Thinking of buying a new pair of jeans? Breaking down the cost over time might help you decide

abcnews.go.com:

Shoppers are looking beyond just the price tag of a skirt or a pair of pants in the wake of still stubbornly high inflation

NEW YORK — For Jake Welch, getting dressed is one big math problem.

The 36-year-old brand director for an advertising firm calculates the cost-per-wear of his wardrobe by highlighting 200 items in a spreadsheet — excluding underwear and socks — and meticulously listing the price he paid for each of them as well as how many times he's worn it. He updates the spreadsheet every night on his computer to determine whether his purchases were worth it — or not.

Lots of people thought Welch was weird when he started doing this 12 years ago, opting to ditch the cheapest items on the sales rack in favor of maximizing the value of his purchases over the span of their lifecycles. But with inflation still a nagging problem, more shoppers are coming around to his way of thinking.

“I was actually onto something versus being a little looney," said Welch of Erda, Utah, who presented his findings last month at a company meeting.

Retailers are taking note of this mindset and shifting their marketing strategy in some cases. Gap’s Old Navy is offering shoppers a full refund for uniforms purchased during the upcoming back-to-school season if the clothes don’t hold up for a year. Retailers like Kohl’s and online shirt retailer Untuckit have recently revamped their marketing campaigns — particularly for the fall — to focus on durability and versatility. American Eagle is touting the “longevity of your most-loved jeans” made of recycled cotton and polyester in an email campaigns to customers.

That means a $200 classic sweater may end up being a better deal if you plan to wear it every week in comparison to a hot pink dress