hmm. what about 'profit margin' in retail...? is that filthy lucre? Because retailers add at least twice as much to the value of their goods to make a profit. Nobody can buy anything at cost price in retail.
The term "keystone" is used a lot in clothing retail stores... just not in the hearing of customers.
Keystone means that if an item costs $25 wholesale it is retailed out at $50.
And when leftover stock out of season comes along it is usually sold at either cost or at a loss. Making the entire margin of profit very slim but reasonable...those people who are a clothes horse or buying clothes for the latest fashion are the ones paying the most.
Not filthy lucre but a normal accepted business model. Usually a lot of credit to pay for the clothes is necessary as well as cost of the commercial real estate and sales personnel eats at profits too. For some reason they want paychecks for going to work.
And they still have discount stores like Ross and Walmart if you just want some clothes to cover you...
It's not Macy's or Bloomingdale latest fashion...but they are not going to go broke either.
Of course if you bought custom made clothes all the time... people would probably start talking about your extravagant wardrobe.
Retail stocks like Walmart are going up lately and said to be rising. I don't invest in retail stocks...but I know plenty of people who do. It's not taking advantage of people. So the money is "clean".