I was watching Luxury for Less on Channel 4 recently and they bought up the subject of shops selling exactly the same clothing for different costs. its a fantastic programe and really highlights different pricing and brands.
The programme highlighted Boohoo. They were selling the same denim jacket but under two different brands, Karen Millen and Oasis. The jacket was £47.20 from Karen Millen and £29.50 from Oasis. Funily enough since the programe has aired, the Oasis one is now £47.20 too.
The Karen Millen denim jacket had KM embossed on the buttons. So really you are paying
more ££ for the buttons. It was the same denim jacket. Same fabric, same stitching, from the same factory.
They actually also did the same for a pair of jeans.
There was a simular BBC report about a Coast and Dorothy Perkins coat, again both sold by Boo Hoo, at different prices. Since Boohoo bough out alot of brands that went into administration, such as Dorothy Perkins, Debenhams, Coast, Oasis, it covers alot of stock and this is actually pretty common practice.
But this isnt a new tactic. When I was studying fashion on my degree we visited a factory for research. They were making mens shirts. The shirt was being sold in Top Man, Piere Cardin and Paul Smith. It was the same shirt, fabric, made in the same place, by the same people. The changed the buttons for each market and the Paul Smith version had extra top stitching around the collar and cuffs. Now ofcourse you can't tell this from the label, clothes dont declare where they are made or who made them, just the country.
So how can you avoid this? Well if you are shopping online with companies such as Boohoo and Asos, just add the item you are buying, into the description and search / check the item doesnt come up again. If it looks simular, it could be the same thing.
Decide wheather you want to pay more for the buttons, or trimmings. You may prefer to have branded buttons, it might matter to you. If it doesnt, go for the alternative, cheaper brand.
It doesnt have to be as hard work as it sounds to find these items as Google is a great thing. A quick google search might bring up the answer in seconds so you dont always have to search all your favorite brands.