Shoe Lovers Small & Tall Rejoice: Preview Report from the Front - Nordstrom Rack, Union Square

Jeez, I barely even knew this store had opened, and Nancy's already there!!

Four racks of size 12 for women alone nestled among the 25,000 pairs of shoes including a pair of stylish red Steve Madden gladiator flats priced at $49. Famous for shoe size ranges, 4.5-14, men from 7-16, the hard-to-fit New Yorker can check for new styles including Stuart Weitzman, Alan Edmonds, Cole Haan, as five trucks with new merch arrives each week.

For Women: You may be able to skip the maddening Rebecca Minkoff sample sale crowds this week as a selection of bags are reduced from $595 and $550 to $249, $259. A one of a kind red leather with zipper jacket from Alice & Olivia at $219.95 down from $695. Missoni skinny scarves at $59.95 and $69.95. Find everything from Spanx Power Panties to Strivectin in the wide-ranging women's department.

For Men: Looking for an economic rebound shirt? Try the Hickey Freeman blue and white pinstripe shirt with white collar $49.95 from $135. Blazers from Hugo Boss $239 from $593. Joseph Abboud blazer $229.97 from $495. A check-me-out black leather John Varvatos jacket $699 reduced from $1,995. For Father's Day, job interviews, or casual shirts, it's worth a trip.

Remember the old Century 21 before it became jammed with tourists and you could discover a one-of-a-kind items or basics? Well the magic is at Nordstrom Rack.
Monday through Saturday, 9 a.m.-10 p.m; Sunday, 11 a.m. -7 p.m. 
One Union Square South (14th & Broadway)

Century 21: Men's Suits on Sale, April 16-19

Century 21

Century 21: ANOTHER Coupon

Century 21: Shop Now, Save Later

Save 25% at Century 21

Century 21 - the Department Store, not the real estate company with bright yellow polyester sport coats... Click here for the coupon, which is good through December 14.

Black Friday: I told you so

I really can't stand Black Friday, or perhaps I just don't really like Saks. I ran in there this morning to check out the coat sales, and if they had my size in an army green Searle wool jacket, I would have bought it - I think it was only $136 with all the sale reductions. But otherwise I'm just not into Saks, I suppose. There are other sales going on today - Lord & Taylor, Cole Haan, Century 21, Daffy's, Bloomingdale's...if you're into that kind of thing. However, I'm guessing that the sales will continue and even improve between now and Christmas with the state of the economy.

I call B.S. on some Discount Stores

I recently read an article about how some discount stores that claim to have top designers at low, low prices are in fact selling sub-par apparel to the masses. "Hmmmmmmmm...." I thought to myself. Could this be true? So I did a little investigation at a Filene's Basement and Marshalls and have come to the conclusion that it is true. I tried on Kors by Michael Kors at one, and looked at Tahari suits at the other. The clothes were crap.

The same article mentioned that the only places that you can be sure to find the real deal for less are sample sales or Century 21. Shoot. I guess I believe it, but shopping those is a real nightmare pain in the ass.

I guess the lesson is to be very discerning when considering purchasing "designer" clothing for less - if you think about it, how could all of these discount chain stores that continue to pop up all over the country carry top-of-the-line apparel? It's just not rational. I'm not necessarily saying that these stores are selling false or counterfeit goods, it could be that the designers are licensing out their names to mass manufacturers who are creating select items using less expensive materials and designs.

Since so many of these labels are owned by publicly traded companies, they have to continue to figure out new ways to make more money year after year. So be a smart consumer and don't be "had!"

Aaron's in Brooklyn: CLOSED

Well, you heard it from me back in October that Aaron's, the women's designer discount store out there in Brooklyn, had decreased in size by 50 percent and declined in apparel quality and intrigue by about 100 percent. Then, last week I heard from a friend of mine who knows the son-of-Aaron's that the store was closing. Today, I checked online and the website is down.

It is a sad and unfortunate demise of a great, unique store that I learned about from my fashion-forward-father who had been going there since at least the 70s. Every time I went out there - taking a 45-minute train ride each way - I ended up spending hours trying on scores of items. I rarely got out of there for less than $700, but with piles and bags of beautiful, high-quality clothing.

I'm not sure what happened - perhaps it was overtaken by the designer discount behemoths such as Filene's Basement,