will have substantially lower CPWs too!

Mo

(website)

Veteran

Kate, I just love that you have it all figured out! I just guessed roughly on mine but I can see that skirts and dresses will likely never get to the same low levels as shirts and shoes for us.
This has been very helpful to see that many others expect roughly $1 CPW for most non investment piece type items, as do I. Thanks!