The List: a Preppy Black Friday

Hello-Hello and Gobble-Gobble!

For those thinking about an excursion (there’s a euphemism!) of a retail kind in the next several days, we offer our list of Sales and Savings this Thanksgiving weekend.  We may update it once again before the weekend concludes, but are more likely to revel in the company of family and preparations for our Pink & Green Monday!

That’s right, 20% off everything at The Princess for one day only, complete with our free gift wrapping! Use promo code PGM at checkout to receive your discount on all of our preppy goodies!

Here is information on other preptastic retailers; well, mostly preptastic. As always, check with your local store, shopping center or outlet mall for specific hours and details.

J. Crew: Already underway online, take an additional 20% off merchandise only, use promo code EXTRA20 at checkout.

J. Crew Outlet stores: before 8am Friday morning take an additional 40% off Clearance merchandise, other weekend discounts at Crew outlets include 30– 50% off select holiday styles & 30–40% off select Crewcuts holiday styles.

Lacoste: Already underway online, 30% off all merchandise, use promo code THANKS09 at checkout to receive the discount; ends 11/30/09.

Lilly Pulitzer: On Friday only spend $500 and receive a limited edition Resort Tote like the one seen below (a $200 value); gift wrapping is also complimentary all day on Friday.

Courtesy Lilly Pulitzer

Polo Ralph Lauren: Already underway, 25% Off, use promo code HOL2009, ends 12/7/09

Ralph Lauren Factory Stores: 20% discount on purchases of $150+ after midnight Thanksgiving night/Friday morning until 10am.

Brooks Brothers: Friday & Saturday 7am – Noon receive an additional 15% off your entire purchase; receive an additional 5% when using your MasterCard or your Brooks Brothers Platinum MasterCard.

Brooks Brothers Factory Stores: 40 percent off all items until Sunday, and an extra 10 percent off of this Friday and Saturday until noon.

Banana Republic: We have heard but have not confirmed that on Friday only cashmere sweaters will be Buy One, Get One free

Banana Republic Outlets: 40% Off Any Purchase.

Ann Taylor: “Style Steals” on various items now through Sunday.

Ann Taylor Loft: “Style Steals” on various items now through Sunday.

Tommy Hilfiger Outlet Stores: 40% off the entire store all day on Black Friday and additional discounts for specific days; to download coupons providing these markdowns, click here.

The Gap: Already underway and online-only, 50% off all regularly-priced  Men’s & Women’s Sweaters, Kids & Baby Cozy Fleece styles.

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Here is what we can share on the more standard department stores, offered with an apology for the more East Coast-centric emphasis:

Saks 5th Avenue: Starts online Thursday and at 8am Friday in stores, up to 60% off original prices on selections for her & him, various additional offers too lengthy to list; also free shipping for any online order, use promo code HOLIDAY9, offer valid through midnight Monday night (the 30th)

Neiman Marcus: The Women’s Apparel Sale is already underway with up to 40% off original prices; there is also free shipping on any online orders until midnight 11/3/09, use promo code NMNOV at checkout.

Neiman Marcus Last Call: Shoppers using their Neiman’s card will receive an additional 25% off, ends 12/1; select stores are open midnight-8am as well, click here for details.

Barneys: their sale is already underway online with up to 40% off on select merchandise.

Bergdorf Goodman: free shipping with any online order, use promo code SHOPBG at checkout.

For more information on special sales, promotions and the like, here are a few general interest sites that may be of assistance:

• Black-Friday.net
• BlackFridayAds
• GottaDeal.com
• BlackFriday2009.com

With that, farewell until next time, and may everyone enjoy a simply splendid Thanksgiving!

Gobble-Gobble.

Black Friday Ads: Target, Polo Ralph Lauren & Hilfiger & J. Crew, Banana Republic Outlet Stores

Greetings of the day and all appropriate niceties, we thought it best if we just shared this information with you right away.  We have more information on a number of Black Friday sales, starting with Target’s ad, available here.

To view the complete insert that will be in local newspapers the Wednesday before Thanksgiving, click here.

Also, expect lower prices at your local Boutique Tarzshay for the foreseeable future, especially in the clothing and home store areas.  The effort to jumpstart Target’s slow sales includes going head-to-head with Walmart on some merchandise, along with using the online component to boost sales. From a recent Associated Press story:

“The company will also offer half a dozen “value items” online every day at special prices.”

“We have taken a very aggressive point of view this year in terms of our promotional pricing, so we expect to be price leaders on selected items … “

The information for the Polo Ralph Lauren Factory Stores event is also now available; they are calling the promotion ‘Midnight Madness.’

Courtesy Polo Ralph Lauren

We will continue to monitor them for information on what to expect at the regular Ralph Lauren stores as well as what additional savings are planned at factory stores other than this initial 20% discount off purchases of $150+.

Tommy Hilfiger is offering substantial savings for Black Friday:

There are also a number of coupons for specific savings, like the one shown below, “Save an Additional 25% on any $200 Purchase,” but we have no idea if one must have an “official coupon,” or if it could be printed off any site, like ours.

The J. Crew Factory Outlet stores are also doing Black Friday:

If it is difficult to read the small print up above, early risers who shop before 10am can take an additional 50% off clearance styles, nothing to sneeze at.

Bath and Body Works is doing a VIP Bag with purchases over $100, their scan can be seen here.

They are also doing Buy 1, Get 1 at 50% off now…

…along with several “Secret Online Sales.”

Other savings at specific factory outlets and stores:

• Banana Republic Factory Stores Midnight Madness 40% off the entire store! Expires: 11/28/08
• Eddie Bauer Factory Stores Midnight Madness Save an extra 30% off your entire purchase. Ad Code: 5700. Expires: 11/28/08

Vera Bradley will be offering free shipping on Dec.1,

We are a little surprised at Nautica’s listings, essentially $20 off a purchase of $100 or more, not nearly as aggressive as we anticipated considering their ongoing struggles in the marketplace.

For online shoppers, right now the company is offering free ground shipping on orders totaling more than $100.

On the electronics front, Best Buy has a number of discounts and markdowns that can be seen here.  The retailer will open at 5am the Friday morning after Thanksgiving.

Circuit City will also open at 5am; their ad scans are available here.

We do not yet have specifics on the Ann Taylor Loft stores, but can tell you they are now taking an Additional 40% off already reduced prices, a good deal in and of itself…

as well as offering a $25 gift card for every $50 you spend.

Keep an eye on the Tanger Outlet store site as well as the Prime Outlets site; both are decent resources for updates on special discounts and hours for the stores, although Tanger provides much more information than the Prime Outlets site offers.

When we have more on other retailers generally thought to offer a ‘preppy aesthetic’ or preppy styles, we’ll get that information to you, including the non-factory store sales and markdowns.

Black Friday Starts…TOMORROW. Seriously. And Preppy Bargains Abound.

Hello-Hello from a sublime and sunny day in the Great Midwest, so nice we can hardly believe it is November!

But we may want to fasten our seat belts, as it could be a bumpy ride this Fall, at least for retailers. However, storekeeper stress also means outstanding savings opportunities, so today we are simply discarding our usual neuroses about usage of the ‘M’ word, and offering what insight we have on hand.

For openers, K-Mart is starting their Black Friday offerings tomorrow.  As in Sunday, November 2, 2008.

For anyone unfamiliar with Black Friday, a previous post has a tad more insight on the phenomenon, including a mention of this Ralph Lauren Factory Stores ad, offering something called Midnight Madness.  The ad says, “Join us after your Thanksgiving Dinner. Most stores open at the stroke of midnight.”  Indeed.

Courtesy bfads.net

Back to today’s post: the Kmart ad does not refer, or apply, to all parts of the store. In fact, it really only offer savings in one area of the store, as explained in Friday’s Advertising Age story:

“The retailer …  said it will offer the deals exclusively in the home-electronics category to help customers kick-start their holiday shopping. The category has become an area of particular concern for retailers, as consumers pull back on discretionary items.”

Should shoppers be looking for the special deals in their Sunday newspaper? Evidently not, at least as best The Princess can discern from yesterday’s story.

“Early Black Friday” sales on about 15 items will roll out in Sunday circulars between Nov. 2 and Nov. 23, as well as on Kmart.com. The deals are being worked into existing circular plans… “

And surprisingly, the discounts will be available for more than one day, different from ‘standard’ Black Friday sales:

“Kmart’s deals are also meant to make holiday shopping more convenient, Mr. Aiello said. Unlike typical Black Friday sales, which require an early wake-up call and heavily promoted limited quantities, the specials will be available for an entire week, with ample supplies in stock.”

Because we do heart your pocketbook (we have been told this is the proper way to use this verb) we went decided to be adventurous and go to the K-Mart website. These are the only two sale circulars we see that are applicable commencing tomorrow; the first seems to be primarily Disney and Hannah Montana related.

Kmart Ad 11.02.08

And the second is a Dollar Days theme:

Kmart Ad 11.02.08

Enough of Black Friday, let us move on to Bergdorf’s, shall we? Their Fall Savings event includes the Tory Burch North-South tote in this color is too fun.

Barney’s thinks their sale is groovy; we are not yet convinced, but are willing to give them the benefit of the doubt.

The Prada Ruched Pump is not destined for our shoe rack,

But the Mawi Enameled Bangle is fun and comes in several colors, including our favorite.  And the pinstripe cashmere throw, as well as the eggshell with multi-color stripes both rank extremely well on the Snuggle Factor.

It seems that Brooks Brothers continues its aggressive marketing stance with their Preferred Customer Event.

This translates to a 25% discount if one uses their Brooks Brothers Platinum MasterCard Platinum, a mere 15% savings for those paying through other means.

J. Crew is pushing their ‘Fall Sale.’

And TP is simply ga-ga over the Clea Flats:

And speaking of J. Crew, a reminder on the next Men’s Shop:

Courtesy J. Crew

It shall be interesting to watch the way Crew plays the Men’s Collection in this locale, as it is quite different from the ambience of the Liquor Store site.

Saks is also eager to assist one’s wardrobe enhancement efforts, offering multiple sales, like the Stuart Weitzman Patent Slide.  And ladies, TP can personally vouch for these; they are divine. Dowdy? Maybe. Frumpish? Perhaps. But they are us, and we don’t have the only toes clad in these at JL meetings.

Then there is the Lord & Taylor ‘Just in Time’ sale which has so many different elements we can barely keep them straight.

But because we want to do our best to help locate fiscally friendly merchandise for all of our Princess readers, we’ll give it a go. L&T is offering:

• Additional 15% off Cashmere
• 33% off Gloves
• 25% off Handbags
• Free shipping on all orders more than $99

J. Press is always an excellent choice, and this fall it is no different, with multiple markdowns throughout the store. These snappy madras trousers for The Spousal Unit at a superb price; they will be ideal during this winter’s annual getaway.

Their Short-sleeve New York Polo is also fun.

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And so we might close with an ‘appropriate’ Pretty in Pink, here is the Lilly Pulitzer Infant’s Cover-up; Saks is offering this at an attractive markdown.

Happy Hunting!