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    Prada 75% Off Friends and Family

    I told you there would be another reduction and there is. Through the weekend all Prada boutiques are offering 75% off fall and winter merchandise (along with whatever they dug up from last spring.)

    The merchandise is going fast so you might want to put a jump on it. At the SoHo boutique there were plenty of lace bags, small shadow bags, bright colored nylon totes and other assorted cast offs.

    On the ready-to-wear racks there was a variety of lace getups, a few shadow dresses and a bunch of winter jackets. The best deal was a $20,000 sable coat that’s now $5,000. We know that’s a lot of bank, but it’s sable!

    Just an FYI to all the sales people out there: Just because a $4,000 mini-skirt is reduced to $1,000 does not make it a great deal. And furthermore, nobody –and I really mean NOBODY–cares how many clients purchased the skirt at full price. 

    Contact: Michel Hubner (SoHo Store) 212-334-8888

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    Zara Semi-Annual Sale

    Zara is well into their winter semi-annual sale. Everything from the winter season is now half-off. Coats and jackets that ranged from $89 to $129, are now, well, half of that. I can list more prices but that seems like a waste of space. Let’s put it this way, Zara in general is a great deal for affordable fashionable styles. Zara on sale is economically savvy.

    The sale has at least two more weeks. The one caveat, look your purchases over carefully. More than once I’ve heard stories about people coming home with damaged clothing unknowingly.

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    Manolo Sale Update

    We were in the neighborhood and passed through the Manolo sale, which is about as dry and boring as this post. Shoes range from $185 to $400 but most shoes are limited to 35s and 41s with a splattering of 37s. Yes, it’s day three of the sale but YAWN!

    The highlight of the sale were the pastel alligator shoes that were originally $4100 and are now $1500. A savings, yes. Worth it, no. If you’re in the neighborhood, take a walk through but by no means waste cab money on a sale as boring as this.

    Then again, maybe I’m just cranky because I don’t have enough feet for more shoes.

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    Scoop 75% Off

    We are coming to the end of a long sale season. Today we hear that Scoop has marked down their Fall/Winter merchandise to 75% off. Our spies say that there is still a large selection, which does not mean good things for this retailer.

    Rumors are that Scoop is being plagued with severe financial — a.k.a. bankruptcy–troubles. Say it ain’t so. I guess that’s what happens when you are too slow to markdown in a difficult economic season.

    Speaking of the difficult economy, my Facebook friend and fellow blogger, Andrew James of What is James Wearing?, is asking everyone to figuratively burn a bit of money in honor of the Chinese New Year and his very own stimulus package.

    I say, in difficult times– cash is king. If you’ve got it hold on to it. You never know when a great opportunity might present itself!

    Contact: Ed 212-535-5577 (Scoop Woman’s)
    Ranee 212-744-1836 (Scoop Men’s)

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    La Perla’s Final Markdown

    La Perla has been marking down their Fall/Winter collection since early December. I know, however, that a 30% markdown isn’t enough to entice shoppers like you and me. Well, this week, the markdown finally reached 60% off. This is what we fondly call, le grand final. Within the next 10 days all leftovers will be shipped away never to be seen on Madison Avenue again.

    Included in the sale are bras, panties, night wear and some bathing suits. The sale is also running online if you prefer shopping cyber-shopping. The selection though is alwasy much better in the store.

    Remember, gentlemen, Valentines Day is a bit more than two weeks away. Lingerie is always a great gift beacuase it’s as good for you as it is for her.

    Contact: Nefta 212-570-0050

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    Manolo Blahnik Sale

    Today starts the famous Manolo boutique sale. We don’t know the exact discount yet but in past seasons the discount has ranged from 50% to 75% off. The “boutique collection” and some alligator styles will be included in the sale this time around.

    The sale only runs for a week then the unwanted shoes are sent to the dreadful sample sale. Just a heads up, during the sale the store usually closes for restocking from 2:00 to 3:00pm. So keep that in mind while planning your war strategy.

    31 West 54th Street (b/w 5th and 6th)
    Monday to Friday 10:30 to 6:00
    Saturday 10:30 to 3:300

    Contact: 212-582-3007

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    Pressman Wants Barneys Back

    As rumors swirl that the Istithmar, the private equity firm from Dubai that owns Barneys, is looking to get out, we hear on VERY good authority that Gene Pressmen wants back in.

    The New York Times reports that Barneys would probably fetch $300 million to $400 million now, considerably less than the $942 million Istithmar paid to obtain the luxury goods retailer for the Japanese clotting conglomerate, Fast Retailing.

    Before Gene jumps back into the retail business that he– um– troubled. We thought it would be prudent to pass on some friendly words of advice.

    1. Customer Service: The backbone of a luxury business is service. Barneys has never been known for any-service. This would be a prime time to scoop up talented sales associates who have fallen on hard time at other luxury department stores.

    2. Technology: Your online inventory controls are horrible. Your system needs to be updates so that customers who purchase items online don’t get an email weeks later saying that the product they purchased is out of stock.

    3. Social Networking: Times have changed since you ran Barneys. These days customers don’t need to step one foot into a store or even be on the computer to shop. We suggest arming sales associates with camera equip Blackberries. An item comes in, it’s photographed, emailed to clients and poof sales are made. This works the other way too. Client sees a picture in a magazine, emails her sales associate and poof another sale is made.

    4. The Men’s Store: Barneys was founded on servicing men. This foundation has been lost over the years. We suggest going back to your roots. It worked then and it will work now.

    5. Learn From Past Mistakes: You’ve been through this before. Remember to keep your eye on the ball and nothing good ever comes from “chasing cool.” If you earn it, cool will find you.
    With these words we wish you luck in securing financing. In this environment getting money will be no easy feat, but the reward will be plentiful. Just take some time to look into the future of retailing. There’s a lot of promise you just need to have deep pockets and vision. 
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    Neiman Marcus 75% Off

    The current markdown at Neiman Marcus is about 65% off, which is no hot deal considering the Spring collections have arrived. However, until Jan. 25th the store and website are offering an additional 40% off for a total of about 75% off.

    There’s not much left to choose from but browsing from your computer seems to be a great use of wind-down-time or waste-time-at-work-time. What we find most amusing is that the Bergdorf site, which practically mirrors the Neiman’s site, does not have the additional 40% off markdown.

    For example, these two-piece lace up Prada losers were originally $1,800 but are now $810 on both the NM and Bergie sites. On the Neiman site, though there is an additional 40% off bringing the total price down to $486.

    The moral of this story is that these shoes are damn ugly and Bergodorfs may have more cache but the best deals are always found at Neiman Marcus.

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