Now you all know that I love a bargain as much as the next girl! But I also think I’m a good judge of value for money.

I really do try to bring everyone different options, at different price points, as much as I can, but I have to say, sometimes I get a twinge of disappointment when after featuring something that isn’t as cheap as chips, comments come through from readers asking me for cheaper options, or telling me that it’s too expensive.

Chasing Cait isn’t a multi-million dollar business.. yet.. (good thing I love doing what I do right?), so believe me when I say I totally understand what living on a budget is like (I’m a bargain-hunter at heart), and I try to feature low-cost options like the post 5 under $50 posts on the blog….. BUT, I don’t believe that the cheap option is always the best option.

cheap is not always best

I don’t think that the cost of something should be the be-all-and-end-all reason why you buy something, but sometimes it feels like people ONLY want the cheapest when there is MUCH MORE to making a purchase decision than that.

What I’m saying is, all the things I talk about on the blog will always be things that I BELIEVE IN, and that I think are worth spending your hard earned money on(and I always try to have varying price point options), even if that means having to save a little more for some of them.

But WHY are some products more expensive than others?

I’m a HUGE supporter of home-grown labels, whether they are from Australia or NZ. (This is one of the big reasons why I’m writing this post – I believe in local brands and what they are doing).

Now i’ve worked for a few brands on both sides of the ditch and I’ve seen first hand the amount of time, effort, thought and creativity that goes into creating amazing pieces of clothing that FIT well, are GOOD quality and hence, are MADE TO LAST.

Often these garments aren’t super trend-driven, they use classic cuts and shapes that will fit into your wardrobe for years come, therefore the COST-PER-WEAR is really low.

Here are some examples of some amazing labels that are still MADE IN AUS and NZ -so when you buy these labels, you are supporting local jobs in a local industry.

Home grown fashion

Shop home-grown labels (l-r) Andrea Moore (made in NZ) | Sacha Drake (made in Aus) | Leina Broughton (made in Aus) | Obi (made in NZ)

 

Price is relative

As a personal stylist, I’m exposed to many different women’s wardrobes on a regular basis, and one thing that it has taught me is that  “cheap” and “luxury” are relative.

Whilst $129 might seem a lot to spend on a top for some, for other people, this is the norm. So when I have my stylist hat on, I tailor my approach to each person’s individual budget, taking them to stores that work in with that budget.

For me, it’s more about cost-per-wear and value for money, and this has always been the message I try to promote both styling and on this blog.

You don’t have to shop all the time

For a lot of people, it seems that buying MORE is always the priority, so of course you are going to want to spend less on individual items.

But sometimes, it might actually pay to take the advice of my styling guru Gok, who says to SHOP LESS, WEAR MORE.

If you can’t afford to constantly update your wardrobe, (and lets be honest, we could shop every day couldn’t we ladies!) why not save that money up and instead invest in some good quality key pieces that are going to extend the wardrobe that you’ve got. (I’ve got a few examples of that here, here, and here)

CPW

Here is my Cost-Per_Wear summary

When to save

There is definitely a time and a place for grabbing that cheap and cheerful piece! Something that is really on-trend, that you know isn’t really going to be around next season, or something you just want to try to see if it suits you, by all means, give them a go.

Kmart, The Warehouse, Target, Number One Shoes(all personal faves of mine) are all amazing stores that are featuring more trend driven clothing nowadays, to get pieces that you want at a great price.

There is a place for these cheaper pieces in everyone’s wardrobe, I’m just saying to make sure you choose carefully.

When to splurge

Think about the KEY pieces in your wardrobe. These are the things that you get the most use out of (remember that everyone’s key pieces are going to be different!)

Ankle boots was a great example for me. When I moved to NZ, I bought a cute, cheap pair of black ankle boots and they were great! I loved them. But they lasted about 2 months. So I bought another pair to replace them… and so on, and so on…. for an entire winter.

With the amount of money I ended up spending on those boots, I could have bought just ONE PAIR of amazing quality, comfortable, versatile LEATHER ankle boots and got as much use (if not more use) out of them – which I did the following year. And I still have them 2 winter’s later and I still love them.

Final Word

So I guess what I am saying is TRUST ME. Chasing Cait will always have your back!

I’m always going to be thinking about YOU when I feature products on my blog.

EVERY. SINGLE. THING I feature is potentially something that I would buy for myself (and I often have, just ask the boy!).

So the next time you go to comment and ask for a cheaper option, please trust me that I have chosen to feature that garment on it’s own value, and I wouldn’t recommend it if I didn’t think it was worth the price. That you can always count on.

Your thoughts? Do you have an example of when spending a little bit more ended up saving you a lot in the long run?

Until Next Time, In Style & Love Always,

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