And they have to foot the dry cleaning bills themselves, which can be $16 per suit per time. When added up, those dry cleaning bills alone add up to about $800 per publisher per year, assuming you get one suit dry cleaned per publisher per week. Other expenses that the publishers have to foot themselves:
Suits. These average about 90 cleanings in life expectancy. Expect to pay about $400 a suit and replace one every year, plus spend about $1500 a year cleaning it. Add to that $50 on shoes, $25 on shirts (more if they keep flipflopping the color requirements), $40 on accessories like belts and ties, $50 or more on service bags, $20 on call book filler paper and pens, $6 on a call holder, and $5 for travel tissue. Accessories can add up to another $200 or more per year.
Well someone doesn't know how to shop.
I have never paid more than $150 for a suit in all my life and never will.
I have never paid more than $10 to dry clean a suit, usually I'd hang up my suits in the bathroom while I shower and the steam helps to clean them..or leave them out if you have overnight fog then let the morning sun dry them.
$25 on shirts...ever hear of Walmart, Target et al? There must be Sally Ann Thrift stores in the states, I know there are Good Will stores. Fact is that you can get all the stuff you mentioned above and for far less than the prices you quote, it just requires a little ingenuity. :-)