If you like to experiment with style, but you are on a super tight budget, it’s okay we’ve all been there. One option you can always explore is off price discount retailers.
Off Price Retailers Definition:
“What does off price mean?” You may ask. Off price means unsold merchandise that has prices that have been lowered or discounted without any discount codes or coupons. There are discount codes and coupons available for most of the stores listed below.
“What is an off price retailer?”Off price retailers are the stores that sell these off price merchandise at a price lower than it was originally sold. Off price discount retailers are usually owned by bigger retailers who open these stores so that they can sell overstocked items that were not able to be sold at the end of a season to make space for clothes at the beginning of a new season. The prices are of course lowered because they want to get rid of these older items to speed up the inventory turnover so they can have space to stock new items.
What I like about off price discount retailers is that they sell pieces at these lowered prices. Although this sounds like a miracle, shopping at off price retailers can either be a nightmare or a dream. I say this because you’ll see a ton of pieces to browse through and you won’t be fond of every single piece; you may not even like the majority of the pieces you come across. But, off price retailers should not be underestimated as sometimes, you can find decent looking pieces for low prices that really fits your style. Please be advised though, at times there can be a compromise in the quality of pieces and you might not see very well known designers, but you if you’re on a really tight budget, I’m sure that is the least of your worries. Here is Velvet Blue Ocean’s List of off price discount retailers for Cheaper Clothing.
Burlington Coat Factory
What I like about Burlington Coat Factory is that their stores and selections are vast and every now and then, you come across beautiful pieces that leave you asking yourself, “How’d this end up here?” Some examples I can attest to seeing are Dr. Martens, Urban Outfitter’s ‘BDG’ brand, Publish and even more popular brands like Nike, Adidas, and Puma, etc. You might not see new pieces from the current season, but this makes sense because the buyers, of course, have to wait for the end of the seasons for the suppliers to consider what is overstocked. But you can sometimes find decent pieces in Burlington for really cheap prices. I usually find myself having to browse through hundreds of pieces to find that one specific piece that I like, but when I do, I’m usually very satisfied with my purchase. According to its’ Wiki, Burlington has 591 stores in 45 states of the United States. So If you are lucky enough to be close to one of these locations and affordable streetwear sounds interesting to you, you should definitely check them out. They also have a website you can shop on if you aren’t close enough or if you’re just not that into shopping in stores. But don’t walk in expecting to find designer pieces or pieces with A1 quality. Burlington Coat Factory is simply an option for people who aren’t into name-brand or designer apparel and are looking for affordable pieces that they can use to implement their style.
Marshalls
Marshalls is another one of my favorite off price discount retailers as I have found amazing pieces from shopping there. People have also been surprised at some of the pieces they’ve found in Marshalls. Check out this article Hypebeast did back in December about the AirJordans 1 that were selling there for half the original retail price. I also remember coming across a meme once with amazing Marshalls finds. So my point is to say that you can find great pieces from shopping at Marshalls and I’m clearly not the only one that thinks this. Like Burlington, Marshalls also has a wide selection of pieces and I usually have to browse through hundreds of pieces to find a pair of joggers or a bomber but I’m usually happy with my purchase. What I like about my local Marshalls as well is that they support a lot of unknown/underground streetwear brands like Brooklyn Xpress, and Brooklyn Cloth. These are brands within my own city that I would’ve never known about otherwise. I must admit that I’m not sure if this is just in my city or if they sell the same pieces all around but Marshalls is definitely a great store to check out for affordable pieces. I also remember shopping at a Marshalls at the World Trade Center in Manhattan and I found Valentino bag packs along with other well known, high -end designers. Of course, the prices were through the roof but this could be hinting at a new approach that Marshalls is trying to take to fashion. So you’d definately want to keep up with them.
Macy’s Backstage
Macy’s Backstage is another good place to buy affordable streetwear. If you Know about the popular American store Macy’s, Macy’s Backstage is basically another off price discount retailer where pieces are obtained from the regular Macy’s. The prices are sometimes just as low and the quality of the pieces is also decent. The brands are similar to that of the selection of Marshalls and Burlington so this is another store I go and find myself browsing through hundreds of pieces to find that one piece I admire. But, I’m usually satisfied with my buy and the quality is usually very good, in terms of durability and being fashion forward. It seems as though most of the stores are available in the North Eastern States such as New York, New Jersey, Philadelphia etc. There are also two stores in Texas. They also don’t have an e-commerce site, but you can always visit the closest one if you travel to a city that has a Macy’s Backstage. The website can also help you find one that is close to you. And in the meantime, you can always check out the “Men’s Contemporary” category on the original Macy’s website if you want an Idea of the pieces you’ll find.
Forever21 Red
Forever21 Red is the Forever 21 version of Macy’s Backstage. Although this isn’t my favorite store to shop, I took my readers into consideration as you may like some of the pieces from that store. To me, the pieces are more affordable than pieces you would find in other stores such as Zara and Urban Outfitters, however, the prices seem very identical to the original Forever21 stores and their selection of pieces aren’t as wide as other off-price retailers that I’ve mentioned before. The setup of the store is also very identical to the original Forever21 with 85% women’s clothing and 15% men’s clothing. Another thing I really hate about this store is that there are only a few stores in the entire United States. Therefore you would think that each location would have obtained a collection of pieces from stores within their nearest locations, however, that doesn’t seem to be the case. My best friend lives moderately close to the one that’s closest to me so I managed to stop and take a look at the store. I was extremely underwhelmed. One positive thing I can say is that the pieces are a little trendy and they are great essentials to have for the respective seasons. For example, I saw some really nice muscle tees along with skinny jeans and dad hats. The pieces also have some really nice, vibrant colors with very fashion forward details such as rips and cuts (if you’re into that). I also stumble through the women’s area with my friend and I saw some really nice pieces for women as well. So while finding nice pieces should be your motive, you won’t have a wide selection of pieces and the pieces probably won’t be as affordable as the stores I mentioned before.
Off Price Retailers for Designer Clothes
BlueFly
Although Bluefly is only an e-commerce off price discount retail store, I couldn’t miss the opportunity to tell you guys about it. Bluefly is another off-price retailer that sells designer goods for a low price by implementing the same system as other off-price retailers. For people who love designer goods but not the price that comes with it, this is a great option to check out. Don’t be surprised if you see prices that aren’t as low as they are at Marshalls and Burlington. Because these pieces are from top designers and their supplier probably paid a lot of money for them, It’s less likely that they’ll want to sell it back for a ridiculously low amount and off price retailers also have to make a profit too, to open more stores, pay rent, pay employees and other expenses, so they’ll probably have to mark up the price for a little more than they paid for the overstocked goods. Along with high-end designers, they also have a selection of ordinary brands such as Adidas, Nike, Nautica etc. So this is a great option to explore for affordable streetwear but you’ll probably have to look through hundred of loafers, belts, and shoes as this store doesn’t seem to target streetwear consumers. It seems to mostly target adults who are into suits and ties but I’m sure, here and there, you’ll find pieces that suit your style.
Barneys Warehouse
If you’re into designers like Vetements and Fear of God this is somewhere you can buy these for less than the original retail price. I must admit, Barneys have prices that are ridiculously high prices and they aren’t much lower than the original prices. However, I’m sure we all come across one or two expensive pieces from runway shows that we fall in love with. If you were to buy the piece from last season that you couldn’t find anywhere else and you were all out of options on where you find it, you could always check the Barneys Warehouse website to see if the piece is there and also to save a couple bucks off your purchase.
Nordstrom Rack
Nordstrom Rack is one of my favorite of off price discount retailers. This is a brick and mortar as well as e-commerce store that is owned by the popular American department store, Nordstrom. This retailer sells designer apparel as well as more affordable apparel for men, women, and children. There are stores all over the United States from California all the way to New York. Some of the more notable high-end streetwear brands they carry are Helmut Lang, Kenzo, and Belstaff. They also carry more affordable brands like Alpha Industries, Carhart Work In Progress, Dickies, Topman, etc.
6pm
6pm is an online e-commerce website that sells discounted items for men, women and children. Its a store that’s owned by Zappos and it carries many high end brands like Balenciaga, DSQUARED2, and Jeremy Scott. It also carries a bunch of affordable brands like Dr. Martens, Alpha industry and Herschel. They have a huge selection of brands and categories to choose from so I definitely recommend checking them out.
Saks OFF 5th
Saks Off 5th is the off price discount retailer of Saks 5th, one of the oldest high end department stores started in New York City. This is an online/e-commerce store as well as a brick and Mortar store with locations scattered all across the United States in almost every state. It carries merchandise for men, women, and kids. Saks Off 5th provides access to a wide range of merchandise from numerous high end designers. Some of the more notable brands are Balenciaga,DSQUARED2, Faith Connexion, Helmut Lang etc. But as its’ parent company, Saks 5th, doesn’t really carry many affordable brands, therefore, I wouldn’t expect this from their off price discount retailer either. Their shoe selection includes dress shoes, sneakers, and boots. They also carry jewelry such as rings, bracelets, watches, and chains for men, as well as hats, belts, shades, and more accessories. Saks OFf 5th ships internationally.
Neiman Marcus Last Call
Neiman Marcus Last Call is a U.S. based high end off price discount retailer that is owned and operated by its’ parent company Neiman Marcus. They carry items for both men and women as well as home essentials. It has both an e-commerce website as well as (approximately) 8 Stores scattered all across the United States in states such as New York, New Jersey, Texas, Florida, Georgia, Louisiana, and California. Their prices range from as low as 10 dollars for accessories such as socks and underwear to $20,000 for jewelry (watches). The list of designers a part of their inventory features high-end Balmain, Burberry, DSQUARED2, Gucci, HelmutLang, Palm Angels, etc. Last Call Carries shoes such as sneakers, dress shoes and sandals. The jewelry they carry for guys is mostly watches as well as grooming essentials, skincare products, and colognes. This company ships globally and a good way to keep up with them would be to subscribe to their newsletter to be in the know about the latest sales and new arrivals.
If you’re still skeptical about the stores I’ve mentioned, feel free to check out this editorial I did with my friend rocking all menswear pieces, some of which I got from some of these stores.
What are your favorite stores to buy affordable streetwear?