The Paul Smith sample sale is taking place in a generic Soho storefront on West Broadway. The doors opened to the public on Thursday and by the end of the day, the merchandise was pretty much picked through. This is one of those sales where you have to get there early… Fashionable Femme Jen sums it up pretty well:
When I think of Paul Smith, I think of colorful stripes, austere lines, tidy prints and organization. When I walk into the sample sale this evening, what I see is everything but. The table of $25 cufflinks is reduced to orphan stragglers, home goods are all but existent, women’s product is picked over and shoes are severely depleted, revealing bare shelves. Though the sale spans two floors, there was more chaos than merchandise.
The bulk of what’s left in the men’s section are striped “European style” swim trunks, $200 jackets and $70 shirts in showy prints. Stacked boxes of men’s shoes occupy less than half a wall in height by the time I enter the shoe space. I do see a pair of pale pink wing-tipped shoes that deserve special mention–very Fashion Forward!
In the women’s section, I pick up a $200 blazer with multicolor flowers, but end up returning it to the shelf a minute later. Though the fit is impeccable, $200 is a bit much for a cotton blazer at this sample sale. The women’s shoe selection is mostly made up of sample and display shoes, especially “slip on” styles. The only pair of shoes I find mildly appealing is a pair of ballet flats with a mauve flower pattern. However, for $120 a pop, Meh, I’ll pass.
Upstairs, the selection of hats is somewhat decent, but there are only one or two of each style left. The Art books seem to be the best bargain at this point–$5 to $25 a pop. I particularly like the one entitled Chewed ($5)–a picture book of stuffed animals that have been a pet’s best friend over time. The larger and more interesting books are also more expensive. As the temperature and tide of incoming shoppers rises, I quickly bow out to feed my belly.
-Fashionable Femme Jen
Where/When: 468 W. Broadway (b/w Prince & Houston). Oct 25-26th Daily (11-7p).
Any ties left? Exactly HOW bad is the cufflink selection?
Very few ties left! I saw maybe 10 cufflinks, unboxed and most without matches.
The true problem with this sale and many new sales is the trend to have VIP days. I was there first day at ps and 40 Asian VIPs packed up 100 bags and cleaned the place out. It wasn’t worth going to even the first day of the public sale. I asked one of the hoarders how they were invited and they were the friend of a friend of a blogger from Chicago. I checked out the blog..started a few weeks ago and nothing impressive. Another knew a stock person.