KMart Lookbok Fall 2011--Too Expensive?

Because of Hurricane Irene, I was unable to update this weekend.  Thanks to the local Starbucks (that's conviently located inside the local A&P), I have electricity and free Wi-Fi.

Anyway, as I was stranded inside my home, I decided to finally look through my September issue of Elle where I saw K Mart advertising their new lookbook.

I got kind of excited when I noticed that K Mart was stepping up their apparel aparntment.  I bet they're trying to compete with Target, Walmart and Kohls, and maybe we have some designer collaberations to look forward too.  However, I'm not so happy with the prices.  I always thought that K mart was cheaper than Target, so I was little shocked to see that some of their fall jackets are going for $99.99.  I mean, for $99.99, I could get a better quality jacket at Macy's.  Or I could spend $20 more and go to to Guess.

I don't think K Mart is paying attention to who their consumer is and instead, they are getting wrapped up  in their competition with Walmart and Target.  When I go to K Mart, I'm looking for deals, not to shell out $80 on a faux fur vest.  Walmart understood this when they revamped their apparel section and offered us t-shirts and work pants at under $10.
While Target, which is slightly more pricier than Walmart, sell shirts that at average goes for $20 because that fits the demographic of their consumers.  Target also makes collaborations with higher brand designers such as Missoni, Jean Paul Gaultier, and Alexander McQueen.  These collaborations make the clothing more desirable and therefore, makes the higher prices acceptable.  I'm perfectly okay at spending $50 on Missoni shoes from Target, but I just can't bring myself to do the same at K Mart.

Further, I think K Mart needs to earn it's stripes first.  I'll admit, I'm sursprised how good their lookbook is, but I still can't see many people running to K Mart for clothes as they do for Target or Walmart.  They still need to tweek a few things, such as those flares (above left) and the taupe colored leggings.  I mean, the flares don't even fit the model properly; look at the saggy-ness in the crotch and I bet the butt doesn't look to appealing either.  And honestly, I'm not too sure what's up with the leggings, but they just don't look right.

You know, it looks like i'm nitpicking at K Mart too much, but if they're going to be competing with the big dogs, they're going to need to step it up a notch.  Still, there are some pieces from the collection that intrigue me, such as the clogs (worn on the model above, to the left)  And the Maxi Sweater dress.

Anyway, I'm not at home now and I gotta cut this blog post short.  My electricity might be out for a few days, so I guess I'll be making daily trips to A&P for the rest of the week.  Keep a lookout for a future blog post where I'll be making a purchase from K Mart's fall collection and I will be evaluating the products.

Stay safe everyone on the East Coast and Happy Blogging!