Would you pay $0.52 to be comfortable today?
I come from a long line of bargain-hunters. A grandma with a Depression-era mindset (her cabinets were filled with sugar packets she’d taken from restaurants), and a father with a zeal for markdowns (he once came home with a bag full of microwave dinners he’d gotten on sale—never mind that we didn’t have a microwave), were role models for what became my lifelong but ill-conceived frugality. If something seemed like a good deal, that metric was the gold standard. Whether I’d actually use it, or if I even liked it, was often secondary.
But if there’s an antidote to problematic consumption habits, it’s moving apartments. In my 20s, faced with schlepping a tiny closet’s worth of clothes that I never wore to an entirely new (equally tiny) closet where they would remain unworn seemed insanely foolish. Why did I have all these things that didn’t quite fit or that I didn’t quite like? To save money? How exactly does a closet full of junk save money? Enter a new magic formula that would change my perspective on the things I bought: Cost Per Wear.
The idea of cost per wear is simple: take the full cost of a garment and divide it by the number of times you’ll actually wear it. Remember to consider things like durability and seasonality: a flimsy one-season sun dress you got for $18 that falls apart after two wearings has a higher cost per wear ($9) than a $65 three-season shirt dress you’ve worn at least 10 times ($6.50 per wear, and possibly less if you keep wearing it).
Bras are a great measure of cost per wear because many women wear a bra all day, every day. Although you certainly could wear your ThirdLove bra every single day, let’s say you wear it every day to work. Assuming you work 5 days a week, and you update your bra every six months, your cost per wear over those six months is a measly $0.52!
I ask you: what can you buy for $0.52 these days? Maybe 20 minutes of parking. Or about half of an extra shot at Starbucks. Or about 2 gigabytes of extra data, according to my cell phone plan (I will admit that I do not really understand what 2 GB of data actually means). Not much.
My point here is that even this frugal-minded gal can see the value in spending a few cents a day for something that I actually use and love. Without my ThirdLove bra ($68), I probably would have bought at least two lousy bras that cost $39 each—the kind that inevitably itch and poke and then deteriorates after a few wears—so I’m already ahead of the game.
It took a lot of un-learning, but I’ve realized that what can seem like a bargain at checkout quickly becomes a burden as it sits in a drawer, unused and unloved. Cost per wear is more than a formula, really, it’s a state of mind: buy fewer, but better things. You’re likely to spend less in the long run. And that’s before you count the value of being supremely comfortable and confident, a benefit that’s simply priceless.
Tags:
Your cart is empty
Have an account? Sign in to view your bag.
Returns & exchanges free for 60 days for all U.S. orders. Please try on the bra to ensure a good fit, making sure to leave the original tags attached. We only accept underwear in unworn condition, with original tags, in its unopened original polybag. Items marked final sale are not eligible for return or exchange. If something’s not right, we can help. Our Fit Experts are available via live chat, or email to answer any questions you might have.
Read more