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It costs £323 to look a million dollars

13th September 2013 Print

It costs the average woman £323 to look ‘a million dollars’, a study has found. The figure emerged from a detailed study examining how much it costs the typical female to get that perfect outfit for an upcoming event.

The study showed the biggest expense is a new dress coming in at £69.91, followed by a jacket at £66.77, and £51.40 on new shoes.

It also emerged more than one in five women insist on buying everything new – even underwear and accessories.

Furthermore two thirds of women said the more important an occasion, the more money they are willing to spend, with a family member’s wedding being the top reason to splash the cash.

The poll was conducted by premium marketing specialist, Cream UK.

A spokeswoman said: ”This research shows that women feel they need to spend a certain amount to look good for an important occasion.

”But everyone knows it isn’t necessarily about how much money you spend, it’s more about knowing what suits you and buying wisely.

”Just because a dress is expensive doesn’t necessarily mean it will look good.

”Consumers tend to stick with the same brands and retailers so it’s not surprising that women rule out certain shops when they are looking for a special outfit.”

The study also found a lavish 25% of women said they believe in the ethos that the more you spend on clothes, the better you look.

In fact, 15% of women said they would immediately dismiss certain shops as being ‘too cheap’.

Bizarrely the amount women spend on clothes is determined by whether or not they like the person hosting an event.

One in five females said they intentionally spent less on an outfit if they disliked people either attending or hosting an event.

But one in ten said they would spend MORE to ensure they looked a million dollars.

A third of women said they would really push the boat out if their partners ex-girlfriend was in attendance, and 36% would ‘go all out’ if a man they fancied was going to be there.

The study also found that more than one in ten shoppers admitted to buying from certain stores just to be seen shopping there.

And 75% said they tend to just stick to the same shops time after time.

The most popular high-street shop to buy a dress for a special occasion from was Monsoon followed by Coast, H&M and Karen Millen.

And when it came to shoes the favoured retailers were Clarks followed by Office, Schuh, Russell & Bromley, Kurt Geiger and Dune.

Accessorize was the most popular destination to jazz up an outfit and Pandora the most popular jeweler.

The Cream UK spokeswoman added: ”Shoppers are reassured when they know a brand well and it’s common to stick to what you know.

”Many brands do have a certain image and have aspirational connotations and many consumers want to own something purely because of what the brand represents.

”We are launching an ongoing study which focuses on people who spend more than £100 a month on clothes and accessories – incredibly only 15% of the population.”

True cost of looking a million dollars

Dress £69.91
Bag £46.01
Shoes £51.49
Hat £30.06
Jacket £66.77
Make-up £15.09
Hair & Beauty £44.15

Total £323.39