How do you make a big purchase decision? - YouLookFab Forum

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Outfits Ensembles Trends Advice

How do you make a big purchase decision?

viva

Veteran

You may or may not have seen my Mr. Fox jacket post yesterday.
http://youlookfab.com/welookfa.....ger-danger

In a nutshell, I am in DC on business and picking up DD the younger from college, and -- still in search of a possible graduation dress for DD the elder -- I wandered into Saks last night. While there, I tried on a Ralph Lauren cutaway riding jacket and feel in deep love. I leave the city tomorrow morning. Here is my dilemma: to purchase, or not to purchase?

In favor of purchasing:
It's a total fit for a my style (sophisticated tomboy).
It fits like a glove.
It's beautifully made.
I have wanted a good wool jacket for several years, and I loved Angie's Smythe jacket in her post this year.
Since I spend most of my non-travel (that is, non-client) hours in jeans, I think this would be a workhorse piece for me.
I love that it is not black.
It's pricey but currently 40% off because of fall presale.

In favor of leaving it:
If I buy it, I will have to hold off on ALL purchasing for the next two months, except for one pair of casual day sandals which I need. (For example, I will wear something I already own to college graduation and put together my vacation travel capsule from existing items.) This should not be difficult because I really don't need anything else, but I will be honest and admit to being impulsive, especially when work is slow. I am concerned I will not be able to do this.
Will I love it in the fall? I think so. But I've never bought for fall in spring. Still, it feels like a classic purchase.

I have a lunch meeting and will stop at Saks after lunch to try it on again and see how I feel, but I would love to have the wisdom of the Forum in my ear.

Thanks so much for your help,
Vivian

Shopping

26 replies

Latest reply was from rabbit

Liz

Veteran

If it were me, I would leave it. The reason is because you said you tend to purchase impulsively when you travel. It's going to cost you something in both money and opportunity cost, so I'd let the ardor cool, get back home, do the graduations, and then...if you still want it and are ready to commit to no shopping and budget constraints, call up Saks and get it.

Again, that's me. I can't think clearly in situations like you're in (out of town, emotions running high because of daughters' lives changing, small window to purchase, etc.), and have learned not to trust my instincts in those times. You might be different!

retailgirl

Veteran

I love it and I think you should try it with the vent open...I think that is making it off in the back. I am sure you'd still love it next fall. I've bought out of season. I think it goes back to when I was a buyer and would be buying for the store. Last year or the year before I took a chance on a final sale cashmere jacket on the lafayette 148 website...luckily it fit perfectly and it's the kind of thing I'll have for a long time. $998 and then 70 percent off. My price threshold keeps going up but I don't think I'm at $1000 for a jacket...yet! :-).

Angie

(website)

Fashion Stylist

If you are still thinking about it in a few days - get it. xo

April

Veteran

My method is to hem and haw until it's completely sold out in my size.

Very effective for keeping costs down...

Suz

(website)

Veteran

It's gorgeous on you. And given the colour I think it would also work for early spring in your climate. (There's a freshness to it that speaks of spring.) So that extends the wearing season.

(How's that for enabling....)

But your real and deeper question is the more important one. How we decide on major purchases is going to be individual and depend a huge amount on disposable income as well as temperament.

When my budget for clothing was low, the equation was simple: I only bought necessities at a high-ticket price. (And of course what counted as "high ticket" to me was what I might now consider a medium end price bracket.)

Necessities in my climate? Winter coats, boots, one pair of fall and spring footwear if all were worn out. Underwear.

The next category of item that I learned to spend more on, thanks to Angie's tutelage, was the everyday wear . For me, that means denim. It seemed counterintuitive to me at first -- why would I pay more for jeans, of all things? Well, because I wear them so much, that's why! CPW goes down really fast and I feel better in my better quality jeans. Of course I will still take a bargain pair if I like them as well!

Now that I have more flexibility and also have a clearer sense of my needs and what I really wear, I will also spend more on "non-necessary" items that I know will get a TON of wear, and will make me feel fantastic every single time I wear them.

Jackets (in general) and footwear fall into that category for me. Strictly speaking, I don't really *need* more than one jacket per season and one pair of booties or shoes. But I like to have a bit of variety, and I know there is a payoff for me in terms of how I feel.

These days, I also do a little mental prediction when I am considering an appealing but expensive item. How often would I really wear this? (I think we often overestimate this in the first flush of love.) Am I willing to get rid of something else in my closet to make room for this item? (Or am I even able to? Maybe I don't have anything remotely like it yet and have been looking for it for a long time-- in which case, buying it is easier to justify.) Can I make several outfits from it easily? In what circumstances do I see myself wearing it? What will I have to give up if I buy this? Will I have to give up anything I genuinely need?

Lantana

Veteran

I sympathise viva as I have been faced with a similar choice this week.
I took the plunge, knowing that the purchase would mean I would be on SYC for the next three months. It's the quality that makes it worth it.
It sounds to me from reading today's and yesterday's posts that this would be a PPP purchase for you rather than an impulsive buy.

viva

Veteran

Suz: Getting rid of something else is very on point. I have a pair of JCrew jeans with tags still on that would have to go back. It's a good test of how much I really want this.

Lantana: I still don't know, but if I do it, I may be messaging you for moral support over the next couple of months.

Jaime

(website)

Veteran

No advice to add to the great advice above (which I hope to take in the future)!

Janet

(website)

Veteran

This jumps out at me;

"I have wanted a good wool jacket for several years, and I loved Angie's Smythe jacket in her post this year.
Since I spend most of my non-travel (that is, non-client) hours in jeans, I think this would be a workhorse piece for me."

That almost sounds like a HEWI to me. I've been keeping an eye out for a fab riding style jacket for the last couple years, and they are not easy to find these days.

You're still thinking about that jacket, what, two days later? To me, that usually means I need to at least go back and try it again.

Mo

(website)

Veteran

I bought my most expensive item this winter, ever. I fit it into my budget. That means less $$$ on other things, and/or less 'other things' lol. Seriously. I had originally planned about $150 and spent double, plus $70 in alterations. That meant juggling a lot of other stuff. But it was so worth it.

In the past, when making a big purchase, it has meant a month or two of no buying at all. That was also worth it.

I thought through these purchases beforehand for a while. They were not impulses. And when they arrived I pored over the fit with a fine toothed comb to be absolutely sure.

Anonymous

Go try it again and with the vent open to get a true picture of how it will hang. It sounds like you would get lots of wear from this jacket and it looks fantastic on you.

NDMom

That is a seriously wonderful jacket. I would buy it....I mean, two months of SYC for something you'd keep forever? Two months goes by very fast...

JAileen

Veteran

I buy retail full price, retail sale price and thrift. Obviously thrift has an element of impulse. But when I am looking for something and I think and think and think about it, I actually don't mind paying full price. It turns out these are the items that I end up using the most, the real workhorses. Years ago I bought a Fleurette camel hair coat at Saks in a classic polo coat style. I wore it a lot and always felt fabulous in it. I still have the coat. It was worth it ten times over.

Thistle

Veteran

For big ticket purchases, I admit, I have to love the item. Really, really love it. There has to be the strong emotional element to it. I have to feel fab in it every time I put it on.

Then, I have to know I can afford it. This is big for me as I can't enjoy something that I know I couldn't afford. I do put my clothing budget aside each pay period, so this is pretty easy for me to determine.

Finally, it has to be a "wear a lot" item. This could mean watch, footwear, winter outerwear etc. I need the CPW to be justifiable to me.

Mary Beth (formerly LBD)

(website)

Veteran

OMG, that is a gorgeous jacket! Okay. I was all set to say "omg get it now!"... and then I read Liz's reply - and I totally agree.

But.

That is a jacket that is always going to be classic AND stylish. So if it is still haunting you in a few days... I would say find a way to make it fit your budget

Gigi

Veteran

I agree with those who said that this sounds like a HEWI. If so, the extra money is worth it, imo.

When I have to decide about a big-ticket item, I ask myself about how many "regular" items the big purchase is equivalent to. For example, when I bought my Aquatalia boots, even though they were on sale, they were still almost $500. For me, that is a lot of money. But then I realized that $500 is really only about twice the amount of what I would consider a "regular" pair of boots that I would purchase, since you really can't find anything decent in leather for less than $200. So I figured that buying the Aquatalias would mean that I would just forgo buying another pair of boots for the winter. And I was OK with that. So I bought them. And I'm glad I did!

deb

Veteran

I think this could be a work horse for you but I looked at the other thread and do not think you should purchase because the vent does not lay flat on you. IMO when the vent pulls before the temp stitches are removed means it is too small around the hip.

Alassë

Veteran

I agree - get your HEWI and enjoy.

Janet

(website)

Veteran

Another thought. What's the return policy? Can you get it, try styling it at home, and make a final decision? I feel like my final decisions happen at home, when I try something on styled and immediately want to wear it out of the house. Or when I'm traveling and I want to wear it before I go home -- the blue leather jacket was purchased in Boston, and I was thrilled that the weather was cool enough that I could cut the tags and wear it in Boston the day after I bought it. I don't know how difficult a return would be after you go home…

rachylou

Veteran

I ask myself if I have the money and if I think the item's value is equal to its price and just how good I look. This, of course, is subjective and there are many factors: fair labor, amount of labor, cost of raw materials, that certain je ne sais quois - refinement and the sharp eye of the designer.

But for, example, I used to wear Ferragamo Vara's. I'd pay like $198. They're now $450+. I don't see that the shoe has changed. I don't see wages going up for anybody. So I say no to that.

rachylou

Veteran

strange double post - deleted the second one...

Echo

Veteran

IMO, this would be the perfect opportunity not only to get a beautiful, quality piece that would be a workhorse in your wardrobe, but also an opportunity to work on curbing impulse purchasing.

I used to purchase a LOT on impusle. And while I still often do, I have been considering with every piece I purchase how much of the rest of my wardrobe an item will coordinate with. That has really, really cut down on purchases, and it is a really valuable thing for me to learn. A few quality pieces that I adore are WORTH sacrificing impulse purchases of items I feel mediocre about.

In that light, I think this jacket would be valuable both as a wardrobe piece and as a tool to help you spend smarter. Get it!

abc

Veteran

I think you should get it, as you would be thinking about it for days/months/years to come AND using it to measure all other alternatives.

BUT...to throw a wrench in things...I know you said you have to decide RIGHT NOW but could you not order it online? As in, really think about it for a few days and then if it is still haunting (teasing) you - go for it? Assuming it's available and pricing the same.

I also think I saw a slightly lower price on RL website yesterday (darn Janet pinned it after your post and then I had to follow suit...do I smell a lemming here?!)

abc

Veteran

OK...just went to RL website....40% off and additional 10% off ENDS TODAY

You could order it online for the sale price (extra 10% off even) and get it home, try it with your wardrobe and existing items, and take a little pressure off of the MUST DECIDE NOW issue.

http://www.ralphlauren.com/pro.....38;fbn=Gen

Code PRIVATE14 at checkout for extra 10% off

NDMom

Abc....good detective work and option for Viva!

rabbit

Veteran

I think abc has a good solution, and the back vent thing is worth investigating further. I think the style of the jacket is awesome, and if the color is exactly right in your wardrobe it could be a good purchase. I also think that how much you think about it in the ensuing days can give an indication of how passionate you will be to wear it, and also what you are willing to trade in/return to make space and have the budget for it.

My system when making a big purchase decision right now is that I let CPW be my guide. Given my budget, my personal goal this year is to have CPW be under 2$ for everything by the end of the year if possible, and under 1$ for the majority of my closet. Some patterns I've noticed from tracking in the last few months are that some inexpensive items, like patterned tights, might not be really worth it if I only want to wear them 2 or 3 times. Some more expensive items have gone down in CPW really quickly, but it's usually when they are one of the only things that fill a particular outerwear wardrobe hole. So for example booties. When I had only one pair of booties I wore them several days a week, but the more booties I buy, the less each pair gets worn. I currently have just two bags (CPW already under $2) I want to get another bag, and have to figure out what percentage of time this third bag would get used as compared to the other two to give me a ballpark price.

I realize that this doesn't work as well for things you want to wear for several years, but as my style is evolving I don't know if I can predict that yet. Also there is the question of an overall clothing budget per year, and whether it works better for me to spread out purchases over each month or buy in seasonal spurts.