Sharing the Magical Shopping Powers - Family Style

As I mentioned in my last post, my parents are visiting this weekend, so things have been a little more hectic than usual.  What I didn't mention is that my two brothers and my one sister are here as well, since we're celebrating my dad's 61st birthday this weekend.

Some of my very earliest shopping memories involve going to Dadeland Mall in Miami with my mom and my sister for our biannual "there is absolutely nothing to buy in Nicaragua because we're a crappy communist country" international shopping excursion.  This weekend my mom, my sister and I reprised our shopping trips of yore by embarking on a tri-state shopping tour - Maryland, Virginia and Washington, DC.  Ok, we only passed through Washington, DC, but tri-state sounded so much cooler.  Not that DC is a state, but anyhow... I took my mom and sister to all the places I go shop either for eBay or for my personal shopping projects.  I brought along all my coupons, discounts and invitations to special events.

We covered a grand total of 240 miles spread out across 2 days.  Shoes were our main focus, although my mom did buy two evening dresses and my sister got a handbag and some running shorts in addition to her three pairs of shoes.  I picked up a handbag for a special project, but as usual, nothing for myself.

Anyway, the real point of the story is about the shoes below.  Many people think they can get the best deals on shoes and clothing online.  I cringe every time I hear one of my friends say they bought something on Bluefly, Endless or Zappos.  I took my sister to one of the places I regulalry shop.  It was one of the shoe warehouse places - you know the kind, nothing special, everyone has one within driving distance of where they live.  Well, she picked up the Giuseppe Zanotti shoes you see below for about $175 before tax.  They were 70% off, and they had them in just about every size you can think of.  Fast forward to this morning.  I'm doing a little research on a different pair of shoes, and I come across my sister's shoes on Bluefly.  At a discount.  For $500 plus tax.

We didn't do anything special.  Didn't buy wholesale.  Didn't even use a coupon for God's sake.  All we did was get off our butts to do a little in person shopping in strategically selected places.  That's it.  That's what my magical shopping powers boil down to - patience, research and two well-heeled feet to pound the pavement with.

And if all else fails, if that combination sounds like too much hard work for you, that's what I'm here for.  Give me a holler!

I Think I Died and Went to Shoe Heaven

I got here yesterday and I'm leaving within the next hour, but I couldn't come to California and not go check out a new secret supplier.  After my business meeting today I drove about an hour south of the city today to visit an outlet in this area.  I didn't think it would be worth it, but wanted to give it a shot.

HOLY BONANZA, Batman!  I've never seen so many cheap red soles together in the same place.  AND I made friends with the shoe section manager, who said she would keep me updated on new styles that come into the store.

Woohoo!!

Back Stateside and Busier than Ever

Those of you who are Facebook friends of the blog have already met my new white patent Christian Louboutin Joli Noeuds.  I brought back one more, less exciting but more practical friend from Italy: a pair of Tory Burch Reva Gabi ballerina flats in a size 7.  I'll admit, these were supposed to be for me, but in typical fashion I convinced myself in the store that they fit perfectly, given how inexpensive they were, and then realized back my hotel room that no matter how much I liked these I am NOT a size 7.  I also have a VERY high arch, inherited from my mom, which makes it difficult for me to wear flats.

In any event, I got them for such a steal that I've decided to put them in my store inventory closet rather than my personal closet.

Now that we're done with introductions, I have to tell you my re-entry to the US has been extremely smooth.  Already my little helper (my son) and I ventured out to as yet underdiscovered venues, which helped convince me that I already knew all of the venues worth knowing.  Fortunately my little helper was extremely well behaved and didn't knock over any racks of shoes, but now the poor baby is sick with a runny nose and a fever so he's going to have to sit today's shopping trip out.

This week is going to be a fairly busy ones, which means I might neglect the blog a bit while I sort myself out.  I'm going to San Francisco on a business trip Monday night, and then my parents are coming in on Wednesday and staying for almost a week.  Should anything exciting happen, though, I'll be sure to let you guys know!

Special Report - Madrid Shopping Experience

Madrid, much like Milan and Florence, must be a nice place to shop during the sales season.  I have to be honest with you all.  I'm very proud of my magic shopping powers and all week I have been feeling a little bit like Superman on the planet Krypton.  That is to say, I'm not familiar with the stores, with the currency and with the modus operandi so I have no idea where to go to get the kinds of deals I can get in the US.  The retail price difference and VAT refund are not enough to make most purchases worth it.  Yes, I've saved a few dollars here and there on European designer goods, like a tie I bought for my husband that was $50 cheaper here, but in general the savings are relatively small compared to the price of the items.

I did find one thing that might be worth buying in Europe to resell in the U.S., and that is Louis Vuitton handbags.  I was looking into the Louis Vuitton Neverfull for a client of mine and after the tax refund the smallest of the Neverfull series is about $150 cheaper here than in the us.

Anyway, hopefully once I get back home and away from the kryptonite on this planet my magic shopping powers will return and I can carry on doing what I've been doing.  Unfortunately my flight home is delayed and I will probably get home too late to hit the outlets, but hey, there's always the weekend!

See you soon, everybody.

Special Report - Italian Outlet Shopping Results

After a long day that involved combing through rows and rows of Prada, Miu Miu, Gucci, Valentino, Dior, Fendi, Balenciaga and YSL, among others, I have finally arrived in Milano and the verdict is in: the outlets in Tuscany are very disappointing.

My cousin Valentina and I woke up very early this morning - at 7 AM - and got ready for the 2.5 hr drive from the outskirts of Rome to the outskirts of Florence, heading first for the Prada outlet "Lo Spaccio" in Montevarchi and then for the luxury outlet shopping center "The Mall" in Leccio Regello.  I had heard great things about Lo Spaccio and also had great expectations given my previous experience with Italian outlet shopping.  I come to Italy relatively often and had visited the Tod's outlet in Casettedete before, having successfully obtained a pair of Tod's flats for about $100.

I must preface this by saying that the Italian sales season ended not one week ago, and had that still be going on I would probably have been telling a very different story.  But the sad truth, as I told my sister in my live report over Blackberry Messenger today, is that I could have done better than the prices I saw today at the outlets I frequent in the US.  The cheapest pair of shoes I saw at Lo Spaccio were about $200 for a pair of Miu Miu platforms, which is not bad considering, but every time I got excited about a pair of shoes they didn't have the size I was looking for.  Furthermore the bags were beyond hideous and expensive on top of that.

The Mall, on the other hand, which I expected to be grossly overrated, had moments of great promise.  There were a few leather Gucci bags for less than $300, but they were outlet quality and frankly did not look the part. Valentino had some amazing shoes for about $150 but not in the correct sizes.  Burberry was outrageously expensive but had a great selection.  In every store I visited there was some sort of but.

Finally, after six hours of desperately trying to find something worth buying, both for the people who made special requests and well as for reselling on eBay, I had to walk away empty handed.

But all is not lost!!  During the late afternoon my cousin dropped me off at an outlet where they sell Louboutin shoes before heading back into Rome and before my scheduled departure for Milan.  It was there that I finally found something I'm sure will come in handy for SOMEONE.  A pair of Louboutin Jolie Noed Dorcet shoes (pictured above) in white patent in a 36.5 for an incredible price.  I found a few other Louboutin gems but purchased only this one due to financial constraints.  I would still like to find things to bring back for my personal shopping clients and I'd like to conserve some cash or credit to go hunt those things down tomorrow after my business meeting.  After all, I am in the fashion capital of Europe.  I'm sure I can dig something up at a decent price!

Buona Notte!  Vado a dormire! (Good night - I'm off to sleep!)

Buona Sera from Italy

Ciao! Come va?

Today is my fourth day in Italy and my first day on the mainland.  I spent a few days in Sicily for my cousin's wedding and now I'm slowly making my way back to civilization.  I've yet to do any work shopping, since there's really not much selection in Sicily, but the one store I stepped into in Agrigento was very, very promising.

While I have access to a computer I wanted to let you guys know something very exciting happened to me this week.  Lisa, one of my clients and the author of a great blog called Fantabulously Frugal, wrote a post about her experience working with me.  Needless to say I'm thrilled to bits Lisa had a good buying experience and I wanted to thank her for writing about me by referring you guys to her blog.  Please, while I'm away and not writing very much, visit Fantabulously Frugal and show Lisa lots of love!!

In other news, I'm going to the outlets on Monday, so if you hang around here then I might be able to do a mini virtual sample sale, if they'll let me take pictures of the merchandise.  More on that as my plans evolve.

Arrivederci!

Off to Europe Tomorrow

My sister gave me this GREAT idea to do an "online sample sale" from Italy while I'm at the outlets.  I'll let you guys know whether it's logistically possible.

Wish my luck on my trip. It's the first time I've left my son for this long. :(

I hope those damn shoes are worth it.

A Long Overdue Confession Regarding My Snobbery

I've learned a few things about myself since I started this micro-business.  Things I already knew, but had managed to ignore since starting my downward spiral to brokedom in 2005.

I'm a shoe snob.  A horrible, awful, snooty, obnoxious, superficial shoe snob.  Of the worst kind.  The problem is I'm a BROKE horrible, awful, snooty, obnxious, superficial shoe snob, so I have no choice but to turn up my nose at my own snobbery.  Interestingly enough, I'm only this way with shoes, and to a certain extent with bags, but not with clothes.

As you can see, the eBay store is a little empty these days. It's been getting more and more difficult to find good inventory, and with the trip to Italy coming up I've been wanting to save up all my cash flow to see how low I can go with some of my favorite desginers.  Today I went to a new Nordstrom Rack that opened near where I live, and frankly, I was disgusted.  "Not a single 'real' designer in the designer section," I thought to myself.

Which made me remember what a snob I am.  But it also begs the question: what is a "real" designer??

Here's my definition:

1) European. There are no "real" American designers when it comes to shoes and bags, as far as I'm concerned.  Sorry, Michael Kors.  Sorry, Kate Spade.  Not premium enough.

2) Exclusivity. You can't find their stuff at every Marshalls and TJ Maxx in the United States of America.  Again, sorry Michael Kors. Strike two.

3) Price. I can't afford their shoes at retail, or even on SALE, unless I scheme, plot and hoard coupons for weeks. Or take advantage of a newbie seller on eBay.  And even then once I do we have to eat quesadillas until my next paycheck.

As I write this, I also realize that every pair of shoes in my closet - except the three pairs I've got for sale on eBay - fall significantly short on all three criteria.  But that's ok.  As much of a snob as I am, I've also come to realize that I'm not what I own or what I can afford.

That doesn't mean we don't have a few rounds of quesadillas coming our way after Italy, though.  Wink wink.

The Recipe for Magic Shopping Powers

One of my clients, Christopher, was kind enough to leave a comment on this post referencing my "magic shopping powers" for digging up designer goods at good prices.  To be fair, I dig them up at ludicrous prices and then resell them for good prices, but that's besides the point. 

I will preface this by saying, as I think I did one of my previous posts, that what makes me good at the shopping game is I do research for a living.  But.  There's really no voodoo behind my shopping powers, nothing any one of you couldn't do with a little patience and some experience.  Nothing I sell has fallen off the truck, nor have I gotten it anywhere you guys wouldn't be allowed to go.  In my post about never paying retail I revealed some of my tricks. Here are a few others that complete the recipe:

• Shop around, online and off.  Figure out which stores are good for what.  Figure out when the big sales events are and plan your big purchases around those events.  Know how much things generally cost - otherwise how will you be able to tell whether something is a bargain or not??  Sure, those $200 shoes I sell still seem expensive to you but think about it: 1) Everything I sell is at least 65% off, which means those $200 shoes were over $500 when they first hit the rack; 2) I obviously didn't buy them for $200, otherwise I should have my MBA immediately revoked; 3) I forgot where I was going with this, but the point is the BIG bargains are out there but you'll never find them if you don't know what they look like.
• Get cash back.  Sign up for a cash back program, such as BigCrumbs or Ebates.  If you click through their links while you shop for the things you would have bought anyway, they will give you anywhere between 1% and 5% cash back, depending on the store.  You accumulate the cash back in your account until a predetermined, regularly-established payout date when they tranfer the money into your Paypal account or send you a check.  If you'd like me to refer you and walk you through the sign-up process feel free to email me.
• eBay is your friend.  It's full of desperate people who have made impulse buys and now just want to get some of their money back.  It's also full of other people like me who have visited stores and outlets where they had inventory that wasn't available at the stores and outlets YOU visited.  So in a sense, eBay is a like six degrees of separation of shopping.  Through eBay, there are only a few degrees of separation between you and the Chanel outlet in upstate New York, even though you're in Florida.
• Sign up for the online sample sales.  You know the ones - Gilt, The Sample Sale, Envite, RueLala, etc...  Their emails are incredibly annoying, but they do have some incredible bargains sometimes!
• Finally, and this applies mostly to shoes, whatever you see at Zappos, DSW and Bluefly is sitting at an outlet somewhere at almost half the price, just waiting for you to get out there and find it.

That being said, please keep asking me to get stuff for you!  I promise Italian shopping does not disappoint.  I leave on Tuesday.  I'm sure there's SOME European luxury item you've been dying to get.  Come on, you can tell me... I won't tell anyone...