Banana Republic Deals?

[starry_solo]

Okay, a friend has turned me into shopping at BR. The prices are a bit pricey but the quality seems fine. Any tips on how to get good deals there? I do have to go back in a week to pick up some pants I had altered and am going to see if they will discount the shoes I just bought (it has marks on the bottom that I didn't look for before but I haven't worn the shoes). Will they give me 10% back?

I do know about going through ebates if I wanted to shop online but the in store prices seem to be better.

 

[kisaacs]

Don't know if you have an outlet (factory store) near you, but I just got an ad in the mail that the whole store will be 40% off and there's a coupon for 20% off your $100 purchase through around April 11ish.

I have much better luck getting something reasonable at the factory store, but I'm pretty sure Banana is one of those stores that makes different clothes for their outlet store and their regular store.

 

[Couchy]

BR often has deals on their website where you can take 25%, 30 % and even 40% of your entire order with free shipping for orders over $50. I usually can find some great deals on some clearance stuff and then get an additional 30 or 40 % off. Even the regular priced stuff is a great deal at 40 % . Their clothing holds up very well

 

[starry_solo]

I did hear that the clothes last well, which is why I'm buying stuff there now. It just seems pricey, but I know, as long as it lasts a long time and is classic, the price is worth it.

 

[sookie]

I think that SOME of the clothes at banana hold up well. the tops and sweaters - not so much. my coat still looks good and i got it for 50% off.
that being said, I usually have at least a 30% card that comes to the house every week or two. i have an old navy card so i think that is why.

 

[starry_solo]

I have a BR card so I suspect that's why I get these mailers a lot. I do know that one BR pair of pants - camel - don't hold up well after dry cleaning (according to the label that's how it's supposed to be cleaned) so my friend returned them to BR.

Other than that, I've been happy with the clothes. I just got some shoes and hope they work out well - but I did notice that the soles on the bottom have some scuffing (but they're supposed to be new) so I'm going to go back next week to see if they will give me a discount.

I will see if I can find a BR outlet store, but I do wonder whether they are rejects or not.

 

[pumpkinmomma]

They send offers out fairly often if you sign up for their emails. I usually shop online since I live pretty far from the store, but some of the deals I have been sent have been good for in-store as well.

I only shop there if I have a coupon code or there is a good sale. I think their quality is fairly good, but I feel like their clothes are overpriced.

 

[curseofcurves]

The quality at BR is not really much better than Gap and in some cases Old Navy. I'm mainly talking about shirts, jewelry, and handbags. There's no way I'd pay full price for anything at BR, but they do occasionally have some cute stuff that I'd snag with a 30%/40% coupon.

As far as the outlet, keep in mind that it isn't the same stuff as the normal stores at a discount. Most of the items at the outlet are last year's designs made with a less expensive fabric. There's nothing wrong with that if you like the style and have a discount. It's just that some people have such a strange idea of what outlets really are.


Oh, with all that said - BR frequently has sales and discounts, especially if you have a credit card with them. If there's something you want, wait for a discount. I doubt they'll give you a discount after the fact on the shoes, but don't hesitate to ask if you notice a damage while in the store. They'll give you 10% off, but it will be non-refundable.

 

[starry_solo]

The quality at BR is not really much better than Gap and in some cases Old Navy. I'm mainly talking about shirts, jewelry, and handbags. There's no way I'd pay full price for anything at BR, but they do occasionally have some cute stuff that I'd snag with a 30%/40% coupon.

Gap and Old Navy are in the same 'family' of brands as BR. Mainly, I was looking at suits (blazers, skirts, pants) and shoes. I will check when I go back next week to pick up the altered pants about the shoes.

Has anyone bought BR via ebay, Craigslist, and/or a consignment shop? I noticed that last year's brands (and older) pop up on ebay a lot.

 

[snarlingcoyote]

Gap and Old Navy are in the same 'family' of brands as BR. Mainly, I was looking at suits (blazers, skirts, pants) and shoes. I will check when I go back next week to pick up the altered pants about the shoes.

Has anyone bought BR via ebay, Craigslist, and/or a consignment shop? I noticed that last year's brands (and older) pop up on ebay a lot.

I've found that the materials are generally better on some/most items at BR, but the constructions isn't any better. Also the quality of sweaters at ON, GAP, BR, Target, Limited and several other places has gone down a LOT in the past 2 or 3 years. Heck, I just bought a new cashmere sweater from Brooks Brother during their spring clearance sale, and the quality is certainly better than what I see at most stores and it's a good sweater that I'm sure I'll wear a long time, but the quality is still not as good as the Brooks Brother cashmere sweater DH bought me for Xmas 5 years ago, or even as good as the no-name cashmere sweater I got at Dillards back in the early 90's!

Okay, let me get off that rant.

BR has some good items and decent prices, but I think it's hit or miss how long it will hold together. With the rapid changes to all forms of manufacturing these days, including clothing manufacture, you can't even judge by the quality of BR (or any store) and how the clothes stood up to wear even a few years ago.

 

[starry_solo]

That's what I was thinking too

I am probably going to return the shoes as I tried them out on the carpet at home and they keep coming off. Hopefully they won't give me a hard time about it.

I used some BR Rewards so I hope they give that back to me (about $15 worth was applied to the 2 pairs of shoes)

 

[curseofcurves]

I've found that the materials are generally better on some/most items at BR, but the constructions isn't any better.

This is more along the lines of what I was thinking. I was multi-tasking while writing the post, and you definitely said it better.

 

[starry_solo]

Are there good quality suits that you would recommend? I'm trying to spruce up my wardrobe with pieces here and there. I remember a thread somewhere about what kinds of pieces to add, etc., but can't find it here anymore.