It is interesting that Americans are willing to spend hundreds of dollars on luxury items from foreign countries except for high quality denim. Many high end brands such as Gucci produce their high end denim in America because we have the reputation for providing the highest quality jeans. Several factors contribute to the fact that high end jeans cost more than they should. It is possible to create high quality denim in a low cost factory such as one in China for only 40 dollars. Consumers wont spend money for high quality items produced in China. "Designers and retailers say the typical retail markup on all fashion items, including jeans, ranges from 2.2 to 2.6 times cost" (How Can Jeans Cost $300). The cost to produce Jeans in the states costs higher because of higher wages and other economic factors. "In the luxury business, those mark-ups cover huge marketing budgets (someone has to pay for giant billboards and ads in fashion magazines) as well as the costs of running stores, headquarters, shipping, and other overhead" (How Can Jeans Cost $300). "Delores Sides, a spokeswoman for Cone Denim, says most of the weavers employed there have at least 20 years of experience, and one woman has being working at the mill for 55 years" (How Can Jeans Cost $300). Experienced employees are the one that are producing the high quality items. Having a person with over half a century of experience is going to require higher pay and in return drive up the markup price. Consumers are willing to pay the higher price for an items because their is an emotional connection rational connection to the item. Rational shoppers can spend hundreds on an item because they expect that it will last a long time. Emotional shoppers spend hundreds on luxury goods because they can.
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