As cash strapped students, we all love a good bargain. And as women, we at Her Campus love nothing more than to release our inner shopaholics and go on the hunt for a new garment of clothing that is both unique and exciting. What is the mark of a successful shopping trip? When said shopaholic finds said garment for a killer price. It not only brightens up your wardrobe and alleviates the usual upset of parting with your money, but the thrill of the hunt will leave you with a smile on your face for the rest of the day. Victoria is known for its unique boutiques tucked away in the heart of downtown that have hidden treasures of beautiful clothing bursting from the racks. However, some of them can be a bit on the pricey side for your typical university girl. But we’ve got the inside scoop just for you: here are four places in Victoria where you can find an outfit for less than $50… If you are up for the hunt!
Dots Discount Designer Wear, 724 Fort Street
At your first take, walking into Dots can be overwhelming at first. There are racks upon racks of brightly coloured clothing, printed patterns, and stunning silhouettes filling your gaze as far as the eye can see. Not to panic though, there is order to this little store; everything is categorized and grouped according to designer. Dots stocks their store with clothing from copious designers, each dutifully paired with a bargain price tag. Their eclectic mix ranges from the likes of Jolibel Zoe, Kersh, Mexx, Eric Alexandre, Kroshetta and many more. There is a mixture of high quality clothing ideal for any occasion, whether it be a night out or casual wear in the day. The majority of the dresses are priced in the region of $25, up to $50 depending on how elaborate you want to get. The average price for tees and blouses is as little as $9.95 up to $25, and trousers stand in at the $30 region. With the winter season in full force, there is a great range of knitwear on display and a ‘special sale’ in the coat sections, with many coats reduced to amazing prices! And for a store carrying only pre-loved garments they manage to stock their shelves with a broad array of choices available in size, colour and styles to fawn over. It is definitely worth a look around; and whether you decide to buy something or not, be sure to join their email newsletter to receive special discount vouchers exclusive to the Dots mailing list VIPs.
The Patch, 719 Yates Street
A mecca for everything vintage! The Patch is a cool, quirky store that is laid out very spaciously and everything is neatly displayed according clothing type. This is the place to come if you like a vast landscape of variety with your bargain hunting. The dresses are priced around $20 to $45 and vary from vintage style (think lots of sparkles and sequins) to long elaborate costumes, as well as modern tea dresses and going out attire. If you’re a scarf girl like me, they host a wonderful selection of warm scarves ideal for winter priced around $12, and a special two for $5 offer on neck scarves. A variety of jackets and coats are tagged at as little as $30 up to $50, and the vintage tees and gorgeous blouses range from $9.95 up to $20. The store is stocked with seemingly endless tables full of jumpers and chunky knitwear to keep you snug for this cold season, including a eye-catching display of Christmas jumpers which hit $20 mark. Nothing says Happy Holidays like a vintage Christmas jumper! It’s a great place to shop with friends, especially when it ends in 15 percent off! So be sure to bring them along for your next visit; as they currently offer a ‘friends sale’ which lends you both getting 15% off each when you both make a purchase. This is a gem of a store, and worth a good browse around.
Mad Flavour Vintage, 581 Johnson Street
Now, it is very easy to walk past this amazing little store without even realizing its’ presence. To avoid this fashion atrocity, I’m going to give you the scoop. They have their main store, Flavour, which is on the street – but you want to head right on up the flight of stairs to the right of the store, leading you to the vintage floor AKA Mad Flavour Vintage, cornucopia of good finds. For the vintage clothes connoisseur, this place is a must see. Granted, a little patience is required for this one as you will have to sift your way through a lot of clothes to find the most coveted pieces, but let me tell you they are there! Look out for the $5 racks as they are piled with dresses and blouses all with unbeatable price tags. Regular priced dresses can range from $20 to $30, jumpers are around $14.95 to $20, bargain jeans for $19.99 and blouses can be found priced as little as $12.95. Be prepared to be tempted by lots of unique items and browse away to your heart’s content. This store has huge shopping potential – compounded by the fact it is a scarcely known piece of vintage heaven.
Bryan’s, 1327 Government Street
The last store on my list is stretches to the top end of our $50 outfit budget. But, if you are in the mood to splurge a little post-exams or after finishing up a big project, this place has some beautiful dresses and casual wear. This is also the place to look if you’re looking to find a standout piece to complete an outfit. However, if you find that the price tags at Bryan’s are a tad too high for just one single garment, it’s definitely worth taking a look at their half price section of the store. The sale section features a wide variety of blouses, dresses and jumpers that are not only no less gorgeous than their higher priced counterparts, but have had their prices slashed in half, falling around the $20 region.
So whether you are in the market for a ‘new’ chunky knit, vintage style tee or a casual tea dress, be sure to head downtown on your next shopping trip and partake in a good old fashioned bargain hunt, because there are plenty of them out there waiting for you to find them.