So the other day my wife Lily was persuading me to become a man of culture, and talked me into going to a street art festival in the Coconut Grove neighborhood of Miami. We walked, talked, ate, drank, and looked at all manner of art. But we did not walk away with any paintings or sculptures. Instead, we left with a couple of pairs of jeans, and a new lesson in cheap shopping.
Here’s what we learned.
Street Festivals Can Be Great for Cheap Shopping
As we were getting ready to leave the festival, something caught our eye:
Premium-looking jeans for $30? At a retail store, where you can try them on? Sounds interesting! So we were indeed enticed, and decided to check it out.
Long story short, Lily tried on a few pairs and wound up buying two, for what looked like enormous markdowns from the $178 retail price of each:
Are Those Really Great Markdowns?
Let’s investigate.
The jeans are DL1961, a brand that describes itself as: “…a New York City-based premium denim brand specializing in high-performance, sustainably manufactured denim that always offers a perfect fit”. It was founded in 2008, so it’s relatively new.
Judging by the stores that sell them, DL 1961 jeans do seem to be premium, since they’re carried by high-end retail shops like Nordstrom and Bloomingdale’s, as well as shopbop. In fact, those stores sell them for prices that go up to the $150+ list prices (which are many times meaningless, but suggest that at least some people are willing to pay them):
On the other end of the scale, the lowest online prices for DL1961 jeans seem to hover right around the $30 mark, per Google Shopping:
In fact, the online prices for some used specimens are higher than $30:
So the answer looks to be that yes, $30 is a great deal, not only when compared to the list prices, but also when compared to the lowest available online prices. It’s at or near the absolute bottom of the price range.
Save At Retail Stores During Street Festivals
Street festivals can be awesome because they give you a chance to get out and about, and be a part of the cultural life of your city. But remember that, on top of those benefits, they can also be a great opportunity to find some big bargains at neighborhood stores. Here are some tips to make the most of it:
- Decide whether you want to shop at the beginning or end of your trip. If you go at the beginning, you might find the most inventory, but also wind up carrying bags around all day.
- If you’re not sure whether something is a good deal, look up online prices on your phone.
- Resist the temptation to buy too much, by setting a budget.
- Take advantage of the opportunity to try clothes on.
- Note return policies, and make sure you love something if you won’t be able to return it.
Happy shopping!
Have you ever done cheap shopping at street festivals and fairs? Are you tempted to try it?
Nice tip! Not only are you outdoors enjoying fresh air, but you found some good deals. I tell you what, after all these Minnesota winters, these tales from Miami are sooo enticing!!!
Hey Cubert,
Thanks! We were not expecting those buys at all, but then saw them and couldn’t resist. I know what you mean about the winters, man. I lived in Boston for a while and couldn’t stand it. South Florida basically has a tropical climate, so I’m happy as a clam 🙂
Cheers,
Miguel
I haven’t really bought anything like that, but we do like to get out and about to street fairs for fun and people watching. Next time I will be on the look out for bargains. Tom
Hey Tom,
Same here; we didn’t set out to go shopping, but then realized that those jeans were an awesome deal. I guess that stores know there’ll be a lot of foot traffic, so they take the opportunity to unload lots of inventory.
Cheers,
Miguel
I’m going to check if there are ones in nearby cities. I’m in the market for a new pair of jeans too! Apart from that, it’s nice to see a neighborhood come alive. In my area. I’ll have to wait for the weather to get better first.
Hey SMM,
Yeah, I’ve been trying to find new jeans for myself too, with those new fabrics that are stretchier and more comfortable. You’re right, street fairs can be very cool in that they bring lots of life and commerce to an area.
Cheers,
Miguel
Looks like a great deal to me! I bet the street festivals in Miami are second to none. Mrs. DS will like this post. 🙂
Hey Mr. DS,
Yup, I think it was a great deal 🙂 We go to these festivals from time to time; there’s a lot of them in South Florida. This particular one was an art fair, but there are some focused on music, food, etc.
Cheers,
Miguel
Hey, Miguel. Mrs. Groovy and I have sworn off street festivals for years. Everything was just so overpriced. But this was back in New York. Perhaps it’s time Mrs. Groovy and I ventured out a little more. Thanks for putting street festivals back on our radar. And congratulations on the jeans. That was a nice win for Lily. Cheers.
Hey Mr. Groovy,
Thanks! I’ve never been to a street festival in New York, but here in Miami, the food and drink are generally pretty cheap (if you buy from stalls). I think the merchant here (with the jeans) probably took the opportunity to unload some excess inventory, but it turned out well for all. It reinforces my belief (which Lily taught me) that you should rarely (if ever) pay retail for clothing – the markups are just huge.
Here’s to street festivals!
Cheers,
Miguel
Nice tip!
I recently bought a new pair of jeans for $50 – was better than the Nordstorm prices of $200, but still felt I could do better in the future.
Clothing quality is really important to me, so I’d rather pay a little extra for jeans that look great at work and last awhile – hopefully the Calvin Kleins do 🙂
Hey Chris,
Thanks! $50 for a list price of $200 sounds pretty good 🙂 I also care a lot about having clothes that look and feel good. I think the world tends to treat you better when you look well-put-together.
Cheers,
Miguel
Hi Miguel!
Great tips here on bargain shopping! Who doesn’t like a deal with shopping for clothes, right??
I remember reading Lily’s post about jeans 😉
$30 sounds like an awesome deal! Excellent job at finding them!
I remember there was a time where I found at a clearance rank a pair of 7 jeans (classic skinny jeans) and it was marked down many times. Regular retail price was something like $200 and finally marked all the way down to $27. There was only two pairs left (and my size too) and I thought it was a steal… couldn’t go wrong with that, right? lol… unfortunately, that was the only time I ever scored on a pair of jeans.
I also agree with you comment above… that the world tends to treat you better when you look well-put-together. I couldn’t disagree on that at all! (though I do have times when I feel lazy and I just bum around in my sweats and hoodies haha)
Hey Panda!
Thanks! $27 for 7 jeans sounds amazing. I would definitely buy jeans like that for that price. Lily is always complaining that my jeans are too baggy, though I don’t think so. I mean, they’re a little baggy, but otherwise they feel too tight for me. I guess I’ve got to buy jeans with those new stretchier fabrics so Lily is happy 🙂
Cheers,
Miguel