In Shopping for the Real You I strongly advocate buying the best quality clothing you can afford. That’s because, generally, when you pay a little extra you’re going to get a better quality fabric, cut, or construction. But everybody – and I mean everybody – loves a bargain. If you know how to play it right you can usually get that higher quality item for a better price. Here are some keys to buying quality at a bargain.
1) First of all, if you shop frequently at a particular retailer and for a specific designer, get to know a salesperson in that department. She – or he – will alert you when your favorite designer items are coming on sale.
2) Some high end department stores (Saks, Neiman’s, Barney’s and Nordstrom… Bergdorf’s just won’t go there) each have their own discount sites: Barney’s Warehouse; Hautelook: (Online version of Nordstrom’s Rack); Last call: (Neiman’s online outlet); and Saksoff5th.
2) If you order from an online retail store you are pretty much guaranteed to be their new best friend. Your inbox will be flooded daily with updates on their latest sales. And they all have a “sale” page on their website. Also, There are online outlets for specific labels, e.g., Coach, Tommy Hilfiger, J. Crew. When you do a search on the name of your favorite retailer just add “outlet.” You’ll likely get a listing of their bricks and mortar outlet stores but if they have an online one, that version will show up too.
3) If you know exactly the designer and item that you want The Find scans more than 500,000 retailers, finds it, and lists all available coupon codes applicable. Once you do find it, an app called Shoptagr keeps tabs of that item and lets you know when it goes on sale.
4) Finally, there are several outlet “collection” websites that partner with design houses or retailers who want to unload overstock merchandise. But heads up: just as with bricks and mortar outlets, many of these items are not regular merchandise on sale but cheaper, schlock-y stuff manufactured just for these websites. But if you have the time – and the patience – to sort through the weeds you can find some real gems.
Here’s my somewhat long “short list” of several of these sites.
6pm.com: Zappo’s answer to department store outlets. Some good deals here, including an epic amount of jeans.
Bluefly: carries items from over 40 higher-end (and some mid-level) designers but unless you want a pre-owned handbag, you won’t find any Chanel…sigh (anyone out there know of a Chanel outlet?)
Century 21: (Not the realtor…) From pricier (but limited number) designer things to super cheap.
Gilt: The granddaddy of the genre: from very high end to affordable.
Ideel: Limited time sales of designer (and mid-level overstock) items.
Lyst: Mostly designer items at full price but has a sale page that re-directs you to other sites for high-end sale items.
My Habit: Amazon’s discount warehouse limited time sales. Some things they’re practically giving away, (and you can tell why) and some designer.
Ruelala: High quality name brands and designer items, limited amounts.
Shopstyle: Curated groups of merchandise plus lists of current deals at other sites.
The Outnet: (My personal downfall) heavily discounted designer and in-house brand. This is net-a-porter’s discount wing.
Yoox: As many full-price as discounted (40-70%) designer items. I love that they show available sizes right on the thumbnail images.
Happy shopping! And if you’re looking for a great gift item for a friend who loves fashion, drop a copy of Shopping for the Real You under the Christmas tree…or Hanukkah bush…or whatever!
Andrea’s books and new video series:
