Wednesday, April 22, 2015

Weekly Share: Other JCrew-like Retailers

This is the weekly "Other JCrew-like Retailers" post (similar to the "Off On A Tangent" posts), where we can share our finds from other retailers that have offerings similar to J.Crew (like Anthropologie, LE Canvas, Gap, BR, Talbots, Ann Taylor, and the like.)

If you have recently encountered items that are similar to J.Crew, maybe you might be willing to share that information with us in this post.

Please feel free to share your story on almost any topic— including experiences with certain merchandise pieces, promotions/ offers, in-store visits, transactions with store associates, etc.

21 comments:

  1. Target/Lilly Pulitzer. I have nothing to say about this because there was not one thing left when I walked into the store at opening time after the line of people was in. I was only mildly curious about it so I didn't go earlier to be in the line, and I didn't want to get involved in a stampede, which is exactly what I witnessed in the store. Women brought their husbands to push and guard the carts (or maybe to check out separately, if Target put limits on quantity), and people had their older children along too. It was madness. It was all gone in a few minutes lol. So accessible!

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    1. Even if I could have gone I would not. Target pulled a real fast on up in Canada they don't deserve our business. The Lilly P prove they have no principals.

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    2. I wouldn't be happy about that either.

      The same mayhem happened with Missoni that happened with Lilly. If Target changed anything to prevent the madness, it didn't work. There was just not nearly enough stock and that is annoying, they have to know it. Either provide more of what they know will be a hot product line or don't carry it if Lilly or Missoni or whoever won't allow it. They had to know this would happen, and it did.

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    3. I was about the 8th person in line at my local Target Sunday morning. Could not believe the tiny quantity of Lilly product available for sale. Two mug sets, two plate sets, two bowl sets, two baskets. Two SMALL racks of clothing for women. Never saw the accessories; a Target employee was on a ladder putting up the sign over accessories and said she may as well just take it down because there was nothing left. Completely appalled at the way Target promoted the heck out of Lilly Pulitzer and then had NOTHING to offer shoppers past 8:05 a.m. I won't even get started about the website; the debacle has been well documented!

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    4. shopalot, the signage was completely unnecessary. I had to go back in next day for something and the signs were all still up. Lilly Pulitzer signs on clothing racks filled with non-Lilly merchandise.

      I could see some of the prints and the larger stuff by looking at peoples' carts, but you can't even do that without the cart's owner giving you a suspicious look like you're going to take something out of it lol. I just can't believe Target did this again.

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    5. I was really disappointed at how quickly it was gone. So annoying.

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    6. I also truly don't believe the insane hype, either. I get that the collaborations are less $$, but for Missoni and some of the other really high-end designers, its a considerable difference. But Lilly Pulitzer is not that expensive. Instead of buying up everything at Target, why not save for one awesome Lilly Pulitzer dress or tunic.

      None of it is my style anyway, so I could care less, but it was odd to see the completely empty racks by mid-morning on Sunday (I was there to get paper towels!)

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    7. I'm not much of a Lilly fan but I was interested in one of the clutch bags and some stuff for my toddler. I was on vacation and not near a store but I got on the website several times and in the (very) early morning hours and it was either down or super slow. And then later in the morning everything was gone. If you look on ebay their are over 41,000 Lilly+Target items (yes, you read that right). I'm definitely not buying any of the stuff there. It really was poorly done. Especially, like shopalot said, with all the promoting they did.

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    8. I have been a Lilly fan for a long time but wasn't really interested in any of the clothing. I've got plenty of the real thing. What I really wanted was the house stuff. Was so very fortunate that I got exactly what I wanted. While waiting in line, I went over my list and told myself not to go crazy. So funny that of course there was no opportunity to go crazy because everything was gone in less than 2 minutes. I didn't stick around to wait for castoffs (if there were any). I was in and out in less than 10 minutes. I did get a lot of odd looks as I leaving. There were people there for toilet paper and toothpaste and they could not figure out why I was dancing out of the store. :)

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    9. I admit I shopped Lilly. Had better luck online but did invest a couple hours in the EARLY morning. Also went to the store at opening. Our areas busiest Target had 4 pillows, 2 umbrellas, no dishes...how much ebay merchandise will be returned before the 14 day limit is reached?

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    10. I really wanted the towels and a makeup bag. Oh well.

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    11. I wasn't able to get onto the website but did wait outside my local Target. The offerings were ok - no jewelry or swim suits, which was a big bummer for me. I was able to get a couple of scarves, a maxi dress, and a pair of the palazzo plants. I had hoped to get a shift dress but they only had one and it wasn't the one I wanted - like someone else said, I will probably just get a real Lilly dress instead… I strongly agree they should have had more merchandise considering all the promotions. I saw a commercial on TV for it yesterday and couldn't believe they would have even planned to air it; they knew everything would sellout immediately.

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    12. Last week I went to our local Lilly store and just shopped their sale rack. At 70% off, things were not far off the Target prices - a pure silk blouse for $55 made me very happy. We don't have Target anymore, and even if we did the Lilly collection would likely not have been in our stores. Had the feeling it was going to be mayhem, I remember the Missoni debacle.

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  2. Banana Republic is having a special card members (BR/GAP/ON) 40% off regular items with no exclusions. This rarely happens. I know there has been some mention of Marissa Webb's influence, so may be worth checking out. I got a few dresses: I already have the trapeze dress in black and love it, so am trying the silver, which thus far has been excluded from all promos. Also am trying the all cotton embroidered racerback shift, and the all linen white patio dress, as well as a couple of silver bags. BRs are everywhere, so if some or all don't work, returns are so easy...

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    1. Should add that the code is BRCARDTHX, and promo is only for today.

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    2. I've read good things about BR latest, but when I went to check it out I didn't see anything I loved. I didn't try anything on, so maybe the cuts were good, but nothing inspired me to bother with the dressing room. Maybe my BR was out of some things or didn't get all of the latest.

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    3. Cate, I'm with you. I cannot find anything to purchase at BR, and I'm trying because I have quite a bit of rewards $$ to spend. The new rollouts do nothing for me. I guess the current shapes/styles are just not for me. I think my rewards money will be going to Gap for pajamas and undies!

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    4. It's true, stuff that is worth a try on are few and far between. First I have to say that JC pants and denim don't fit me well. From BR, I've tried and like the new premium denim -- I like my denim stretchy and soft and the ones I've bought are. I also like the roll up city chino. Both of these fit TTS. The black floral midi skirt is very pretty. Made of a cotton/silk blend, but unfortunately lined in poly. This runs VERY small at the waist -- I went two sizes up. I have the fold over clutch in blush, which appears to be sold out; they now have this in silver, which I purchased online today. It looks like a pretty bright silver but I love metallic leather. This is a great clutch, large but not overwhelming. And I personally love the trapeze dresses, although I know they are not for everyone. They ran TTS for me, although reviews suggest that they run large.

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    5. shopalot, don't forget you can use your rewards at Athleta, too. That's where I end up spending most of mine.

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    6. Cate, I always forget about Athleta. Thank you for the reminder!

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  3. Recently got a fabulous dark denim "modern pencil" skirt from Boden - one size from my regular J. Crew pencil skirt size. It is fully lined and has a nice stretch to the fabric - very comfortable. Regular price is $88 but I shopped during a 15% sale. Boden also has free shipping and returns on orders over $49, J. Crew could take a lesson there.
    http://www.bodenusa.com/en-US/Womens-Skirts/Pencil/WG588-DEN/Womens-Denim-Modern-Pencil.html

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Dear J.Crew Aficionadas & Aficionados: Please feel free (and encouraged) to share your thoughts and opinions. :) However, please note that this is still a personal blog. So comments that are considered inappropriate (e.g. obscene, racist, homophobic, personal attacks, rude, and just plain mean) will be removed.

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