SAMPLE CIRCUIT: Last Minute Sale Surprises With Hugo Boss, Helmut Lang, Marc Jacobs & More

The Sample Sale schedule may have lightened up a bit for the last week before Christmas, but it is not on a Winter break just yet. Some heavy hitters will be making extra appearances to make the most of last minute Holiday shopping.

Last week's surprise LUCIANO BARBERA sale is scheduled to continue through Thursday with some very deep discounts on luxurious Italian menswear. Our visit last week found mostly warm weather offerings and a literal heap of sumptuous neckties for $25 each. We don't know how much is left at this point, but if you have always thought that Barbera was hopelessly unaffordable, there might be a Holiday surprise for you at Rockefeller Center if you act fast.
If it looked like MARC JACOBS was skipping the sale schedule this season, you might be relieved to see that he just pushed his sale back a few weeks from when we all used to expect it. Starting on Tuesday the 18th, he'll take over 260SampleSale's Greene Street location with all of his collections. Men's collections as well as the Marc by Marc Jacobs labels are promised even though they have been out of production for a few seasons by now. The main label should offer fresher merchandise. As usual, the sale will run through Sunday.
Walk one block west to find HELMUT LANG's seasonal blowout. While the label seems to be without much of a creative direction lately, it seems to have retreated into denim basics and signature looks closely linked to its namesake designer which also happen to be worthy additions to anyone's wardrobe.
Uptown at 260 Fifth Avenue, beauty buffs will be lining up for a cosmetics extravaganza featuring TOCCA fragrances, ARTÍS brushes, STILA makeup and DR.JART+ treatment products.
If you can wait until Wednesday, there is one more menswear for anyone looking for a wardrobe refresh. HUGO BOSS will be holding a special Holiday Sale at Soiffer Haskin through Sunday. If the usual pattern holds, you will find savings of up to 70% off with possible further reductions toward the end of the sale.

That should be enough shopping for anyone as we head towards the end of the year. We will be keeping an eye out, though for the inevitable sample sales that present themselves for those who don't feel like braving the post-Christmas madness elsewhere. Keep an eye on our SALE ROLL sidebar at left for times and locations as well as late breaking events.

SAMPLE CIRCUIT: Pre-Holiday Blowouts Starring Marc Jacobs, Bulgari, Anna Sui, Gucci, Gant, Elizabeth And James & More

It's a busy Sample Sale week we're having before a brief lull for Thanksgiving. After that, we will be fully immersed in Holiday Shopping, but in the meantime, this is an excellent week to get some pre-Holiday shopping done for those who like to plan ahead.

Let's start with he heavy hitters. MARC JACOBS is back, and though his brand has shed a bit of clout among the city's tastemakers, it still remains a popular label, and its new repositioning as a single collection somewhere between "Designer" and "Upper Contemporary" means that most of the offerings should be somewhat more affordable than they have been in seasons past. The sale starts on Wednesday the 15th, and will run through Sunday the 19th.

One of Jacobs' fellow 90s superstars, ANNA SUI is also having a sample sale this week in the garment district. Starting on Monday, the sale will end this Friday the 17th and include an abundance of her vibrant, vintage-inspired wares as well as many one-of-a-kind runway samples and other items.

Looking for international luxury mega-brands? None other than GUCCI, whose sample sales are usually private, is holding a Jewelry and Watch sale at the Metropolitan Pavilion on Thursday and Friday, and excellent opportunity to find some extra special gifts.

Those hunting for even more opulent baubles will have to hold out until Saturday when the four-day BVLGARI sale begins at Soiffer Haskin through Tuesday. Look for precision watches, leather goods, fragrances and, of course, precious jewelry featuring diamonds and multicolored gemstones.

While it technically starts next week, writing instrument enthusiasts will not want to miss the MONTBLANC sale in NoMad from Monday through Wednesday just before Thanksgiving. Famous for those pens, shoppers will find watches, jewelry and accessories as well.

The Olsen sisters held their sample sale for The Row a few weeks ago, and now its time for their more affordable collection, ELIZABETH and JAMES to take the spotlight at the Chelsea Market starting tomorrow the 15th through Sunday the 19th. Originally a sporty contemporary line, the collection has grown up along with its owners, and those who remember it as a casual separates collection should find much more sophisticated looks at this week's sale.

Another seasonal highlight, the GANT sample sale started an extended residency today in SoHo. It will be running for over a solid week until the day before Thanksgiving. That's a long time for a lot of merchandise to unload. While this sale has evolved over the seasons as the label has, its current form features an abundance of classic mens clothing comprised almost entirely of samples, so shoppers who fall outside that arrow size range might need to satisfy themselves with a small offering of accessories. Sample sized gentlemen, however can have a field day there through the 22nd.

Longtime downtown designer NILI LOTAN is enjoying a career boost at the moment, which makes it a perfect time to check out her sale starting on Thursday at her Tribeca headquarters. Look for deep savings on her luxurious sportswearthrouogh Saturday the 18th.

Finally, sneaker fans wait all season to pounce at THE NEWS Showroom sale in SoHo which starts on Thursday. The early birds get the best pick of the minimalist but luxurious COMMON PROJECTS sneakers they always have, but shoppers will also show up for TIM COPPENS, COLOVOS, CLU and a host of other emerging contemporary labels. The three-day blowout ends on Saturday.

That should be enough to keep any eager shopper busy, but a look at our SALE ROLL sidebar shows even more events as well as updated hours and locations for everything. After the Holiday weekend, get ready for the ever-popular dueling J.Crew and Madewell sales and much more.

SAMPLE CIRCUIT: Big Sale Weekend With Giorgio Armani, Gilt Warehouse, Phillip Lim, Bandier & Helmut Lang

The Shophound has been preoccupied with some other projects for the past week or so, but we are back to update our SALE ROLL sidebar at left, and make note of what has been a pretty full sample sale week. 

Along with the extension of last week's PAUL SMITH Sample Sale through this Saturday, this week has seen major sales from SFERRA, BANDIER and S’WELL', 3.1 PHILLIP LIM and HELMUT LANG to name just a few. All of these sales are still running today, though Sferra is on its last day, and one other longtime shopper's favorite, the Aeffe Showroom Sale featuring MOSCHINO, ALBERTA FERRETTI and JEREMY SCOTT, will close tomorrow. Going through the weekend are Lang at the Chelsea Market, Lim in SoHo, Bandier and S'Well which are sharing space at 260 Fifth Avenue. Don't worry if you were too busy to shop this week, because this weekend will bring THE GILT SAMPLE SALE starting with an exclusive preview on Friday night with various tickets shopping sessions through Sunday. If anyone is looking for a major mega-designer fix, then they should head to Soiffer Haskin on Saturday for the seasonal GIORGIO ARMANI sale featuring all of his major collections running through Wednesday the 15th.

As for next week you may want to save up as the ever-popular MARC JACOBS and GANT sales will serve as a pre-holiday season treat featuring Jacobs' newly repositioned brand and more accessible price range. Stay tuned for more sale news and see our updated SALE ROLL at left for all hours and locations.

SAMPLE CIRCUIT: The Season Ramps Up With Marc Jacobs, Maje & More

Well, it's finally here.
Spring is unfolding and patient sale sale shoppers are getting the first major sample sales of the season with heavy hitter MARC JACOBS (pictured above) kicking off the upcoming weeks-long shopping marathon in SoHo. Jacobs' sale launched on Tuesday with a whopping 85% to 90% discount on nearly everything. As usual, the offerings were a mix of past seasons with a few eye popping price tags on runway pieces that remained high even with major discounts, but overall, it has been a fairly strong showing for Jacobs fans with what remains of the affordable Marc by Marc Jacobs collection selling for giveaway prices. It's not as vast an array of merchandise as we have seen in past seasons, but there is still plenty to satisfy the designer's loyal followers. Shop through Sunday.

Also this week, the popular French contemporary chain MAJE has taken over 260 Fifth Ave with its seasonal clearance. This one is always a popular draw, so expect a motivated crowd through Sunday.

Sporty gentleman will be heading to SoHo starting today the 20th for another installment of GILDED AGE's high-quality classic sportswear and denim sales. Look for investment worthy casual wear at 60% to 80% off through Sunday.

Finally, Saturday the 22nd brings accessory favorite NANCY GONZALEZ to Soiffer Haskin offering luxurious handbags and accessories in exotic skins like crocodile and ostrich. While her bags are well priced considering their precious materials, this is always a pricey sale but full of great investment pieces. Shop through Tuesday the 25th.

Keep an eye on our SALE ROLL sidebar for hours and locations as well as late breaking sales. In future weeks look for the heavy hitters like Oscar de la Renta, David Yurman, Phillip Lim and AEFFE USA's regular multi brand European treasure trove featuring Alberta Ferrretti, Moschino and Ungaro —and those are just the ones we already have scheduled. The season has started. Save your pennies.

BOUTIQUE ROULETTE: Marc Jacobs Is Down To A Single Fashion Store On Bleecker Street

When humble, homey Bleecker Street was swiftly transformed into a white-hot fashion shopping destination in the early 2000s, A lot of people pointed their fingers at designer Marc Jacobs. He was blamed for being the primary interloper in the neighborhood which saw longstanding and beloved antique shops pushed off the street —and in many cases out of business— in favor of the shiny designer boutiques that flooded the formerly genteel destination in his wake. Eventually, Jacobs saw his neighborhood store count climb with a main women's shop, a men's shop, an accessories shop, a shop for his recently launched beauty line, a children's shop and, finally, a curated book shop. Often, these stores would switch places, but the designer seemed to prefer the concept of a cluster of smaller stores within the space of a couple of blocks as opposed to the more traditional, larger brand palace flagship that most of his colleagues seem to prefer.
Now it's 2016, however, and the designer has quietly trimmed his roster of retail shops down to three including the BookMarc book shop, the Little Marc children's shop (pictured below) and one single women's apparel and accessory collection shop which itself was once a combination of two side by side units, and has now been pared down to the single store space on the corner of Bleecker and West 11th Street (pictured above). It's not totally surprising that the designer's store count has shrunken. Last year he made the decision to streamline his labels, folding the popular Marc by Marc Jacobs contemporary line into the main Marc Jacobs brand which suggested that a few changes were in order as a result. A lovely retail location at the corner of Bank and West 4th Streets that had at times been a men's store and an accessory store was given over to the Canadian brand Want Les Essentials de la Vie for its flagship boutique. An always undersized space on Bleecker that had been an on-and-off men's store over the years was quietly relinquished shortly after that, but we just discovered that an erstwhile accessories location at the corner of Bleecker and Perry Streets that was converted to launch the beauty line has also recently closed (The beauty collection itself remains a going concern that has expanded from its exclusive launch through Sephora into major department stores.)
So what is the strategy here? Is it sign of doom for the reorganizing label, or, is it simply an indication that the designer is rethinking his retail plan, at least in New York. While his original Collection flagship on Mercer Street in SoHo is currently being revamped with a temporary location taking its place on Prince Street, Jacobs and, more prominently, his business partner Robert Duffy have been teasing an uptown flagship boutique for years, even going so far as to name specific locations where it would open without ever officially closing on a lease deal. Bleecker Street's glow has dimmed a bit over the past few seasons. Just a few years ago, it was rare to see a retail space sit empty on Bleecker street for very long, but as more recent leases turn over, shoppers are seeing more and more empty storefronts there waiting for someone to pay the skyrocketing rents that were once easy for the neighborhood to demand. Perhaps Jacobs has finally decided to focus his retail resources on higher profile locations as his business enters a more mature phase. Could the smaller shops be closing in favor of that long promised uptown flagship?

SAMPLE CIRCUIT: Marc Jacobs, Carven, Michael Bastian, Helmut Lang, Moschino, Ungaro, Alberta Ferretti —And That's Just On Wednesday Of A Big Sale Week

Sometimes, the Sample Sale season whips up like a cyclone with little notice, and this week is one of those moments. There are so many sample sales happening this week that we can barely list them all, but every venue seems to be booked, and some of them are expanding into extra spaces as well. Here are some super-standouts in a week of highlights:

TUESDAY 11/1
A few sales have already started this week like Monday's 2-day NAEEM KHAN sale that ends today at 6 in the Garment District for anyone looking for some elegantly glittery eveningwear from this FLOTUS fave at a great price.
260SampleSale's home base on Fifth Avenue is being shared by NEST FRAGRANCES, LAURA GELLER and DEVA CURL giving shoppers a trifecta of cosmetics, hair care and home fragrances through Saturday the 5th.
Today, luxury bed and bath fans will be heading to Soiffer Haskin in West Midtown for the PRATESI sale. The legendary Italian brand is known to be pretty pricey even with the discounts, but it's an ecxcellent opportunity to invest in some sheets that will make you swear off Macy's White Sales forever.

WEDNESDAY 11/2
Here is one of the biggest sale days of the season, if not the year. We suggest a getting a car and driver for anyone who wants to make the most of what's being offered. First off is a decades-old favorite, the AEFFE Showroom sale. the designers have shifted over the years, but the current headliners, MOSCHINO, ALBERTA FERRETTI and EMANUEL UNGARO make a pretty compelling draw along with the luxury manufacturer's other popular labels like Fuzzi, Philosophy by Lorenzo Serafini, Cedric Charlier and more.
Keeping on the European theme, CARVEN is returning for its second U.S. sample sale to be held in Western Chelsea. Look for three days of deep discounts on advanced contemporary style for men and women. 
Hometown fave YIGAL AZROUËL will also be offering similar discounts in his Garment District showroom along with some exclusive items unavailable anywhere else.
Menswear cult favorite MICHAEL BASTIAN will be once again opening his Western Chelsea showroom through Sunday, and is promising his biggest Sample Sale ever featuring Head to toe looks for men as well as a small selection of his nascent women's collection.
HELMUT LANG is also returning to familiar terrain at Chelsea Market for what is likely to be just the first of a few sales this season, id past form still holds. This sale, running through next Tuesday, promises mostly womens's apparel with a limited selection of the men's collection available as well.
Arguably the biggest draw of the day, however, will be MARC JACOBS whose sale will be found through Sunday at 150 Greene Street. As in past seasons, Jacobs will be offering all of his product lines including the last bits of Marc by Marc for men and women and those special items generally found only at his own shops.

THURSDAY 11/3
There's a bit of a breather today, but there is a chance for some 80% Off bargains to be found on iconic furniture designs at the KNOLL
Sample & Warehouse Sale in SoHo.

FRIDAY 11/4
Things heat up again on Friday when the Staff International showroom in SoHo opens for three days through Sunday featuring DSQUARED2 and MAISON MARGIELA as the headliners, but often including other coveted labels as well. If that's not enough (and really why should it be?) PAUL SMITH will be taking over the spacious digs at 151 Wooster Street in SoHo for an unusually lengthy 10-day sale promising up to 75% off all of his product lines through Sunday the 13th.

That's just a partial list of all the sales happening this week. To try and keep all of those sales straight, keep your eye on our SALE ROLL sidebar for all the pertinent times and locations. Next week's sale lineup hasn't fully taken shape yet, but already, we are looking at Manolo Blahnik, Derek Lam, John Hardy, Phillip Lim and more to be announced.
Shop wisely!

POP-UP ALERTS: Pop-Ups On The Way From Lands' End, Tie Bar, Spyder and . . . Marc by Marc Jacobs?

Holiday shopping season is almost upon us, which is the perfect time for any number of companies to get their feet wet in New York's daunting retail scene with pop-up stores. There is possibly no better way to gauge customer interest and get some crucial brand awareness than to have a temporary store on one of the city's high-profile shopping streets. here's a few to look out for with plenty more to come.

The Tie Bar is making a return appearance in the West Village at 411 Bleecker Street with an elegant shop already open and filled with impossibly inexpensive furnishings (pictured above). While even mid-range designer ties can reliably cost more than $100, The Tie Bar's neckwear offerings start at about $19 and rarely hit north of $30. Socks, belts, suspenders and, yes, actual tie bars and clips are all similarly priced, in a setting that could easily double for a much more expensive shop. The former James Perse women's store has been transformed into a genial haberdashery that will be open through the Holidays until January leaving plenty of timer any guy to get himself properly turned out for any occasion.

This week, look for upscale athletic brand Spyder's pop-up store at 68 Greene Street in SoHo to open its doors. We aren't sure exactly how long this one will be with us, but they are bringing the U.S. Ski Team to their opening party, so expect it to be a must-visit destination for the city's serious winter sports men and women while it lasts.

On November 11th, that white elephant at 650 Fifth Avenue that used to be the Juicy Couture flagship store (pictured at right) will finally get a decidedly less glitzy occupant as Lands' End moves in for for an extended stay through the end of January. While the longtime mail-order favorite has a small fleet of retail stores as well as a diminishing count of in-store shops in former parent company Sears stores, it has never had a flagship-sized store on this scale in a market like New York. After having been spun off from its flailing parent, Lands' End has been staffing up with some impressive hires including key executives with merchandising experience at places like Saks Fifth Avenue, Bergdorf Goodman and J.Crew. Don't look for the brand to go all haute luxe right away, but an updated fashion image is in the offering. The brand has poached noted menswear designer Ian Velardi away from Bonobos as design director, and we already know he has a gift for adding a modern edge to traditional clothing. If things work out well enough, there's a hint that Lands' End may stay past January depending on the response from Holiday shoppers.

Finally, back own Bleecker Street, there's a bit of a pop-up mystery brewing. The windows at Marc Jacobs' teeny tiny men's store at 382 Bleecker Street have just been blacked out, leaving a message that reads, "Marc by Marc Jacobs Pop-Up Opening August 30th". We all know by now that the Marc by Marc Jacobs label will be history after this season as the line gets re-absorbed by a newly expanded main Marc Jacobs collection. Is the shop staging a final fare-well sale or a greatest hits collection? At the very least, one has to wonder how you can call your own longtime store a pop-up shop? We'll find out on Friday.

IMPENDING ARRIVAL: Want Les Essentials Will Open In A Former Marc Jacobs Store Next Month

Last month, The Shophound discovered that Marc Jacobs had quietly closed one of his colony of stores in the West Vilage (above left) with little sign of who would take over the lovely little shop on the corner of West 4th and Bank Streets. This week the New York Times solved that mystery when it announced that the widely admired cult accessory brand Want Les Essentials de la Vie will open its first standalone boutique next month in the West Village, accompanied by a photograph of the label's founders, identical twins Byron Peart and Dexter Peart standing in front of the unmistakable arched windows of the former Jacobs store (above right).
Now that we know that one of the prettiest storefronts in the neighborhood won't be dark for long, we can look forward to the opening of the Montreal-based brand's new boutique. The label's steady rise over the past nine years is chronicled in the Times article, which indicated that while the shop will stock both men's and women's complete Want collections, including the new men's shoe line, it will also, as is the current vogue among independent designers, carry items from other vendors including apparel from Comme des Garçons Forever and objects by Viennese designer Carl Auböck.
There's no specific opening date announced for the Want store, but as the Jacobs store was previously set up as an accessory shop, and it is not a huge space, an opening in October seems quite reasonable, and it will add to what is turning out to be one of the best seasons of new store opening s that we have seen in some time.

The Montreal Brothers Behind a Jet Set Leather Brand (NYTimes)
Previously:
Storefront Shakeup: Marc Jacobs Eliminated One Of His West Village Stores

STOREFRONT SHAKEUP: Marc Jacobs Eliminated One Of His West Village Stores

In the midst of realigning his signature label, Marc Jacobs has quietly shuttered one of his West Village stores.
The charming store at the corner of West 4th and Bank Streets (pictured above) ceased operations a few weeks ago. It was most recently a Marc by Marc Jacobs accessories store, but like most of his retail spaces in the neighborhood, it has had several identities of the years including a Men's store, and a Collection accessories store. Of all the designers' shops, this one was the furthest off the beaten path, one block away from the busier Bleecker Street corridor, with only the Little Marc children's' store on the opposite corner of the intersection to drum up traffic.
Still, with its elegant arched windows, the now empty shop remains on of the prettier retail spaces in the neighborhood. So far there's no word on a replacement tenant, and now that rent increase-induced turnover has created an unprecedented amount of available retail space on Bleecker Street, it may take some time for the storefront to be filled.
Earlier this year, Jacobs announced that his contemporary label Marc By Marc Jacobs would be folded into his signature line, causing some inevitable shakeup in his retail network. The designer remains a strong presence in the West Village, however. In addition to the aforementioned children's store, there are still the Marc By Marc Jacobs stores for men and women as well as the cosmetics shop and Bookmarc book store all on Bleecker Street. Presumably, the apparel stores will be rebranded to the main Marc Jacobs line for next spring, but it's not unusual for the designer to have a twist or two up his sleeve, so stay tuned for further developments.

SAMPLE CIRCUIT: Marc Jacobs Will Have A Rare Public Sample Sale Starting Tomorrow!

Remember how we always remind you to keep an ear to the ground for late breaking sales?
Well, you may want to change your plans because on Thursday, MARC JACOBS is holding his first public Sample Sale since, well... since we don't even know when.
Reportedly, the designer has regularly held hush-hush private sample sales strictly by invitation only, but this is a rare opportunity to get to one without worrying about having to breach formidable security at the door. To be held at 151 Wooster Street in SoHo, a couple of blocks east from his main Collection boutique, this sale is promising 80% off retail prices for men's and women's ready-to-wear, shoes and accessories as well as Little Marc for kids and his famous "Special Items". Particular  seasons are not specified. How much, if any, of it will consist of the soon-to-be-history Marc by Marc Jacobs line remains to be seen. Since it's a rare event for a designer with a strong following, particularly in New York, obviously you should be prepared for long lines so get there as early as possible. As always, stay alert for more last minute sale announcements. This is the time of year when they start to pop up left and right.

See our SALE ROLL sidebar at left for details and hours.