When you step into a clothing boutique looking for some new items, it’s possible to get sticker shock. So many popular boutiques come with such a high price tag. Why are these costs so high, and how does knowing more about the industry impact how you purchase clothing?
Boutique clothing is priced so expensive because:
- You’re paying for a luxury label.
- You’re paying for quality materials
- You’re paying for local manufacturing.
- You’re paying for marketing.
- You’re paying for the best customer service and stores in the business.
- You’re paying for status.
- You’re paying for the profit markup.
- You’re paying for salaries.
Read on to find out more about the history of the clothing industry and how it impacts the pricing of boutique clothing, along with the reasons why boutique and designer clothing end up being so expensive.
(Not So) Humble Beginnings of the Fashion Industry
One way to understand why boutique—and even haute couture—clothing is priced so expensively is understanding the history of the fashion industry. Without its not so humble beginnings, it’s almost impossible to truly wrap your head around prices today.
So, where did the fashion industry start to blossom into the industry we see today? For most of history, clothing was utilitarian—except for rich and powerful, which, up until the 1700s, was royalty. Fashion trends were set by the rich and royal, and many of those styles would trickle down into the common folk as soon as it could be copied in an affordable way.
Who started trends, though? Look no further than the Queen of France—or, more importantly, her dressmakers. The first famous dressmakers were Françoise Leclerc and became wildly popular due to his creations. While he stayed popular, more and more stepped up, like Mademoiselle Alexandre and Le Sieur Beaulard. Sometime following, Rose Bertin, the dressmaker to Queen of France Marie Antoinette, was nicknamed the “Minister of Fashion”.
With Bertin came major changes in the fashion industry. His power as dressmaker was able to shift the entire stylistic approach of the time—he was dressing Marie Antoinette in riding breeches or simple shift dresses, in comparison with the richly created, full dresses of the time. Why was this important? He started setting the first true fashion trends, setting himself apart with wild shifts in the clothing industry. With this, he started to create the fashion industry.
More and more fashion houses were created, and as they were, they developed and influenced fashion. By the 1900s, more and more clothing was being copied and sold in the newly invented department store, and with that, fast fashion was born.
Fast fashion is the best way to describe what happens when the masses see a style they like in a fashion show. Designers produce a design that becomes popular by some form—whether someone famous wore it, or in our day and age, it got popular on Instagram or TikTok—and manufacturers scramble to make it as fast and as inexpensively as possible to get it on the market while it is still popular. This leaves many lost trends in a landfill, and you can thank the early fashion houses of the 1900s for helping to create that concept. When people stopped making their own clothing because it was easier to purchase it pre-made, the fast fashion concept was born.
As the fashion houses of the West were developed, and even after the World Wars, they continued to grow—and change the course of our culture forever. Paul Poiret shifted his dress designs away from the extremely tightly laced bodices, which helped change the design of women’s undergarments away from the corset or stays. If you’re pleased you’re not being laced into a tight, boned corset? Thank Paul Poiret. His designs literally changed society and culture, and fashion continues to do so. War made hemlines shorter and made designers use less fabric. Culture became more relaxed, so clothing did too. More and more of our current fashion houses were created and started to affect the clothing industry, bringing it to the popularity it has today.
What To Do If Your Clothing Line Fails
Why are boutique clothing items so expensive?
There are many reasons why your boutique clothing items are so expensive, and it comes down to choices made within the industry. Some of the reasons why the clothing is expensive isn’t a bad thing—but sometimes, it is.
- You’re paying for a luxury label. For the most part, most boutique clothing items are made by a particular designer, and they’re wildly popular. Because of that, they can charge more for your clothing items. While it’s not ideal, it does happen—if you want an item from a designer, you’ll be paying for that designer. But you’re also paying for the time and energy that goes into the item—it comes down to how much the designer thinks their work should be valued.
- You’re paying for quality materials. In some cases, luxury brands are creating their clothing with much higher quality materials than the fast fashion industry. While it might cost more, it also should last much longer than its less expensive counterparts, meaning you’re actually saving money in the long run.
- You’re paying for local manufacturing. For many clothing houses, instead of shipping them off to another location like China for cheaper production, they’re doing it closer to home. Because of that, they keep quantities of their order much lower to keep costs down. In some cases, taxes also keep those quantities low. When the initial inventory is already low, that means the demand will be higher, which goes straight to your pocketbook.
- You’re paying for marketing. Popular designers are always marketing their designs, and that doesn’t come cheap. You’re helping the designers pay for their next advertising campaign, which will only continue to help sell their clothing to the next customer.
- You’re paying for the best customer service and stores in the business. With high prices and high-quality garments comes high quality customer service. If you’re paying that much for an item in a boutique, you’re going to be subject to the best customer service in the industry.
- You’re paying for status. Not everyone can purchase a high-ticket item in a boutique. This is what keeps these designers exclusive and maintains their “haute couture” status. If everyone could purchase their items, they wouldn’t be designer clothing or luxury items anymore.
- You’re paying for the profit markup. In most cases, when the manufacturer sells an item to a retailer, they’re doubling the price. A retailer, then, will also double its price to the consumer. A $25 shirt to create would be sold for $100 by the time it gets to the customer—and that’s a normally occurring process throughout the entire clothing industry, not just designer or boutique clothing.
- You’re paying for salaries—and not just the designers or CEOs. You’re helping to pay for all the people in between, including those creating the items and marketing the items.
Regardless of whether you’re buying from a high-quality brand or a department store, clothing will continue to have that markup—you’re looking at around a 400 percent cost increase from the cost of making the clothing item. While that is reflected upon the boutique shopping industry, there are ways for you to circumvent that as a consumer. Buying from companies that do not work with a middleman, like Grana, is always an option—or consider looking for a company that manufactures their own clothing in house. There are ways to purchase high-quality, sustainable fashion—and boutiques may still provide the best experience for you. Weigh the advantages and disadvantages of boutique shopping before you make that first purchase.
What To Put And Sell In Your Boutique!
RELATED QUESTIONS
What kind of clothing can I sell in my boutique?
Boutiques can sell any sort of clothing or accessories—most stores focus on one style or gender, like men’s, women’s, or children’s, if you focus on one like women, you can sell blouses, dresses, pants, shorts, skirts, and even accessories. If you decide to go a more specific route, boutiques can also sell evening apparel or wedding gowns.
What kind of experience do I need to start my own boutique?
Starting a boutique does not require any experience whatsoever, but it is encouraged to have some sort of business degree or even a degree in fashion design or art. As long as you start your business with the general knowledge of what goes into running a business, you can start a boutique without any sort of advanced degree.
Is buying designer clothing worth it?
In some cases, yes, it is. If you have funds to buy designer clothing, you can usually assume that it is higher quality—even coming down to the type of fabric and the stitching. These clothes are designed to last, so if you want to make an investment in a designer piece of clothing, assume that it will last a long time. Deciding whether that initial investment is worth it is up to you.
To learn more about how to start your own fashion clothing line check out my startup documents here
Please note: This blog post is for educational purposes only and does not constitute legal advice. Please consult a legal expert to address your specific needs.
Meet Shawn Chun: Entrepreneur and Fashion Business Fan.
I’m a happy individual who happens to be an entrepreneur. I have owned several types of businesses in my life from a coffee shop to an import and export business to an online review business plus a few more and now I create online resources for those interested in starting new ventures. It’s demanding work but I love it. I do it for those passionate about their business and their goals. That’s why when I meet a designer or boutique owner at a craft fair, farmers market, retail location or anywhere else I see myself. I know how hard the struggle is to retain clients, find good employees and keep the business growing all while trying to stay competitive.
That’s why I created Fashion Business Boss: I want to help fashion business owners like you build a thriving business that brings you endless joy and supports your ideal lifestyle.