Are you tired of buying new jeans only to have your boys wear holes in the knees within a week? If so, take a peek at this simple money-saving tip that is the solution to your holey jean woes.
I’m super excited to share a life-changing tip with you today. One of my favorite things about having a blog is being able to share information that has made my life better with anyone who happens to find my little corner of the Internet.
But first, some background…
My boys wear a lot of hand-me-down clothes. I have several friends and neighbors that have generously passed on their boys’ clothes to me, and I’m so grateful for all the money we’ve saved over the past five years. However, do you know what one item almost NEVER gets passed on to me?
If you’re a boy mom like me, you’ve probably guessed it…jeans!
The problem with buying jeans for boys
Little boys are ROUGH on their clothes. After all, who has time to worry about taking care of clothing when there are dragons to be vanquished, buried treasure to unearth, and playgrounds to explore?
T-shirts and shorts usually survive these daring exploits, but any cloth that goes over their knees is doomed for a quick demise. Especially now that my boys are getting older and more adventurous, I’m constantly finding holes in their pants!
Last fall, I bought Little Man two new pairs of jeans for under $8 each. Awesome! …until two weeks later when he came home from preschool with a large hole in his left pant leg. Agh! I didn’t want to be mad at him–I want him to feel free to run and play. But I hate wasting money.
Plus, now I had a dilemma: do I buy another pair of the cheap jeans, knowing that they will wear out quickly, or do I invest in more expensive jeans hoping they’ll last longer?
Oh, the decisions!
I was telling a friend of mine about this frustration a few weeks later, and she opened my eyes to a whole new world of possibility: the Cat & Jack brand at Target.
What’s so special about Cat & Jack?
Target has a ONE YEAR quality guarantee policy for all Cat & Jack products. That means that if anything you buy breaks, tears, shrinks, or otherwise doesn’t meet your expectations any time during the year after you buy it, you can return it for a full refund or exchange it for a new product.
What?!
A year is an eternity in the world of children’s clothes! By the time the quality guarantee runs out, my boys will have long grown out of whatever it was I bought them. So, essentially, it’s like getting a lifetime guarantee.
The Proof
This spring I bought Little Man some Cat & Jack flip flops to put in his Easter basket. He has LOVED them…literally to death…unfortunately. Last week, after being worn almost daily all summer long, they broke.
Little Man was seriously inconsolable about the loss of his beloved flip flops (have I mentioned that he’s a slightly dramatic child?).
I was disappointed, too, because they broke so close to the end of sandal season (because it’s nigh unto impossible to find flip flops in the stores right now), but he had definitely gotten a lot of good use out of them, so I wasn’t complaining. I was about to toss them in the trash when I saw the faded Cat & Jack logo on them.
Hmm, I wondered. Could I actually still return these?
Since I didn’t have the receipt anymore, I was doubtful that Target would be able to do anything to help, but I decided to shoot off an email to their customer service department.
What you need to know about the Cat & Jack return policy:
Here are the facts I learned in response to my email to customer service:
- Target DOES offer a one-year guarantee on all of their “owned brand products,” including Cat & Jack. (Anyone know what other brands they carry that would fall into this category???)
- A receipt is recommended to ensure you get the price you paid.
- You CAN attempt a no receipt return or exchange for the item without the receipt with a valid ID.
Note: I’ve also read elsewhere that if you pay with a Target Redcard, they can look up your purchase without a receipt.
My successful return
With nothing to lose, I headed to my local Target and asked the worker what she could do for me. Keep in mind, this was a seasonal item that I know they didn’t have in stock anymore (I looked online), so I wasn’t super hopeful.
However, after looking up the item number and asking me to swipe the credit card I paid with, she was able to return the flip flops for the full price I paid four months ago! Even without a receipt. I was so impressed by their willingness to stand behind their product.
Hooray!
The moral of the story
Target has made a loyal Cat & Jack customer out of me.
For this fall, I bought Little Man two new pairs of jeans–Cat & Jack brand. They seem pretty sturdy, but if they fall victim to the hazards of childhood play, I know I can replace them for free. That’s a pretty awesome deal.
Even better, Cat & Jack items are priced pretty reasonably to begin with. I get annoyed with stores that list their “regular” price of their products ridiculously high (I’m looking at you, Carters) and then just always happen to be having a 50% sale. Target doesn’t play those kind of games with Cat & Jack.
The regularly price of their boys jeans is usually around $12-13 dollars (reasonable), but I got mine on sale for $10. So, for two dollars more than the “awesome deal” jeans I got last year, I have a guarantee that they will last THE ENTIRE SCHOOL YEAR. That’s worth two dollars to me.
Alright, I know I’ve sounded a bit like a commercial today, and I suppose I am, but I get really excited about saving money, and I had to share the good news. Target isn’t paying me to tell you any of this…I just think we frugal moms need to look out for each other.
Now, it’s your turn to chime in…
Have you purchased Cat & Jack clothes from Target? Share your experience!
My 5th grade daughter tells people Cat and Jack is her favorite clothing brand, lol! I’m enjoying that while it lasts. She does have some darling outfits and they typically wear pretty well too!
That’s awesome! I love that she hasn’t gotten trapped into the need for expensive brands. Maybe she’ll just always be super proud of her frugal, stylish taste. ☺️
Cat and Jack has been a good brand for my son. I’m curious to see how it stands up to my daughters though, they are my daredevil kiddos! Good to know Target is taking their return policy seriously!
I was glad to see it too. You always hope a company will live up to its word, but I’m often skeptical these days. Thankfully, my experience with Target was really good.
One year guarantee?! How did I not know this!! I was just checking out some of their clothes at Target today for my toddler! Game changer!
I know, right?! It’s so much more worth spending the money if you know it’s guaranteed to last.
That is AWESOME and good to know! Thank you for sharing!!
You’re welcome, Tiffany! I’m all for moms sharing good tips with each other.
I love cat and jack jeans! They are so nice.
Glad to hear that! We haven’t been through a whole season with them yet, but I’m pleased so far, and at least I know they’re guaranteed. They definitely feel sturdier than the other brands I bought.
Yes! We love Cat and Jack! Found out about them when I was school uniform shopping ❤️
Wow, that is unheard of! My neighbor was telling me that Osh Kosh B’Gosh used to do something similar just for jeans, but I couldn’t find any info on it.
I wish more companies WOULD do this. Let’s make clothes that are REALLY built to withstand the wear and tear kids put on them! Almost two years later, I’m still almost exclusively buying Cat and Jack pants for my boys, and any time we’ve had holes, they’ve returned them happily!
Hi! I am a believer of cat & jack products! Adorable prints, not a ton of cliche graphics (I cannot buy another “mommy’s mvp” or “handsome like daddy” shirt so help me god) plus the price is right for a mom of twin boys who are 2! (Um and hello, weren’t they just in 18 month and now are 3t?! What?!)
I myself just did the return of three tees that had come apart at the shoulder seam. I felt kind of sketch because they were stained… but hey, even on laundry day I’ll put my kids in the most stained t-shirt… but with holes?! I’m not that mean LOL. Even though I was sheepish (and could not find the receipt, d’oh!) she used my target debit card to locate receipt and refunded me the full purchase value. Amazing!
Also, FYI if you haven’t found the WONDER that is their jogger pants… you NEED TO. They have a reinforced knee! It’s like they know a thing or two about kids or something! I’ve never seen another brand reinforce the knee. Worth the $9!!!
I haven’t tried the jogger pants, but I’m about to go look them up now. Hooray for people who actually understand what young kids need in a piece of clothing! Thanks for the tip!
My daughter rips holes in her jeans and leggings constantly. The other week in four days she came home with three pairs of ripped pants from playing too rough!
Thanks for the info.
I’m glad this bit of info will help save you money (and take some of the stress off of having a very active, rough-and-tumble child). Next time she rips a pair, you can just say, “Well, I guess it’s time for a Target run.” 🙂
These are the target owned brands..
The following are just some of the current Target owned brands and collections:
A New Day™
A New Day™ + Vital Voices
Archer Farms™
Art Class™
Auden™
Ava & Viv™
Boots & Barkley™
Cat & Jack™
Circo™
Cloud Island™
Colsie™
Durabuilt™
Embark™
Everspring™
Gilligan & O’Malley™
Good & Gather™
Goodfellow & Co™
Hearth & Hand™ with Magnolia
Heyday™
Hyde and Eek! Boutique™
JoyLab™
Knox Rose™
Kona Sol™
Made By Design™
Market Pantry™
Merona™
More Than Magic™
Opalhouse™
Original Use™
Pillowfort™
Project 62™
Project 62™ + Nate Berkus™
Prologue™
Room Essentials™
Shade & Shore™
Simply Balanced™
Smartly™
Smith & Hawken™
Sonia Kashuk™
Spritz™
Stars Above™
Sun Squad™
Sutton & Dodge™
Tevolio™
Threshold™
Universal Thread™
Up&Up™
Wild Fable™
Wine Cube™
Wondershop™
Xhilaration
Thanks so much for adding this!
The warranty is actually by Cat & Jack, not target. ?
Thank you so much for this. I usually buy consignment or gently used for my nephew. I’m lucky to get a month out of jeans. And I didn’t realize, most of those are Cat and Jack brand. Today, becauseIf this and the price, I bought 3 NEW pair from Target for cyber Monday prices of $5.09 each. It was the straight and relaxed straight and only $8 regular price. Receipt is in my wallet!!!! Fingers crossed, we will get thru the winter on the new and replacements. Thanks again!!
I wonder why Target has this policy and if it’s the same for other brands?
I don’t know why, but I’m so grateful as a consumer and mom that they stand by their products. They have made a loyal customer out of me because of it!
This is a great tip! I have been buying Cat & Jack, Art Class, among other Target brands for ever. If I had only known about this warranty sooner I would’ve saved a ton of money on clothes. My now 8 year old son has worn through his clothes and busted out the knees so quickly!
I was wondering if anyone has any tips on how to keep track of your purchases of target brands and their warranty expiration dates. Just by going through the clothes in his drawers I can’t even remember if it’s been a year or not! I do want to make sure I can keep track somehow. Any advice would be helpful!
I haven’t really set up a good system for that, other than keeping the receipts all in one place. However, you got me thinking about it, and I think I might start taking a sharpie and marking the inside of the waistband with the purchase date so that I KNOW for sure when I bought various items. What do you think?
As a guest service worker at target, I advise that you keep your receipt if not using a red card. Returns are much easier and you will be happier with your experience. 🙂