If you’re a savvy shopper, you’ll never have to pay full price in this town again.
There’s a new kid on the discount designer shopping block. Nordstrom Rack, which opened in Union Square last month, is selling chic brand-name dresses for a fraction of their original cost. So how do the other high-end bargain stores stack up? We braved the crowds and scoured the racks to scope out the city’s top four off-price retailers.
Here’s what we found.
— additional reporting by Catherine Conte and Tracy Brock
LOEHMANN’S
101 Seventh Ave., 212-352-0856
Mon.-Sat., 9 a.m. to 9 p.m. and Sun., 11 a.m. to 7 p.m. Stock is refreshed every day, Wed. to Sat.
* Slogan: “The It store for designer fashion”
* Who shops here: Suburban housewives, recent college grads looking for their first work wardrobe and women hunting for DKNY, Michael Michael Kors and Kenneth Cole.
* Mess factor: The space is tight — racks are squeezed together in the four-floor store — and unless you have a couple of hours, the markdown section on the second floor isn’t worth it.
* Brands: This store boasts an amazing mix of seemingly untouched Marc by Marc Jacobs swim (current season), Giuseppe Zanotti sandals, David Lerner leggings ($50-$60), Helmut Lang (pants and tops are $100, jeans are $150), Tracy Reese frocks (the perfect little black dress was $100) and American Apparel dresses and shorts from $10 to $17. Take a trip to personal shopper Victoria Nielsen’s office (you’ll have to call the store and make an appointment), and she’ll unlock a room stocked with Dolce & Gabbana, Rebecca Minkoff neon, and studded bags (under $300) and Lanvin heels (last season’s shoes are $200). We hear Howard Stern’s wife, Beth, is a big fan and shops here almost every day via e-mail.
* Best score: Shoes, shoes, shoes! Shop by style — wedges, sandals, boots — from designers ranging from L.A.M.B. to Sigerson Morrison. Note: Log on to loehmanns.com for this week’s sale updates, as well as printable coupons.
* Weakest link: Purses. A multicolored neon Longchamp bag ($230 from $390) was the highlight, but older styles from D&G, Kenneth Cole and Valentino failed to impress.
* Customers dish: Berit Aller, 29, lives on the UES and ventures to Loehmann’s almost every day. She mostly goes for the sunglasses, “I love the accessories department,” she says. Shopper Catherine Arjune, 31, says she stops by Loehmann’s any time she needs something for a special occasion. “Whenever I need an outfit for a black-tie event or anything dressy, I come in,” she says. “I also really like Nordstrom Rack. They go hand in hand, really.”
CENTURY 21
22 Cortlandt St., 212-227-9092
Mon.-Wed. 7:45 a.m. to 9 p.m., Thurs. and Fri. 7:45 a.m. to 9:30 p.m., Sat. 10 a.m. to 9 p.m. and Sun. 11 a.m. to 8 p.m.
* Slogan: “Fashion worth fighting for”
* Who shops here: Tourists, people reporting for jury duty, stylists and savvy fashion plates.
* Mess factor: The shopping experience can be dizzying — thousands of items are squeezed together in spaces so tight, it’s often hard to get in between racks — but it’s worth the struggle.
* Brands: You name it, they stock it. Manolo Blahnik, Rachel Roy (dresses under $300), Stella McCartney, Cheap Monday ($20 jeans!), Current/Elliott, Rick Owens (items under $240) and bathing suits from Moschino ($40 for a bikini), DKNY and Zimmerman.
* Best score: A luxe beaded fringe Emporio Armani embellished dress ($270 from $1,695) was unbeatable. But the two-floor shoe department is loaded with fantastic finds, including beaded Sam Edelman sandals and flats ($40-$60), Alexander McQueen heels for $200, Tory Burch sandals for $80 and Manolo Blahnik, Lanvin and Giuseppe Zanotti sandals for less than $500. Note: Drinks aren’t allowed in the store, so skip the urge to pop in to the Starbucks across the street. They’ll make you throw away your coffee before you start shopping.
* Weakest link: Tourists. The store is rated in every guidebook in every language, which makes this store feel like Times Square times 100. And it’s especially rough during lunch hour. If you can swing it, hit the store before 9 a.m., since fresh stock hits the floor daily.
* Customers dish: “The purses here are amazing. Even if you are going out for the night and need a purse really quick, they have everything,” says Sima Patel, who says she stops into the store at least once a week. The 27-year-old Murray Hill resident says she barely shops anywhere else, because she thinks Century 21 has it all. Asari Okon, 24, is a loyalist too. She comes in from Brooklyn to shop, says the store’s shoe department is the best, and declares that she is “strictly Century 21.”
T.J. MAXX
620 Sixth Ave., 212-229-0875
Mon.-Sat., 9:30 a.m. to 9 p.m. and Sun., 10 a.m. to 8 p.m. Stock is refreshed every Wed.
* Slogan: “Where fashionistas become Maxxinistas”
* Who shops here: Moms and their stroller-bound kids, full-figured ladies shopping the stellar plus-size dress department and clued-in 20- and 30-somethings who know that the majority of the customers pass right over the dresses from New York staples like Catherine Malandrino, Nanette Lepore and Alice + Olivia.
* Mess factor: Crowded and disorganized, you’ll have to dig to find the buried treasures. But it’s often worth it.
* Brands: The women’s area is split into a “career” section, which is mostly Michael Michael Kors, Ralph Lauren, Calvin Klein and Tahari, a “casual” section that includes everything from Ed Hardy to Juice, and a “contemporary” section, which is by far the best-stocked department. A Jean Paul Gaultier black lace dress (originally $650) was marked down to $60, while a Ralph Lauren wedding dress cost $80 (down from $5,000). Dresses by Catherine Malandrino ($60 for a strapless lace knee-length number) and pieces from Nanette Lepore and Alice + Olivia were well represented and generally under $100.
* Best score: A camel-hued Mackage wool coat with leather accents marked down from $800 to $60. And shoppers looking for a designer purse for less than $200 could luck out with the store’s collections from BCBG, Michael Kors and Cynthia Rowley. The bags in the glass cases — like an oversize white Gucci tote with gold hardware ($859 from $3,000) — or the buttery yellow Elie Tahari ($289 from $600) are bigger investments, but the selection was well edited.
* Weakest link: Shoes! Sorted by size and displayed without boxes and no big brand names to speak of, this is the department to skip.
* Customers dish: “I got a really nice cashmere cardigan here that I wear with leggings all winter,” says 26-year-old Midtown resident Alexandra Sages. She says she stops by once a week and also likes to pop in to Loehmann’s, although she says T.J. Maxx is more consistent. Theresa Berisha says she checks out the store every couple of weeks for accessories. “I got the cutest scarves last summer to tie on my bags and to wear,” says the 21-year-old, also a Midtown resident. “I buy mostly bags and scarves here.”
NORDSTROM RACK
60 E. 14th St., 212-220-2080
Mon.-Sat. 9 a.m. to 10 p.m. and Sun., 11 a.m. to 7 p.m.
* Slogan: None.
* Who shops here: NYU girls and a fair number of tourists.
* Mess factor: Super-organized, with plenty of space for carts and large groups makes this store feel less like an off-price retailer and more like a regular department store.
* Brands: Casual favorites likes James Perse (shirts, $30-$40), Splendid and Elizabeth and James (blazers and casual jackets under $300) share space with Kate Spade, DVF, See by Chloe, Nanette Lepore and Rebecca Taylor. All the major trends are addressed — fringe bags, studded sandals, and denim cutoff shorts! — and shipped five to six days a week from Nordstrom stores, with many labels bought specifically for the discount location.
* Best score: Handbags. Purse junkies will swoon for the large Rebecca Minkoff selection (a steal at under $300), a gorgeous Treesje selection in crossbody and shoulder styles (under $200) plus killer numbers from BCBG and Kate Spade. The hyper-organized shoe department — sorted by size with all the pairs neatly placed in boxes — makes it easy to find your target. Note: The store will also ship directly to your home (standard shipping is $10), and has on-site tailoring ($13-$16 to get a dress taken in and $22 to hem your jeans).
* Weakest link: Fitting rooms. There are 20 of them, and it’s clearly not enough. During two trips to the brand-new store, we spotted a line that was more than 30 customers deep.
* Customers dish: “I love shoes. My favorite ones I bought here are these embellished gladiators,” says 20-year-old Long Island resident Jessica Gharemia, who visited the store twice during opening week. Jennifer Tashel, 24, just moved to Alphabet City from San Francisco and also stopped by the store twice during opening week. “I bought tons of C&C tanks,” she says.