Looking at North Face products I am wondering why is this clothing is so expensive? Is it expensive because it is worth it or is it like a myriad of other products where you are basically paying for the name? I'd like some feedback before I drop so much $$$ on a damn coat or jacket. Which brings me to my next question, what products are worth paying more for because they last longer or work better than their competition?
Best answer I can give you on this question is audio equipment. A good high-quality receiver/amplifier will last 20+ years and sound superb. Yes you can buy cheap crap stereos that won't last 5 years, and you will never actually hear your music the whole time. So you will spend more on your initial purchase, but if you get a good one, you won't have to buy another one for decades and you will be getting what you actually paid for, which is high quality sound.
The wife and I just spent Thanksgiving in Whistler, BC and bought North Face snow gear. We stayed warm and dry the whole time we were out in the snow. We were very impressed with our purchase.
There is certainly cold weather clothes/jackets that are worth the money. I'm not sure North Face is one of them. Their stuff is not generally any better than any other brand. Something I bought recently that was well worth it were ski boots. Expensive but certainly worth the high price.
And strip nuts and everything else. Now, I usually buy cheap tools if I'm only going to use them once or twice per year, but good tools are worth every penny if you're going to use them more than that.
If you want snow gear and winter gear that is cheap but also extremely effective in keeping you warm or dry, go to a military surplus store. The stuff there is cheap(comparatively) but made for keeping troops dry and warm in cold conditions all over the world. It just takes some searching at one or two surplus stores, but your coat will be durable and warm.
Sometimes alcohol is really worth it. Grey Goose, Johnny Walker Blue, and Gentleman's Jack Daniels are more expensive but well worth it if you don't like to mix much coke/juice into your drinks. Iphone headphones. The sound is good, doesn't break easy, and is comfortable in the ear. Usually, one of those things are missing in a good set of light headphones. Heinz ketchup. It can't be any other ketchup IMO. Oh and there's this shampoo called Vichy. It actually does what it says on the bottle, and to me, that's worth it.
I realize that there are way more expensive snow gear (and better) than North Face but it was our first time skiing and it isn't like there are slopes around the corner from Houston so we didn't care to spend top dollar on our gear. Regardless, it did what we needed it to do which was keep us warm and dry. I agree about alcohol. I'd rather not drink than to drink ****ty booze. Grey Goose in my opinion is vastly overrated though.
