Cost per wear OP.

Buying teen clothes at TJ Maxx is ok, but not so much Costco. Labels, brands, all of that are very important during the teenage years to many kids and allows them to fit in.

One $80 hoodie in this expensive area is fine.

Costco and TJ max for teen clothes…yikes. Your poor teen is probably mortified. I think you need to work with the teen to develop a clothing budget/strategy. Take whatever you would normally spend on a season’s wardrobe for them and add an extra hundred or two if you can afford it, because it sounds like you have been spending very little ip until now. Tell that amount to your teen, and they can decide where to spend it - maybe some cheaper things for basics and spend more on what matters to them. They can do extra chores around the house or maybe babysit/yard work for neighbors for extra $$

80 seems reasonable for a hoodie. It’s something they will wear over and over and over.

My kids can want anything their heart desires. Doesn't mean they're going to get it from us. If they don't even need another hoodie they're not getting anymore regardless of the cost.

I will buy it for your teen.

This seems normal to Mel. But then again I don’t get clothes from TJ Max or Costco

Anonymous wrote:Make it a Christmas present. Or birthday if that comes first. I wouldn’t just buy it.

This or have the teen contribute to purchasing it.

Anonymous wrote:May be I should adjust my view on buying clothes- most of our regular day clothes are from stores like TJmax or Costco.

But what I am not happy to hear is “Does it matter?!” When I ask DC what’s you like the shirt most, since it’s a $80+ hoodie.

Is it just a phase?

In situations like these I offer to go halfsies

Expensive clothes for teens is not a phase but a way of life. Make them work for it and it’ll slowly fall out of fashion.

Buy the hoodie and stop being a pain.

“Does it matter?” seems like a rude response. Geez, at least humor me with a reason. Based on the response alone I would say no. For a good kid and a rare ask, I’d do it.

If it is just one $80 hoodie, with the rest of the clothes at a lower price, I would get it. As PP noted, they are likely to wear it often, so the "cost per wear" is reasonable. My DD has an $80 hoodie from a soccer tournament, and she wears it anytime it is clean (and sometimes when it isn't). At this point, the ROI is way better than some of the $30-40 shirts she has that she barely wears.

As to the "Does it matter?" response, I'd remind your child to be polite, but in some respects, they are right, in that what they love about it is likely not going to be meaningful to you.

You can set a limit of one "splurge" item for the season and confirm that your child wants this hoodie to be that item.

Make it a Christmas present. Or birthday if that comes first. I wouldn’t just buy it.

Anonymous wrote:They’ll probably wear it more than anything else, so maybe it’s a better value than it seems.

Yup. Turn out into a cost per wear lesson. Or maybe you give them the money for a regular hoodie and they save up to pay the difference

They’ll probably wear it more than anything else, so maybe it’s a better value than it seems.

May be I should adjust my view on buying clothes- most of our regular day clothes are from stores like TJmax or Costco.

But what I am not happy to hear is “Does it matter?!” When I ask DC what’s you like the shirt most, since it’s a $80+ hoodie.

Is it just a phase?