According to market research firm NPD Group, US men's and women's jean sales totaled $13.8 billion for the year ended April 30, 2011. About 99% of the sales were for jeans priced $50 and under. The other 1% were for those priced over $50 -- some retailing for $300 and up. According to a Wall Street Journal article, gross profit margin for private-label jeans made for Wal-Mart Stores Inc., Sears Holdings Corp., and other retailers are less than 20%, whereas the margins for premium jean lines are 40% to 50%. Costs for a True Religion pair of jeans made in the USA are $23.30 spent for a Los Angeles-based seamstress, $10 worth of fabric (1.8 yards a pair, on average), 44 cents for pocket linings, 37 cents for a zipper, and $2 for the embroidery on a back pocket. The equivalent high-end jeans made in China would retail about $40 per pair, noted True Religion, but would likely not offer the same quality.
If consumers balk at the real thing, they can always buy pajama jeans from a late night TV ad.
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