As mentioned in the August 12th "J.Crew Event: you're invited..." post, J.Crew hosted a special event in stores across the country. What made this event a bit more exciting was the promise of the following:Be one of the first to spend $150 or more and receive an exclusive gift from our very own Jenna Lyons.Usually the gift is pretty luxurious, like the Pearl-Cluster Necklace (Item 14503; $125.00) & the Jenna Bracelet (Item 98337; $75.00). Well, in the cases of the NYC stores where Jenna Lyons was actually present for the event. (Refer to the "J.Crew Holiday Collection In NYC with Jenna Lyons" post as an example.)
Unfortunately, the gift for JCAs this time around was not as impressive- the Reusable Canvas Tote (Item 24934; $10.00).
"Thanks!" to the following JCAs who shared their stories of the event.
- Elise (in this post) shares: "Sadly disapointed with the Jenna Lyons "hand picked" gift wih a $150 purchase last evening. Seriously - the $10 canvas bag that they have already sent some J.Crew fans via mail as free token gift. WTF???"
- Girlification of Jules (in this post) shares: "Oooof. OT but I went to the event at the Houston Galleria - the "exclusive handpicked gift from Jenna Lyons" was one of the canvas totes. Which is a $10 item. Tomorrow starts Tax Free weekend in Texas. Tax on $150 (minimum to get the gift) is $12.38."
I also attended this event and their gift to customers was the Ribbon Raindrop Necklace (Item 25534; $45.00, now $19.99). This is the same necklace that languished in stores for weeks at the low price of $14.99 (before 30% off!)It's clear that all the gifts for this event were the less expensive, want to move from inventory, kind. I doubt that Jenna hand selected these gifts (but who knows?) Which is disappointing, only because the previous gifts were so f-a-n-t-a-s-t-i-c. I thought that they would be fantastic this time around too.
Did you attend the Special Collection event last Thursday? Did you get the same gifts from your local J.Crew store? If so, please share! :)
That's definitely a disappointment compared to previous gifts. I'm going to be bitchy/curmudgeonly/a broken record, but if they just put that gift $ into better quality garments... There I go, showing my age - expecting clothes to last a week! *takes Geritol*
ReplyDeleteOT, but new items have been added to FS purgatory:
Gusto cami
Betsy dot cami (this was promo before, now it's final)
Katzy cami
Glitz stud cami
Novo stripe bomber blouse
Merino shirred cardigan
Merino coquette sweater
Stretch double-serge pencil skirt (all colors)
I'm sure there are more, but this is what stuck out right away.
Ummm...the gift is free...I never complain if something is free...but then again I am a glass 1/2 full type of person....I got super excited when I got my canvas tote in the mail or any gift for that matter. Free=happy no matter what. I can always pass it on to a neighbor or friend and bring some cheer to their day if not something I will use.
ReplyDeleteMy word verification: upside:)
Silver Lining: Thanks for the FS list! :)
ReplyDeleteGenny: I agree that a gift is always appreciated. :) To clear up why my cup was half empty... I went out of my way to attend this event because I was under the impression (admittedly, at my own fault) that the gift was going to be great. There was only one store in my area that was offering it and so I drove in rush hour traffic to make it. The 2.5 hour total drive- just for this one stop/event- was not worth it in my opinion. Now, had the gift been sent to my home, or offered while I regularly shop, I would have been thrilled. But because I made such an effort (again, at my own fault), I didn't feel the trade off was there. :)
I went to mine (I have a post coming up about it) and was disappointed in the "free gift" but I got some things anyway. It was a bit of a teaser, but I figure I can use it for groceries!
ReplyDeletesub :)
ReplyDeleteThey should have offered at least 20% off purchases more than $120 or so.
ReplyDeleteI would have been disappointed if I received the canvas tote instead of some really nice gifts what others have gotten in NY.
JC can't get rid of some final sale items so they "gift" it to their customers. Ridiculous.
Genny, that is one of the things that made me so disappointed.
ReplyDeleteCuz it made me feel like a jerk for getting a "gift" and not liking it.
Even though when I got the same "gift" in the mailbox as a total surprise, I loved it!
Then I realized that they were both "promotions" and neither was a "handpicked gift from our very own Jenna Lyons" and it made me feel even worse cuz then I felt like a chump.
Maybe the gift was not so "great" this time b/c JCrew is not doing so well in the economic climate??? Just a thought. Maybe their sales numbers will be down this next quarter??? However, they just gave expensive peaches to their big time spenders who then again what do I know? :) he he I do know I have cut WAY BACK on my spending at JCrew. Still love them but they are not loving me back. I just went through my old fall items and love them so much I am happy not to purchase a current item I am just luke warm about....
ReplyDeleteHello! I've been a big fan of this blog for a few months, but never felt urged to write. (I figured everyone was covering the bases). This post however, has prompted me to comment.
ReplyDeleteLast week I attended the event hosted by my local B&M (Aventura) and had even RSVP'ed the weekend before. I even dragged my hubby to the "event", because I figured I could pick up a shirt or maybe a jacket for him.
Well, when I arrived NOTHING was happening. No event, no flurry of fellow JCAs shopping, no excitement from the SAs, nothing! When I approached one of the SAs and asked her about the event and the new arrivals, she quietly told me it was just the same ol' thing and that the new stuff was what was on the floor.
This being my first time back at the B&M since coming back from a long trip, all she said was "well, then this would be an event for you!". :-S
No gifts, nothing special, nothing new. Only thing was hubby remarked on how expensive everything seemed to be in comparison to the last time he'd been to the store.
So, I am glad for the ones who actually attended an actual event, but I felt totally duped and it made me question my sanity, which in turn is now making me question my loyalty to J.Crew. (85% of my closet belongs to them and I am starting to re-think if they should occupy such a huge amount of my already limited space).
Thanks Alexis for creating a space to share, vent, and do a little vicarious shopping through others as well.
Saori, it was the exact same thing at the Seattle event. I was sort of shocked and felt like I had wasted my time. I couldn't believe that there wasn't even *special* merchandise put out for a *special* shopping event.
ReplyDeletesaori,
ReplyDeleteMy hubby used to buy me whole outfits from JCrew for my birthday and Christmas. He stopped a couple of years ago. He too remarked on how expensive JCrew is now and he no longer buys much men's wear from them as well. Both of us have cut back or JC spending. The most he has bought in the last 10 months is two outlet tees and a shirt from the regular store! And that is truly amazing!
I wasn't able to make it to the store, for I was at a meeting at my church. Now I am glad I didn't make the extra effort. The J Crew store where I live is hard to get to due to traffic and lack of parking. It also has a very poor selection in my size, so I prefer to shop from the catalog.
ReplyDeleteThis comment has been removed by the author.
ReplyDeleteAfter reading my initial comment regarding the "event" I see that I came across as ungrateful. However, I was upset, as like many of the other readers I made a special trip to my B&M store. I had originally decided when I got the beautiful invitation that there really was not that much that I was interested in and that I was not going to attend. However, I happened to pass through the store the weekend before the event and my trusted SA that I always, always, always have help me convinced me to come in because the gifts are "always really nice" - so I hauled out myself away from my desk on time and sped through traffic to come to my store where I found a paltry 3 items that did actually total over the $150 and checked out. Now I am not sure if they were embarassed about handing out these "hand picked" gifts but I had to actually ask for mine as my usual go to girl was not there. So that is why I am disappointed. Special trip for what I thought was going to be a special gift. Oh well - live and learn.
ReplyDelete