For discounts galore. And that's not a good thing! As Chelsea's mom always says: you get what you pay for. And like Lindsay's mom always says: there's no such thing as a free lunch. (Which was a lesson Lindsay learned when she borrowed a car to go to Ben and Jerry's on Free Ice Cream Cone day. And then crashed the car. That was one pricey chunky monkey.) Like with most everything, both moms are right.
Discounting comes at a cost.
Because discounting has become so prevalent, many items today are made for less so they can be sold for less and still make money for the retailer. In fact, nowadays many companies never even intend to sell their discounted goods at full price (and are being sued for false pricing as a result). These companies make product specifically for their outlet doors and Black Friday Specials and that product is meant to be very profitable. Which means either the customer is getting a lower quality product or the factory and their employees are getting paid less for their work. It rarely means that the retailer makes less.
But sometimes retailers DO make less money on their products, and when they do, they have to sell more to make up the difference. All this discounting and cheap prices have resulted in a crazy increase in the amount of items being made and sold (Americans alone buy 20 billion pieces of clothing every year). And because much of this stuff is made cheaply, it doesn't last long, and every year more than 68 pounds of clothing are thrown away per person. (And sadly, where that product ends up is exactly what many people "on the inside" call it: landfill.)
There's a lot more to say on this subject, so please leave a comment or reach out to us for more information. In the meantime, we're inspired by companies like Everlane and MM.LaFleur who make and price their product at the right value for their customers. They either refuse to discount or do so selectively and responsibly. We're proud to join them.
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The Olen Fam
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