Oh, Filene’s, don’t let me be the last to know!
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- Black surplice top from Banana Republic– $20.99
- AG Adriano Goldschmeid “The Club” Jeans via Filene’s Basement– $32 on sale with a coupon
- Satin belt/skinny scarf from ATL– $1.47 on sale with coupon
- Black enamel pendant from I-Have-No-Idea
- Black rubber-bottomed Ruf N Tough heels from Aerosoles via 6pm.com– $40.25
Bargain paradise Filene’s Basement is– well, clearly– one of my favorite shopping destinations. (Why do I feel like “Through The Years” should be playing right now?) I’ve snagged a skirt for $2.50, Dolce and Gabbana for $64, Diane von Furstenberg for $21… Not to mention the $2500 wedding gown I helped my best friend score for $249 at the Running of the Brides. But the last few months, the deals have slowed to a trickle. They’d barely marked anything down at my local Filene’s since March. I’d heard distressing tales of their financial insolvency, but I remained steadfast in my denial.
Then, yesterday, I visited the downtown store, and almost started to cry, right there next to the discounted tights bin. My Filene, she was a shadow of her former self. You could have fit the entirety of her inventory into one of her three floors. Almost everything left was marked down (though not drastically enough to be truly tempting).
“Please don’t tell me y’all are going out of business,” I pleaded. “No, no…” denied the clerk, refusing to meet my eyes. But the Wall Street Journal gave it to me straight.
A judge approved the sale of Filene’s Basement Inc. to Sym’s Corp. and Vornado Realty Trust on Wednesday after refusing to confirm the winner of an initial auction… The final price tag for Filene’s Basement’s assets includes nearly $47.6 million in cash plus 70% of the value of the purchased inventory.
At least it went to a good home, right? Only time will tell if the new owners remain true to the spirit of my beloved Filene’s. In the meantime, I snapped a photo of myself with the old broad. Hopefully it won’t be the last time we see each other.
Related posts:
- Pretty Savvy Shopper: Snoopin' Around Filene's Basement
- Pretty Savvy Friday: What Kind of Shopper Are You?
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I wish that we had a FB near me! I keep drooling over your finds from there, but when I went to their website store locator, alas, nothing near me was found. Boo!
I do hope that they can continue to fuel your awesome wardrobe under new management, though
Where do you live, Caitlin? Memphis? I know it doesn’t usually carry “couture” stuff, but I find that Marshall’s (which y’all have) can be pretty great. I scored a $500 Elie Tahari jacket there for $29 once, and a pair of Paige Premium jeans for a friend (normally $100+) for $12. Of course, for a serious fashion fix, there’s always a day trip to NYC! Loehmann’s, Daffy’s, Century 21… Ah, I should go!
[...] I ended up getting the Gossard Superboost (the 32G was the best fit), the Aerosoles Ruf N Tough in black, and this pair of Softwalks, which were on sale for $19.95. I know they’re not cute, but they [...]
[...] all from the clearance racks of major retailers. Now, that’s all well and good, but given the shaky financial status of my favorite shopping destination and the constraints of my budget, I needed to branch [...]
[...] Until recently, mine was Filene’s Basement, but, well– you know. [...]