How people afford buy clothes at regular prices now-a-days?

I shop sales. Macys has good sales and I always look out for sales during all the holidays, Memorial, Labor, 4th etc. I do often get everyday stuff at TJ Maxx, Marshall’s. The nicer stuff like dresses I get from Loft when they have a sale. I prefer to have less but I want things that fit right. In the spring I bought jeans from Macys for $20 each. I had to shorten them but they still came out to $30 and I am good for jeans for a while.

I think that price for a beanie isn't what most people would pay. They must do well with other patrons though in order to keep their prices that high or stay in business.

I keep my clothes for a while. I don't buy trendy items anymore. My work wardrobe is pretty old. I maybe buy a few shirts/sweaters a year. I am more likely to buy a t shirt or sweatshirt when we travel.

Could I pay $40 plus shipping for a beanie? Sure. But it wouldn't occur to me to do that when I know I could find one much cheaper elsewhere.

It's our coupon-sale culture. We've gotten into the mindset that a store sale is giving big bargains, in reality that $100 sweater with 40% discount should have a starting price of $60.

Boutique pricing, at least here, can really be crazy. Ours have so much polyester and flimsy quality they should be sold on Temu, but instead they have trendy labels and $125 price tag for a tie neck blouse.

And what happened to GAP? It used to be a reasonably priced brand for tees and jeans. I guess they still might be by comparison, but they have definitely increased.

Thanks for the post, zztop11, you triggered some thoughts I hadn't focused.

Me either, so I went to look, and now I see why I've never heard of them. It's like overpriced pajamas. They look very comfy but I'm not paying $158 for a long boring cardigan that's made in the same factories (ok, I don't know this, but it doesn't say otherwise on their website) that other cheaper versions are.
I will admit that I'm not exactly a fashionista, since I'm wearing scrubs a lot of the time, and I get all my jeans and activewear at Old Navy. But I do have a lot of really cool dresses and quite a few are from Temu or Shein.

I'm easy on my clothing and don't tend to get damage on anything so I'm not hung up on needing thick fabrics or whatever. If it looks good on me, I don't care where it came from. They have such interesting clothing on Temu, stuff I get compliments on and asks of where I got it.

I'm not above spending more on better quality for certain things, and I do love the Wool& dresses I have. My shoes and purses MUST be good or high end brands, on that I'm pretty set.

Most of my clothes come from Lululemon and I am good with that. I do get some pieces at Aritizia and the Bay maybe. I am waiting to loose more weight before I buy clothes at Banana Republic. I think one I hit 20 lbs I will get new jeans.

My first stop for clothes or shoes is Marshal's, then Ross (for cute, casual tops or dresses). I also shop for clothes at Walmart, TJMaxx, or Kohl's (on sale). I occasionally shop at Old Navy if what I want is on sale. You can find some good prices on amazon, but I tend to buy and then return most of that stuff. I don't like shopping online for the most part.
I got my mother of the bride dress at Dillard's and it was marked down to $150. I rarely pay full price for anything and hit the clearance racks as soon as I can find them! Name brands are not my thing. If I see one, I'll go the other way.