Question: Some years ago, particularly before the 1990s, there way a saying in Europe that (paraphrased) you can sell your blue jeans in every part of Eastern Europe and literally live like a king for a week.

Naturally things have changed since then. But is it still possible to do so in any part of Europe?

Answer: 
Let's take this one step at a time.

1. First you must own jeans. Here's your problem - you'll want them to be worth a bit. You can buy jeans for anything from $5 to a few hundred dollars if you really want to in western clothing stores. Let's say an expensive pair - US$200, and I assure you I've never spent that much on a pair of jeans.
2. Now let's assume you could even sell them for the original purchase price - anywhere. ([Take a look at "Global Poverty and the Cost of a Pair of Jeans](http://www.npr.org/blogs/money/2010/03/how_much_does_a_pair_of_jeans.html)). So you've sold your jeans and have the local equivalent of US$200 in cash.
3. Your first problem is the Euro. Even what used to be cheapish countries (Estonia) have seen increases in prices since the arrival of the Euro.
4. Secondly is finding accommodation 'fit for a king'. I'm not terribly experienced in this, tending to use hostels, but let's say we take my best bargain, which was in Rzeszow, Poland, where for the equivalent of £20 ($30) we had the 2 bedroom suite on the top floor of a hotel for a night, on the main square of the town. To this day I have no idea how this happened, and it included breakfast.
5. So now you've got accommodation, although at $30 \* 7, you've just barely got your accommodation if they give you a slight discount for a weekly rate. But hey, that's pretty good. And you've got breakfast, even if it was toast and fruit :)

So in a way, you can still do pretty well sometimes - not spending much doesn't mean you have to stay in hostels all the time. And with travel deals available on [travelzoo](https://www.travelzoo.com/) or other sites, you can sometimes land a stunning resort spot on the beach for a week in Turkey for a similar price. It just requires looking around, and of course, a lot of luck.
It used to be the thing to travel to New York for the weekend and come back with a suitcase full of Levi's (nonchalantly avoiding the red channel).

Looking at Levi US and EU\_GB sites, I see the prices for the classic 501 is from $44 or £70 ($112). However, mid-nineties saw the emergence of a large grey market. I guess you only pay the high prices to buy from posh shops. If you are going to try to sell jeans from a suitcase in a pub, you'll have to significantly undercut the legitimate greymarket, and you'll presumably need to pay duty on the imports (don't break the law!).

I understand that in the US Levis are considered an everyday, working brand. In the UK they are considered a fashion brand, so they can command higher prices, and someone has to pay for the advertising. 

[I only wear sensible trousers from M&S.]