Sample sales are possibly the greatest sales there are in the city. Why? You can score designer pieces at a fraction of the price.
This Friday and Saturday you can check out TOME, Chadwick Bell, and Nomia women’s wear for up to 80% off their original retail prices, with items starting at just $50. Their most exciting advertised deals available at the sample sale are a beautiful silk Georgette cross back dress marked down to $395 from $875 and a heavy wool felt cape going for $595 as opposed to the original retail price of $1,475. If any of these great designers’ products has ever caught your eye, you won’t want to miss this opportunity.
If you’ve never gone to a sample sale before, there are a few things you need to know. They can definitely be overwhelming to the average shopper.
Here are some tips for shopping this weekend’s sale:
- Do not expect every item to be 80% off. While most items will have a tremendous discount, there will still be a lot that are close to retail. The designers are typically trying to sell their excess inventory, and will not tag items at their lowest possible price. To know if you’re getting a true steal, check the tag. If the sample costs approximately 50% less than the original retail price, then you are getting a great deal. If not, well it’s definitely still a sale, just not at the most wallet friendly price.
- Try to bargain for a better price by looking for possible defects or flaws that you can fix up easily. Check out the zipper, seams, buttons, and any decorative details to see if they’re loose or flimsy. Odds are they’ll take off a few more dollars if you’re willing to buy it despite a loose button. By looking over everything you can save yourself a lot of money by finding things it takes a dollar or two to fix at home.
- Try on everything before you buy it. More often than not these items have been cut for a specific model’s body or for a certain style. Since you can’t return items purchased at a sample sale, make sure it fits you as perfectly as the person as it was made for. While alterations and other quick fixes can solve problems like sleeve or pant length, they can’t entirely change the item. Before buying also consider the costs of alterations. If you’re looking at $50 or so in alterations, make sure you’re getting a true deal on the sample item.
- Go to the sale at the right time. At the beginning almost nothing will be sold for anything lower than it is tagged at. Shoppers will still be getting great deals, but they won’t be as big as the deals towards the end of the sale. If you wait until the last few hours of the last day, you can often get up to an additional 20% off your purchase. At this point, they see that what is still there may not sell if they don’t lower the price.
With those tips in mind, make your way over to the sale this Friday and Saturday.
The TOME, Chadwick Bell, and Nomia sample sale is taking place from 10 am to 7 pm at 150 West 25th Street between 6th and 7th Avenues, Suite 502 in New York, NY.