Which outlet stores are real

A few years ago, Consumer Reports surveyed the market and come up with a list of the best and worst outlet stores. To arrive at their findings, the magazine asked 15, Consumer Reports subscribers about their outlet shopping experiences over the course of more than 25, visits. The four criteria of value, quality, selection and helpfulness of staff were used to determine the rankings:.

VF Outlet got middling scores on value, quality and selection, along with a big fat black circle of shame — indicating the lowest score possible — when it comes to helpfulness of staff. But it gets even worse. Among the outlet stores that really stunk it up were some really big names:. Old Navy and Gap in particular both got black circles for helpfulness and received the lowest scores out of nearly four dozen outlets surveyed!

You may not find this surprising. Not necessarily. According to the Federal Trade Commission FTC , most of the products found in outlet stores are made specifically for outlet stores. The same report from the FTC suggests that this could mean that products from outlet stores may be of lower quality.

What does this mean for you? Be wise with what you purchase. At the time, I bought it in So it was a shoe that was no longer in season and was the last size of its style. They shipped it from the retail store to the outlet store to try and sell it. This is an obvious one.

To sum, prices at a designer outlet store are of course always going to be less than the retail store. This is the main reason why people go to outlet stores. But when we consider that the most items at designer outlet stores are of a lower quality, then is the price actually discounted? Implying that the final price is not actually discounted. Take a look at the tag inside the item.

What is it made of? High-end designer items are rarely made of faux leather or polyester. High end designer retail collections are often made in Italy or Spain. Find the name of the item and just do a google search! Every designer shoe or heel has a style name. Just look it up. They often will sell items final sale. I hope this was super valuable for you.