Trench coat price confusion - help me solve a puzzle

Rambling ahead:

At Bloomingdales today, I found the one trench coat in the whole store that fit me perfectly (I'm short waisted - the belt is *always* at the wrong place). The sticker price was $275 but a combination of sales/coupons was going to bring the price down into a more affordable range. I didn't end up purchasing the coat in the store because there were threads dangling off the coat that hadn't been clipped and I expect better quality control from something that retails for that much.

I get home and search the Bloomingdales website for said coat, hoping to buy it online, and find this coat, listed for $165, which I swear is exactly the same except that the coat in store was navy with brown buttons.

http://www1.bloomingdales.com/....._ID=954474

I don't get it. Would they really have two versions of the same coat, one sold online and one in store?

I search the web for trench coats by this manufacturer and find again, the exact same coat, but in purple on Overstock.

http://www.overstock.com/Cloth.....oduct.html

I can't believe that all three coats are exactly the same quality, even though they're the same design. Do designers create one design, manufacture it in varying qualities of the fabric and then sell accordingly to higher and lower priced retail outlets?

More importantly, which one should I buy? I don't want to have to buy a new coat next year, so I'd honestly be happy to buy the more expensive version if I could be sure it was better quality. If it's all the same though, I'll go for the fun purple one.

And just to throw a wrench into things, I'm also considering just ordering the petite version of the Gallery Trench from Nordstrom, if I could just be assured the green is the same as on the screen (no store near me).

http://shop.nordstrom.com/s/ga.....at/3151415

15 years ago

rosee

Veteran

"Do designers create one design, manufacture it in varying qualities of the fabric and then sell accordingly to higher and lower priced retail outlets?"

Yes, it's very common in fact. I've caught it a few times with dresses, skirts and shoes. The proof: it's on the tags in the clothing or the info stickers on the shoe box. I once had a brown peasant skirt from JMicheals (a pricier Canadian shop) that had identical factory identification numbers to another identical skirt my friend had from Ricki's (a Canadian fast fashion shop). In this case, the fabric quality was the same (100% cotton) but the prices sure were not.
I rarely buy shoes immediately so I get the salesclerk to write the style name on a business card. A shoe from Brown's (about $120) had an identical name to a shoe from Urban Outfitters (Kimchi Blue, about $60); the only difference was one was leather and one was synthetic. A series of numbers, likely the style number, were identical as well.
If you can, check the tags from the one in Bloomingdale's and (in the fitting room) write all the info from the tags onto a piece of paper, particularly numbers more than care instructions. Try to compare that to an item you order online to see if any match. Likely the matching number will be the factory production code. And then you busted them...!

The more important question: go with the purple or red trench IMO, as long as the price is reasonable and it is the fabric of your choice.

lyn*

(website)

I have noticed this trend as well; I purchased something from Rickis 3 years ago; and lately have seen at at Forever 21 for a fraction of the price.

Rickis is expensive fast fashion.

Girl X

Wow - I notice that in the grocery store all the time, but I never figured it would be the same in fashion. I know it's common practice, but I find it kind of sinister.

cheryle (Dianthus)

I bought a Michael Kors skirt with zipper details all over and a few months later saw the same skirt at the Canadian version of TJ Maxx with a different brand name. The copy was Adrienne Vitaddini. I read that designers often license another line to make items of their design.

rae

Holy cow. Brand names mean so little these days!

Sylvie

Thanks all for your responses and tales of duplicate items. I've seen similar items by multiple labels (seems like almost everyone has a black lace dress and a navy polka dot dress this season) but never the identical item.

I used to sew and so I'm extremely picky about fabric quality and seams (in my world, exposed zig-zagged seams are not a design element, they're a sign the manufacturer was trying to cut corners).

I'm more than willing to pay higher prices for well made pieces when and *if* I find them, especially for something like a coat. I had thought the more expensive iterations of the trenches could use higher quality fabric and/or buttons but if you think they're the same, I'll just go ahead with the purple overstock trench or try out the nordstrom green trench.

I'm half tempted to buy all three online trenches and do a comparative review!

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