Ask any teenager – Off price juniors apparel is everywhere!
Summer is here, and it’s time for teenagers to seek out off price juniors apparel, so I asked a fashion-conscious middle school student what kind of contemporary apparel girls are looking for these days.
She said she likes to wear Soffe shorts in the summer, low-rise style, with the elastic band rolled down. Another favorite among girls her age are cut-off denim shorts, also worn low on the waist, of course. For tops, she prefers to wear fitted t-shirts with weird graphics or t-shirts with logos from bands like the Beatles, Pink Floyd and the Who printed on them. I was surprised she didn’t mention the Jonas Brothers or Hannah Montana, but she said she would get “laughed at” if she wore something like that in public.
When I asked if she ever shops in off price clothing stores, she mentioned a few well known “mall stores”, like Charlotte Russe, Old Navy and Forever 21, but she also will shop the sales at JC Penney and Kohl’s from time to time. She also shops the off price wholesale web sites for specific brands and styles occasionally.
The best part about the recession, she says, is the availability of off price juniors clothing almost everywhere, even at stores that never would have a sale in a better economy. One thing that didn’t surprise her was when I mentioned that Abercrombie’s sales fell 34% in the first quarter of 2009.
“I don’t think anyone is surprised by that,” she said, “they were way over-priced, so people just stopped shopping there.”
Despite the flagging economy, teenagers still need clothes, and it looks like they are getting a little smarter with their clothing allowances. This is good news for parents, and for off price clothing stores, but bad news for status-oriented shops like Hollister and Abercrombie. Today, the trend is not only hot styles and cute cuts but also off price and whole sale apparel.