And of course, Americans on average look like crap these days because of overly informal attire and the nation's relentless waddle toward hyper-obesity.
[WS:] I think it varies and coincides, ironically, with voting pattern. "Blue" areas, especially the cities, on average tend to dress better and look better (with few exceptions, e.g. Baltimore), whereas "red" areas (suburban and rural "Middle America") tend to look as you described.
As to the quality, I agree with you - there is very little schlock nowadays, concentrated primarily in low end "bargain" outlets like Family Dollar etc. Even Wal Mart tends to have decent quality clothes. I do not know if the same is true for women's clothing, but one can get good quality men's clothing really inexpensively. For example, a decent suit cost under $200 in an outlet (even though a similar item sells for five times as much in boutiques) - which is less in current (i.e. not adjusted for inflation!) dollars than a similar item would cost in the 1970 or 1980s.
Another point, clothing is much cheaper on this side of the pond. A garment that sells for, say, 70 quid at Harrods's can be bought for $30-50 here. With a strong Euro, Europeans come here for bargain hunting.
Wojtek