4. Cheap and Lovely

My father, who was inclined to be careful with his money, could never see the point of buying his family's clothes from shops when the local Saturday market offered much cheaper things. So my brother and I were introduced at an early age to the virtues of cut-price clothes.

It sounds absurd now, of course, because markets have become a fashionable way of shopping. This happened, not because of the economic crisis, but because of the old-clothes cult which started at the beginning of the 1970s.

These days, there are markets for all tastes. In the London area, Petticoat Lane, Wembley, Chapel Street, Walthamstow and many more local markets sell new clothes produced by well-known designers at prices far below those in the shops. It is said that these often "fall off the back of a lorry", and there is not much doubt that this is sometimes true.

However, other people buy up stock which the wholesalers or the big stores cannot sell quickly, and then sell the clothes very cheaply. Or else they buy up cheap fabric and make up current fashions at very low prices. As Paul Jones, who runs a stall in different parts of the country on different days, explained, "Above all, we are aiming to keep prices down and to give the customers a high fashion look. We are not making clothes to last more than a season. Price is the most important thing."

"We watch what new fashion look is coming in from Paris and the London shows, and immediately get a copy made up. We're not trying to fool anyone that they are getting the same thing, but we do make only a 30% profit. That's in contrast to 100% or more in the shops, so as I said, the cost of our things is far, far lower." His stall rarely has a garment over £5.

Portobello Road remains one of the most varied markets. It still has one of the best selections of 1920s, 30s and 50s clothes, furs, embroidered kimonos, and old scarves. But there are also stalls selling very cheap Indian things, new jeans and shirts. At the top end of the road there are junk stalls where, if you look carefully, it is sometimes possible to pick up secondhand clothes for a few pence.

The Greenwich Antique Market concentrates on good examples of old clothes. Valerie Johns, who runs a stall there, searches all over the country for things which she herself would like to keep. She says that this is the best way of believing in what you are selling! Her stall is mostly stocked with Victoriana, 30s lingerie and old silk scarves.

The point about market shopping is that it is so varied. Prices can be anywhere from a handful of pence for something which, with a bit of initiative, can be turned into a good garment, through to huge amounts for antique clothes which are becoming rarer all the time and will certainly endure as collectors' items.