Readers tell us on what basis they make choices at clothing stores and which factors influence their purchase decisions.
“I spend between 5,000 and 12,000 euros a year on clothes, shoes and accessories. Someone might say I’m an idiot, but so what, I still pay for everything myself. I try to buy durable things.”
We asked our readers which aspects they emphasize in clothing stores. Tendon wrote the text above. When buying clothes, she balances between trends and her own style.
“Nobody should buy anything from Temu. I don’t buy it myself. It’s sad that it comes up as the first option when you search on Google,” he also writes. Chinese ultra-fast fashion spoke in many of the responses to the survey.
Pitch among other things, he says that he would never buy ultra-fast fashion: “It goes against all my principles. The most important thing for me is the fit, timelessness and high-quality material of the garment. The garment must be durable, preferably Finnish design.”
The shirt was a disappointment
Pot and Eve have ordered ultra-fast fashion from Chinese online stores, but no longer do so.
“I’ve bought ultra-fast fashion, but I don’t buy anymore. Some purchases were just as successful as those bought elsewhere. However, I’ve decided that enough is enough. It’s cheap there, but I’d rather be without it,” writes Mari.
Eve’s experiences were not as good. He says that he once ordered a t-shirt from Wish. “It was cheap, but the material felt horrible and the shirt was really thin. I haven’t ordered any clothes from similar stores since then.”
Online stores like Shein and Temu also found more loyal customers.
“It’s strange that Temu is now on everyone’s lips”, Bonnet for example, wonders. He continues: “I have bought sportswear, underwear and knitwear there, among other things. Domestic ready-to-wear clothes are terrible tents and, for example, HThe products of the &M chain are quite strange in their dimensions.”
Also Mira says that she buys ultra-fast fashion: “I buy mostly all my clothes from Shein. As a plus size, I can find the right size and special clothes there.”
The size selection also came up in a response left by another reader. He writes that “the plus side of ultra-fast fashion must be considered to be the very wide range of sizes across the board”. The respondent says that his purchase decision is primarily influenced by the size, fit and model of the garment.
Many ways to save
Many respondents said that they invest in quality, but there were also those who, for example, preferred to buy their clothes second-hand or make them themselves.
Brain writes that he buys the majority of his clothes second-hand. “When I buy new, I mainly buy underwear, socks and swimwear. Some people rarely buy, but quality, but I can’t afford that myself. It’s cheap at the flea market! Flea shopping isn’t completely problem-free either, but it’s a pretty small evil compared to many other things,” he says.
A gust of wind sews clothes for herself from fabrics she finds at flea markets, for example. “I also get quite a lot of lightly used clothes from relatives, sometimes even brand new bargains,” he says.
Sometimes clothes bought from an online store can be a boring impulse buy that doesn’t match your imagination. Adobe Stock/AOP
I am interested in Finnish fashion
“Big companies can look in the mirror, because they have taken production away from Europe and their home countries to cheaper countries, where the quality is what it is. Kudos to the small domestic companies”, Jap write. He says that when he buys clothes, he emphasizes the durability and longevity of the garment. “I don’t care about fashion, so I don’t buy any kind of fast fashion,” he also says.
Some readers mentioned that they would like to support Finnish clothing brands. However, this was not so easy for everyone. “I prefer domestically produced products, because the quality is good and by buying the product I can influence domestic employment and the economy. However, the price can become an obstacle”, one reader writes.
“I’m interested in domesticity, but I don’t like the cuts and patterns of many Finnish brands,” the 37-year-old woman regrets. He says that he is ready to pay for good quality, but does not go after brands: “Market clothing can also be of high quality and serve its purpose better and cheaper than similar branded products.”
The same woman also explains what factors influence her purchase decision: “I pay attention to the sewing of the garment (are the seams double-stitched, are the seams straight, do the threads fray) and the cut (can the garment withstand weight fluctuations of a few kilograms, does it look good, is the garment comfortable to wear). The most important thing for me is that the garment is pleasant for several years, lasts for use and is easy to keep clean.”
The five-clothes-a-year challenge
Have you come across the five-clothes-a-year challenge on social media? Julia Thurén and Aku Varamäki launched the challenge a few years ago.
According to the Swedish Consumers’ Association, the year of five clothes is loosely based on a report by the Hot or Cool Institute on how many items of clothing to buy would be sustainable for the planet. The five-clothes-a-year challenge does not include underwear, socks or clothes bought second-hand.
According to the Consumers’ Association, the average Finn currently buys 38 new clothes a year.
Source: Consumers’ Association