*Image above is from Paperless Post, found through NYC Recessonista's post
A big "thanks!" to GigiOfCa {of the delightful Gigi's Gone Shopping blog} who came up with a brilliant suggestion for a series of post: a city guide where JCAs can suggest which J.Crews to shop at.
This post will focus on Boston, Massachusetts! With so many stores in the area, it might be too much to visit them all. So if you are a local, or a knowledgeable tourist, please share what stores a fellow JCA has to visit!
Feel free to share other tidbits of advice. For example... What are your top three spots? Are there certain stores that should be avoided at certain times of the day/ week? Are there stores that have a better selection than others? Which stores have the best sale offerings?
Which J.Crew brick & mortar (B&M) stores {in the Boston area} should an out-of-towner shop at? Which stores should be avoided? Please share! :)
Thank you Alexis! Folks, I am heading to Boston on friday, so please, please feel free to provide good advice! It will be my first time in a B&M in almost a year! thanks!!!!!!
ReplyDeleteI don't live in Boston, but I've had great customer service at the Copley Place store every time I've been there!
ReplyDeleteThe Copley Place store is definitely the best location. The Chestnut Hill location is decent but the Atrium mall barely has any store left in it, so it's sort of a depressing place to shop. Further out of the city, I like the Natick store much better than Burlington - Burlington doesn't have much. Hope this helps!
ReplyDeleteThe best store actually located in Boston is at the Copley Mall in the Back Bay. Usually has a large sale selection. The stores in Natick and Chestnut Hill also have a great selection, and the Chestnut Hill store has a wedding department. Bottomline- if you are visiting Boston, skip the one in Cambridge and head to Copley.
ReplyDeleteDon't forget the Men's shop that's in Copley too!
ReplyDeleteYes, Copley is best. I've had some good luck at the Cambridgeside Galleria location as well, and you can get to both by public transportation (which is key for me).
ReplyDeleteCopley is the best spot, but can be very picked over (esp sale merch). Galleria Mall is a bigger location if you have the time to travel there.
ReplyDeleteI agree -- Copley is the best (at least, now that Chestnut Hill has gone downhill). The Copley SA Becky is a style icon. You know those crazy catalog pairings and layered outfits we think are fabulous but would never work in real life? Becky dresses that way and looks amazing every day -- and she's a terrific and enthusiastic SA to boot.
ReplyDeleteIs she the Asian one with glasses? I agree - chic! chic! chic!
DeleteI don't think I've ever seen her in glasses... but if she's super perky, probably the same gal.
DeleteI'm not from Boston, but I've had great luck finding sale gems at Copley, and the SAs are super nice there as well.
ReplyDeleteJealous of all of you Bostonians -- none of the stores out here are nearly as great!
I like the Copley location, as well as the store in hingham at derby streets (about 30 mins outside of Boston). The galleria location in Cambridge is ok, but I have found some great sale items there randomly. The jcrew in braintree at the south shore plaza (about 20 mins outside of boston) is probably my least favorite.
ReplyDeleteAgreed that Copley is the strongest of all locations mentioned. It gets the best selection of merchandise and has the most robust sale sections. Sad for us moms that there is no Crewcuts in Boston (have to schlep to Burlington).
ReplyDeleteI had an email exchange with Mickey a month or so ago about the lack of a B&M in Harvard Square (Cambridge). I find this to be an odd oversight, given that JC has stores in Princeton and New Haven and it is a prime market. A perfect location opened up last year in Harvard Square, but Anthro scooped it up. I told Mickey that the JC Galleria location really doesn't count as Cambridge (which he surely knows because his daughter goes to Harvard). He agrees.
JC has stores only in malls in Boston, which is an unusual strategy. Other retailers have street spots on Newbury Street, Harvard Sq., etc.
I would buy so much more (ugh!) if there was a store in a more accessible and classier location.
What did Mickey say about Harvard? I have frequently wondered the exact same thing about the lack of a J. Crew (and you're right, Galleria doesn't count as Cambridge!)
DeleteBoth Copley and Cambridgeside are OK for full priced merch but I find their sale sections abysmal. They just don't have much selection period and stuff gets picked over pretty quickly. I have to return a lot of stuff all the time and feel bad because I can never find anything to buy there. I have much better luck at the Natick collection store but I get out there only once every few years or so. Too far away!
ReplyDeleteCustomer service at both locations is exceptional. They are so friendly even though I am constantly coming by with a stack of returns (I wear petites - not available in store). No eye-rolling or comments or attitude whatsoever. Just cheerful and perky all the time and they don't pressure you to buy something else or exchange.
Thank you all so much! I am so excited to hit Copley!
ReplyDeleteI will be with my daughter and my son' girlfriend - may call ahead to see if Sarah works this weekend?
Copley Place in Boston is the best! I have been to all in the Boston area and I really feel like they have the best selection; especially since men's moved across the way thus making more room for a big shoe section and sale section. I always find great sale shoes there. Additionally the service there really puts the suburban stores like Peabody and Burlington to shame. You can almost always find a personal shopper there to help--AJ and Becky are particularly great. And even the regular sales associates are great with outfit quandaries.
ReplyDeleteI'm from Rhode Island, so i do the bulk of my shopping at the Providence location, which is awesome. Pretty large store, friendly sa's, good sale section. And for all of u moms, it has crewcuts! Only about an hour away from Boston...Whenever i'm in Boston however, i always go to the Copley location. Great selection & customer service. Like a couple of people said, the sale section can be a bit picked over, but that's because it's the most popular location. I wish it were on Newbury street, though. The Natick store is also great too, but I've only been there a couple of times.
ReplyDeleteI work in Natick a couple of miles from the mall, but I prefer the JC store in Providence. I was there tonight and their jewelry selection is outstanding. The only thing I didn't like about the Providence store was the sale section (it was almost non-existent).
DeleteI'm from Rhode Island, so i do the bulk of my shopping at the Providence location, which is awesome. Pretty large store, friendly sa's, good sale section. And for all of u moms, it has crewcuts! Only about an hour away from Boston...Whenever i'm in Boston however, i always go to the Copley location. Great selection & customer service. Like a couple of people said, the sale section can be a bit picked over, but that's because it's the most popular location. I wish it were on Newbury street, though. The Natick store is also great too, but I've only been there a couple of times.
ReplyDeleteAgreed that Copley is the best. It's the biggest J.Crew outside of New York, so they always have a huge stock of products including specialty collection items. They also carry shoes and lots of bags. For everyone that said they should have a Newbury Street location- Madewell is located on Newbury Street (sister store) and while it's small, they usually have a large sale section on the second floor. I know this is just about J.Crew stores but I figured most J.Crew shoppers also enjoy Madewell!
ReplyDeleteI couldn't reply to the right comment but I have a total girl crush on Becky at Copley! Her dress sense is amazing!!
ReplyDeleteAgreed that Copley is probably the best. Burlington's selection always disappoints (and the traffic is terrible getting out there, which makes it doubly not worth it). Galleria is in the middle, though I did deal with a snippy SA there once, so I still prefer Copley.
ReplyDeleteFurther afield in Braintree or Hyannis, you can often find older items languishing that have already sold out in the Boston stores - for instance, I picked up a Gondola skirt in Hyannis for $29.99 weeks after it was gone everywhere else. Their overall selections are pretty straightforward, though.
Haven't been to Natick yet - will have to try!
Hanover NH is awesome right near Dartmouth college. Charming atmosphere as well.
ReplyDeleteThe J.Crew store in the Northshore Mall in Peabody is pretty quiet, and well stocked with a men's shop and crewcuts. The sale section varies in size and location, but usually offers decent items. The salespeople are friendly and there are always open dressing rooms.
ReplyDeleteThe outlet store in Kittery, Maine is one of the first stores you'll see as you enter the row of stores from Route 95. It's a large store with a great selection of men's and children's clothing. It can be busy on weekends, but not at 10:00am on a weekday!
Have fun shopping!
I live in downtown Boston, but I'm from southern Maine and I agree that the factory store in Kittery, Maine is the best one around. It's located on Rt 1, off I95, about an hour north of Boston. It's a good size store, with men's and Crewcuts, and a decent sale section. They sell shoes, jewelry, handbags and cashmere as well. Definitely worth checking out if you're in the area. And the coast of Maine is beautiful!
ReplyDeleteAs far as the J.Crew retail stores in Boston are concerned - if you're looking for a large selection of both full price merch and sale, Copley is the place to go. CambridgeSide is right across the river from where I live, so that is my go-to store. It's smaller and has less merch, but the SAs and managers are really helpful and friendly and never look at me weirdly when I have a bag full of returns.
The only other retail location worth visiting might be at The Natick Mall in Natick, MA. The mall in general is large and well taken care of, with a mix of high and low end retail stores. It's about 35 min west of Boston.
The staff at the new jcrew in lynnfield, ma are fabulous. Smaller variety but this outside pavilion is really nice for a change!
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