Answer:
The original cost of the dress was $53
Step-by-step explanation:
To find the answer, we can first add back the 1.35 tax to the final cost of 23.85. This is equal to 25.2
This value is 45% of the original cost, so to find the original cost, we can use a simple rule of three:
$23.85 45%
x 100%
100 x 23.85 / 45 = $53
We can prove this answer by multiplying the resulting value for the corresponding percentage:
$53 x 45% = $23.85