*Image above is from Etsy (found through loosepetals)
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 Seattle! 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 Seattle area} should an out-of-towner shop at? Which stores should be avoided? Please share! :)
The best J.Crew is at Pacific Place. Kusi and Lisa are the most customer focused Personal Stylists ever. I have top notch service there and the entire team at that store will track down any item I want, let me know about sales, events, remember my preferences. They have never let me down - they have found every hard to find item and searched all over for it, emailed me updates, etc. They work with you and are so helpful. I go out of my way to shop there even on weekends (I live on the Eastside so the other locations are more convenient). They are awesome!!!! University Village has a lot of great merchandise but I am lukewarm on the service. Lots of shoes and mens clothing. Bellevue had good sale section and the service is hit or miss. Some are good, some are not.
ReplyDeleteI agree that Lisa is a great PS and also agree on the service at UVillage. Aunie (sp?) at Bellevue Square is a great PS there!
DeleteThe advantage of going to UVillage or Bellevue Square is that you also have Madewell nearby.
Yes, Aunie is great there!
Deleteand then there is the factory outlet north of Seattle. I liked the downtown store but other than SA's one store seemed just like the other...funny how they all are kind of boring in decor. Carolyn from Vvancouver
ReplyDeleteI like the University Village store the best. Karlyn, a PS, and Larissa, the wedding specialist, are both wonderful. Not pushy at all, and honest with advice. That location is also great because there's a Madewell next door and lots of other good shopping in the center, especially home stores. The U.Village store has the largest sale section. The emphasis at U.Village is on casual clothes, though, so you have a better chance of seeing high-end items at the Bellevue square store. I've experienced the indifferent service there. Finally, the downtown store (Pacific Place) is okay, but it takes half the footprint it used to have and doesn't have a huge selection.
ReplyDeleteThe outlet at Quilceda is always so disappointing. Higher prices than regular merchandise on sale, poorer quality fabrics. I think everything in that mall looks a bit run down so people will think they're getting bargains. Only stop there if you happen to be passing by, or, dog forbid, you have an event at the casino/hotel. It's a long drive from Seattle and not worthwhile. Too bad. In the old days, before the separately produced factory line of clothes, there used to be some bargains.
I think the Seattle area is neglected a bit by J Crew. Only downtown gets cashmere. They downgraded the downtown store a while back - it used to be two stories and they consolidated it all into one. The downtown store does not have enough dressing rooms - on the weekends expect to wait. The Bellevue store looks big but they seem to have the least amount of merchandise. U Village feels cramped to me. U Village is the one handles bridal. They need a store at Alderwood Mall. I'm tired of always driving into King County to shop at JC. Unless you come from an area with no JC I think most out of towners would be disappointed. Our JCs are nothing to write home about.
ReplyDeleteI'm joining this topic a few years late. However, there IS a J Crew B&M store at Alderwood Mall. I shopped there last fall/winter (2014). Compared to what I've seen shopping at the Pac Pl, Bellevue and U Village stores, the Alderwood store is bigger, had much more merchandise and a larger sale section.
DeleteI recently visited the Pacific Place location on my last visit to Seattle. The only other J. Crew store I have to compare it to is the one here in Vegas, so here is how I felt about the PP Seattle store from just that one visit:
ReplyDelete- great guy selection! Seemed like triple what we have in Vegas
- like Tammy said, the SA are nice (the ones in Vegas are amazing, as well!)
- sale selection was very slim!! Hardly anything left
- love that they have shoes!
And...Go Mariners! :)
I live about an hour away from Seattle (if there is no traffic LOL) but I am an online shopper and never seem to make it to the B&M stores. I pop into Pacific Place four or five times a year if I have a business meeting in DT Seattle. I just have to add to the kudos for Lisa--I haven't used her as a PS but she is always very helpful when I'm in the store.
ReplyDeletePacific Place used to be in a much larger location in the same mall (must be three or four years now) and the "new" store seems very cramped and uncomfortable to me. It's hard to shop the sale section and one often experiences the dreaded "butt brush." As other posters have said, Bellevue is a larger and more comfortable store but seems to have less merchandise. I haven't been to UP in at least four years--parking there is such a CF I just avoid the place.
Bellevue layout is strange. It does always seem to have less but when they go to final sale, I can sometimes find more items on sale there. It is bizarre because I never see them Full Price.
DeleteI agree that Bellevue is the most spacious, but has the least selection. I like the service at PP, and that they have some of the "nicer" items like cashmere and shoes, but it is small. UVillage also feels small to me, but is fine. If I am shopping sale, I will probably go to PP or UVillage first (if it's shoes I'm looking for then definitely PP), then Bellevue last.
ReplyDeleteI used to live in the Philly area, and KOP was my go-to. It's my favorite store outside of Soho. Great staff, amazing selection, nice big store. Moving to Seattle has been a bit of a disappointment in terms of J.Crew; only 3 stores and none of them are really all that great. Still, I try to make the best of what's here and I have managed to find some good deals.
The outlet in Marysville isn't even really worth going unless you are up there anyway. Nothing special there. I have been to other J.Crew outlets before in PA and in SC, and they are much better than the one in Marysville.
J.Crew, if you are reading this (and we know you are :D), please show the Seattle area some love! We are in desperate need of a Collection store up here.
I agree. I found the outlet store in Orlando way better than the Marysville one.
DeleteAnd ladies, you haven't seen crammed until you come to the Vancouver store. :) The UVillage store is about twice the size in comparison!
Agree on all of your points.
DeleteI have to say that I am disappointed in J.Crew in Seattle(I have not been to the University store though). Pacific Place used to have the lovely two story store and now it's one story with considerably less merchandise. Very crowded and a huge disapointment.
ReplyDeleteMy favorite stores are OakBrook(IL), Tyson's Corner(VA), King of Prussia(PA). A big disclaimer though, I have not been to every store in the US, but there are a lot of don't bother going stores i.e. downtown Portland(OR).
The Bellevue store is a disappointment in both selection and service. With a couple exceptions noted above, the SAs are often snobby and inattentive, and I've been totally ignored a couple times, which has not been my experience at other J.Crews I've visited while on vacations. Most of the time there is a plethora of the tiny sizes and one size 12, especially in popular items. The better SAs I've dealt with are helpful in offering red phone ordering in those cases and are nice about honoring my teacher discount. They do seem to have a good selection when it comes to accessories and jewelry, and the sale section is a decent size. I'm primarily an online shopper and live far away; I would visit another location if it was more convenient. Southcenter Mall, perhaps?
ReplyDeleteI agree on all points.
DeleteHexicon - LOL at the parking at UVillage! You are so right! I only go there during the week when they first open. Otherwise, forget about it.
ReplyDeleteI'm all about the sale sections at J.Crew and Seattle's stores are nothing to write home about. The sale sections are always very tiny and the stores themselves I feel do not carry as much merchandise compared to other J.Crew's in other states.
ReplyDeleteI have been to many a J.Crew and for some reason the one's in North Carolina are the best! I am sure I am spoiled from being able to shop at their distribution center
s clearance store regularly and the nearby J.Crew in Asheville but I digress. I think the J.Crew at U. Village is the "best" here but not actually that great itself. Oh yes, and the clearance store at the Premium Outlets north of Seattle has a pretty nice selection as well.<3
I echo the comments about Lisa @ Pacific Place. She is great and has been there forever so is very knowledgeable, remembers faces/tastes, and is all around great!
ReplyDeleteI go to the UVillage store at least twice a month and don't think I recognize a single face from visit to visit. It might be that I usually have my kids with me and might be frazzled but I think the turnover is high. We always park in the garage and never have any issue finding parking.
As to the stores, I do find them both just ok. I prefer the downtown(and miss the two story store layout) but it is cramped. I tried to take my Bob stroller in there one time and it was comical. :)
The outlet store is a bit too far for me to get there more than once per year but I find it hit or miss. I think that's typical of any outlet store though.