Cost per wear? Do you care?

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#31
Sparkletastic said:
Thanks for these comments!! I hadn't thought about the family aspect. Do the two of you discuss the CPW with your SO's from a budgetary standpoint or are you saying other family is commenting?

I'm lucky in that my broader family doesn't even notice my bags. I come from a truly fashion clueless bunch. Lol! DH is a total enabler so if anything I can't tell him what I want because he'll go behind my back and buy it when I was trying to wait or save for it. He's the spender. I'm the saver. So he's always doing the justifying on his stuff. 😂
When we married we were in such a saving mode that for years I only had one el cheapo purse. Then it grew to a few el cheapo purses. 😖 Now I don't have to consider budget that much (but I do stay in my lane price wise!) but I don't like to feel like I wasted money - hence me trying to see if CPW is a reasonable benchmark.
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Actually I don't discuss pre-purchases with my family, knowing them, they'll just dissuade me from buying! :p I only let them know when they saw the purchases and ask questions. But cost per wear is not just a means to justify, I see it as saving $ in the long term. In the grand scheme of things, it makes more sense to buy a bag of higher quality and more classic design and I love and can use for many years than to use one that is easily worn out and trendy and just doesn't make my days brighter.:cool:
 
#32
Truthfully I only use "cost-per-wear" as justification to get what I want.

Most of my things never get worn enough. However I don't bother calculating cost-per-wear since they bring me much joy and I do not put a price-tag on what makes me happy.

Of course it is very satisfying to see and calculate the cost-per-wear of things I use often and that makes me happy too. My shopping life is a balance of both ;)
 
#36
I don't calculate a specific cost-per-wear expectation with my bags, but I do prefer to spend the big bucks on bags that I will touch, see, and interact with the most frequently. The bags that make my DAILY life more convenient and beautiful.

I got my Neverfull in April and have used it every day since, so I'm already down to $21/day on her - which, wow! That actually makes me feel great, because I'll certainly get TONS more use out of her, but cost-per-wear is already down to a number I'm comfortable with.
 
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#37
loves said:
Truthfully I only use "cost-per-wear" as justification to get what I want.

Most of my things never get worn enough. However I don't bother calculating cost-per-wear since they bring me much joy and I do not put a price-tag on what makes me happy.

Of course it is very satisfying to see and calculate the cost-per-wear of things I use often and that makes me happy too. My shopping life is a balance of both ;)
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babysunshine said:
Actually I don't discuss pre-purchases with my family, knowing them, they'll just dissuade me from buying! :p I only let them know when they saw the purchases and ask questions. But cost per wear is not just a means to justify, I see it as saving $ in the long term. In the grand scheme of things, it makes more sense to buy a bag of higher quality and more classic design and I love and can use for many years than to use one that is easily worn out and trendy and just doesn't make my days brighter.:cool:
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Yes to both of these! If I calculated cost per wear of my more expensive bags I'd be so depressed -- but for most of them, it wouldn't stop me from buying them because I love them so much. I do ask myself how much I will use a bag before I buy it, but some bags are perfect for occasions but not for everyday life (I'm looking at you, Chanel!) I'm not going to spend oodles on a bag that will get used once, but I might for a bag that fits certain occasions perfectly. And I try to only buy bags I'm pretty sure I'll still love years from now. This would not have been possible when I was in my 20s, but I'm older now and more sure of what I'll like long-term. So it it costs a lot, it has to pass the will-I-like-it-long-term test, more than the will-I-use-it-everyday test.
 
#38
For me, CPW is critical. I will not buy something that I will not wear enough. My goal is $1 per wear.
I have so many beautiful, wonderful bags in my life. If I am going to add something new, it has to contribute to my wardrobe and I have to be able to take care of it.

I use CPW in two ways - when trying to decide on a purchase and when I'm evaluating my bags.

When I am trying to decide on a purchase, I will ask myself "How long do I think I will wear this?" and "How many times a week/month/year will I wear it." The Van Cleef and Arpels ring I lusted after - I would have to wear it every day of my life until I was 142. That was a no. The Chanel jacket on a steep discount - I would have to wear it once every two weeks for the next 20 years... that was a yes. It was a classic style, easy to tailor when my shape changes, and I liked it. I can't guarantee that my family will like the things I purchase, so they aren't a factor when I am shopping. I don't track what my actual CPW is - but I do make an estimate when i purchase something.

I like tracking things and I love cataloguing my bags. So, I do actually maintain a catalogue of my bags, with details like usage notes, purchase price, insurance replacement costs, materials, maintenance costs, date purchased... And then I will crunch numbers, and be able to say things like "oh, 2007 was a good year: every bag from then averages $1.32 or less and five bags purchased that year are still in rotation, carried at least four times a year." And my family, who is highly amused by my geekery, will smile and nod. A few times I year, I will do an accounting of my list, and will figure out who is underperforming (everything must be carried at least once!), why it is underperforming (white bags are historically bad performers) and if I should repair or give away when a bag is damaged.
 
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#39
I have been tracking my cpw since i got serious buying bags (ahem buying tooooo many bags tooooooo often lol). I started xls and set a formula to see live cpw. Then it got too depressing and i went for a more vague paper and pen version haha. My ideal is $1/wear and that to me mean it has fulfilled its mission. Any wear after $1/wear is bonus and celebrate the great quality it is. More often if i can hit $5/wear i'm fairly satisfied and don't feel guilty owning it. The bags i sold are usually at $10/wear if i did my math considering purchase price, resell price and number of wear. I'm confident my existing bags can easily last 5-10 years which is depressing if i use cpw to restrict future purchase *gulp*. Now that my finances are not as tight i'm considering to relax my ideal cpw. Live is too short to be too strict. However i would like to stress the importance of being financially responsible. Financial freedom beats any bag.
 
#40
I use CPW loosely to avoid buying another higher end handbag if the existing ones haven't been comfortably amortized, yet. For example, my last purchase was in January, and I won't buy another bag at that price point until this one has been used for several more months (though I might get a contemporary bag on sale in the mean time, for variety's sake). Since I use my bags for a long time, I don't feel compelled to track CPW; feeling generally reasonable is enough, for me.
 
#42
You are amazing, Vintage Leather. I strive for such geekery!
Vintage Leather said:
For me, CPW is critical. I will not buy something that I will not wear enough. My goal is $1 per wear.
I have so many beautiful, wonderful bags in my life. If I am going to add something new, it has to contribute to my wardrobe and I have to be able to take care of it.

I use CPW in two ways - when trying to decide on a purchase and when I'm evaluating my bags.

When I am trying to decide on a purchase, I will ask myself "How long do I think I will wear this?" and "How many times a week/month/year will I wear it." The Van Cleef and Arpels ring I lusted after - I would have to wear it every day of my life until I was 142. That was a no. The Chanel jacket on a steep discount - I would have to wear it once every two weeks for the next 20 years... that was a yes. It was a classic style, easy to tailor when my shape changes, and I liked it. I can't guarantee that my family will like the things I purchase, so they aren't a factor when I am shopping. I don't track what my actual CPW is - but I do make an estimate when i purchase something.

I like tracking things and I love cataloguing my bags. So, I do actually maintain a catalogue of my bags, with details like usage notes, purchase price, insurance replacement costs, materials, maintenance costs, date purchased... And then I will crunch numbers, and be able to say things like "oh, 2007 was a good year: every bag from then averages $1.32 or less and five bags purchased that year are still in rotation, carried at least four times a year." And my family, who is highly amused by my geekery, will smile and nod. A few times I year, I will do an accounting of my list, and will figure out who is underperforming (everything must be carried at least once!), why it is underperforming (white bags are historically bad performers) and if I should repair or give away when a bag is damaged.
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#43
I have some bags (Speedy, NF) that have cost per uses of below $1 USD. I also have really expensive bags where the cost per wear is probably around $200. I figure it all evens out in the end, and I don't really think about it. I am much more cpw-conscious about every-day items that I don't rotate as much, like clothes.

@loves i TOTALLY use cpw in the same way- that's how I justify expensive jeans!!
 
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#44
Vintage Leather said:
For me, CPW is critical. I will not buy something that I will not wear enough. My goal is $1 per wear.
I have so many beautiful, wonderful bags in my life. If I am going to add something new, it has to contribute to my wardrobe and I have to be able to take care of it.

I use CPW in two ways - when trying to decide on a purchase and when I'm evaluating my bags.

When I am trying to decide on a purchase, I will ask myself "How long do I think I will wear this?" and "How many times a week/month/year will I wear it." The Van Cleef and Arpels ring I lusted after - I would have to wear it every day of my life until I was 142. That was a no. The Chanel jacket on a steep discount - I would have to wear it once every two weeks for the next 20 years... that was a yes. It was a classic style, easy to tailor when my shape changes, and I liked it. I can't guarantee that my family will like the things I purchase, so they aren't a factor when I am shopping. I don't track what my actual CPW is - but I do make an estimate when i purchase something.

I like tracking things and I love cataloguing my bags. So, I do actually maintain a catalogue of my bags, with details like usage notes, purchase price, insurance replacement costs, materials, maintenance costs, date purchased... And then I will crunch numbers, and be able to say things like "oh, 2007 was a good year: every bag from then averages $1.32 or less and five bags purchased that year are still in rotation, carried at least four times a year." And my family, who is highly amused by my geekery, will smile and nod. A few times I year, I will do an accounting of my list, and will figure out who is underperforming (everything must be carried at least once!), why it is underperforming (white bags are historically bad performers) and if I should repair or give away when a bag is damaged.
Click to expand...

I'd love to see your collection and your spreadsheet. Any way you could take pictures?
 
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