Sponsored Post: The Soft Trench and Flashion Sales — from Gap

53 Comments

1. Love this jacket for the weekend. But BOO to Gap for only offering it in stores. Most flash sales we’ve all come to love are online. I’d buy it online, but I won’t make it into the store on Saturday.

   1. Actually I just looked at it online and it looks a little sloppy to me? Still cute, but definitely non-work weekend wear.

      1. Agreed – love it from the back, but it looks like my tie-front bathrobe from the front.

         Also agree with you RR about the “in-store only? Really?” thing. That said, this “flashion” doesn’t seem so innovative when I remember that Old Navy used to do the one-day only specials. (I no longer shop at ON so I don’t know if they still do this.) A few years ago they had “flip-flops for $1 – ONE DAY ONLY!” We walked by a mall Old Navy that day, and the place was a mad. house. with the line going all the way back to the store.

         1. “all the way TO THE back OF the store,” she meant to say.

      2. I don’t like the loose flaps in the front, which I guess is what makes it a trench. It does look a little sloppy to me as well.

   2. Yep, the “in-store only” thing is a deal-breaker for me. It means an hour and a half of go to the mall, park, walk to the store, wade through the madhouse hoping the store still has the size/color I want, wait in line at checkout, etc. etc. Online I can check size/color in 30 seconds and then in another 30 seconds check out and it’s done, and then take my kid to the park. I realize some people find hectic and/or competitive shopping situations “fun,” but those situations are basically my version of hell. I don’t know if Gap is targeting the “overworked working mom” demographic but if they are – please, baby, put the flash sales online. :)

      1. This.

      2. Amen. The “overworked working mom” demographic wants no part of malls on Saturdays!

         1. The overworked childless demographic wants no part of it either. I used to like shopping at the mall but now it just stresses me out. Too many slow-walking people and teenagers milling around.

      3. Competitive shopping: Reminds me how Kmart had (has?) “blue-light specials.” I was too young to pay attention to details at the time, so I don’t know if they were pre-advertised or not. But we did a lot of Kmart shopping, and they’d periodically put up flashing blue lights in, say, the lingerie section and announce that all lingerie was 50% for the next 30 minutes. Women would come *sprinting* from other parts of the store to stock up before all the 36Cs were gone. It was a mad house. I recall that one of my aunts would just hang out at Kmart on the weekends waiting for something to go on sale …

         1. I remember one summer as a kid when I got all of my summer play clothes in one swoop through a blue-light special.

      4. For 100% polyester. Sorry, not for me.

2. Huh. The gray in the styling picture here and the gray on the GAP website look very different. Resolve ambiguity?

   1. You’re right. I really dig the gray on the website, though. I kinda like this piece!

3. I think this looks like wrinkled pajamas. Either have a cardigan or a trench, don’t try to combine it into this mutant top.

4. I think this trench looks great. It’s a more relaxed look than the classic trench, and I like your suggestion, Kat, to wear it with a pair of fitted trousers in the spring.

   Maybe the in-store only situation is a way to draw people into their stores? I have to agree, though – I’d be more inclined to buy the jacket if the sale were online, too.

   – Meredith

   1. That’s it exactly. You get people in the store to buy one thing. They see all the other things and decide to buy. If it is online only, you might not stick around on the website to see what else is there. In the store, you can’t help but see.

5. Getting the posting too quickly message…but there’s just no way I would trek to a store for a sale on one item, which would inevitably be sold out in my size any way. Nothing is that fabulous (and if it is, it would be worth just ordering at full price on-line and saving myself the hassle).

6. Yes, the gray here looks more like khaki.

   Also, on the website it says this hits mid-thigh, but the picture on the website shows it as blazer length. The picture here shows it a bit longer, but it’s still not mid-thigh.

   Not sure how this would look if you’re busty, with those big flaps across the front.

7. Technological Issue:

   Kat, I’ve noticed that once a post has more than about 20 comments, it doesn’t load (properly, or sometimes at all) on my iPhone and I need to read it on a computer. As far as I can tell, this is the only website that causes these problems for my phone. Am I the only one?

   Thanks.

   1. Kat-
      Same here, but it’s more like around 70 comments. I think my iPhone doesn’t like the comments all on one page. I have to switch to the non-mobile version to avoid crashing the browser.
      I know PC readers have requested comments all on one page – is there a way to make the mobile version with pages or “click to see more comments” without changing the regular version?

      1. I’ve had the same problem but my iPhone seems to crash frequently these days (any tips?).

         Kat – Also, a few weeks ago the site wouldn’t load beyond the banner at my work desktop – we can only use internet exporer and work has jacked it up with all sorts of work programs, so that might be part of the cause. Most other sites worked fine though.

         1. the IE problem I knew about — took some code off my site that was causing the problem.

            Will look into the mobile situation — I know it isn’t great right now. Thank you guys for your patience!

            1. An app (Android for me!) would be fantastic.

8. I have been looking for a “soft” trench for years now (I love the one that Jennifer Aniston wears in the final scene of The Breakup.) I’m too busty to wear the traditional double-breasted Burberry style, and believe me I’ve tried!

   This one is great, but I want one that hits above the knee, so the search continues!

   1. Check gilt today if you are a “member.”
      They have a lot of different versions right now.

   2. Look at Lands End — search “luxe trench”

      1. At your suggestion, I just looked at the very cute luxe trench at Lands End. Unfortunately doesn’t come in small enough sizes for me personally. FWIW, the XS regular has a 39″ chest, 33″ length, 31″ sleeve, and 45″ sweep. The XS petite is 39″ chest, 35 3/8″ length, 32″ sleeve, and 45″ sweep.

9. Banana Republic lunchtime sale 40% of suits online and in stores, enter BRPOWER online.

   Happy shopping:)

   1. Very exciting… do you know the hours on that?

      1. 11-2

         1. Thanks!

   2. Wow, first time I’ve looked at BR suits in a couple months – they’re (mostly) back to being a work appropriate length! Nice!

   3. Code doesn’t seem to be working for me. Was trying to just order a pair of suit pants. Are there additional terms (minimum purchase amount, need to buy a full suit?) that you know of?

      1. See below.

         *Offer includes select suit jackets, pants, and belts. Excludes Heritage & Monogram. Offer valid at Banana Republic stores in Canada on March 3, 2011, from 11 a.m-2 p.m. local standard time. Offer is valid online on March 3, 2011 at 11:00 a.m. ET through 2:00 p.m. ET on Banana Republic merchandise only. Not valid on Edition by Banana Republic, Banana Republic Factory Store, or on International shipments. Qualifying amount applies to merchandise only, not to Giftcards, packaging, applicable taxes or shipping and handling charges. No adjustments on previous purchases. Not valid for cash or cash equivalent. Cannot be combined with any other offers or discounts, including Gap Inc. employee discount. Store selection may differ from online.

         1. Thanks. No clue why it’s not working for my item. Guess it wasn’t meant to be!

            1. You posted your comment after 2pm ET. The sale was based on ET, not local time.

            2. Time stamp here is off. Your post is showing as 3:28, which hasn’t happened yet (it’s currently 2:53 EST). I was definitely well within the timeframe. :-)

      2. It seems like it’s randomly some suits and not others. I went to go get the Martin pant in black & gray — the black discounted, the gray did not. Go figure. I ended up only getting the black, plus a black skirt. The reviews suggest that sizing is all over the place, but I figured it’s free shipping & I can always do an easy return to the store.

         Thanks to the OP for sharing the code!

         1. I already have a black suit so I got one in gray. The skirt was on sale, but not the jacket. I also got another pair of black pants (you can never have too many) and the fossil skirt. I needed some more basics.

         2. FWIW, I loooove the Martin pant. I’m a teeny bit more “hippy” than will allow for Theory’s pants to look good on me, and that is the one cut a BR that doesn’t seem overly tight around the backside, and still has some room through the thighs. As a disclaimer – I do have ex-ballerina legs, so my thighs aren’t exactly slender. A size 2 in that cut fits me perfectly, and is just the right length to wear with a 2-3inch heel.

            1. I am a huge Martin pant. I was surprised to read in the reviews that it was for people w/o hips only as I am a wee bit “hippy,” too, and find them to be tres flaterring. Oh, well…. here’s hoping the sizing works out, no two items seem to be alike anymore.

            2. *Martin pant **fan**

10. Ann Taylor is having a great spring sale. Buy 2 full-price pieces for 25% off, or 3 for 40% off. If you get a whole suit (as I did, including a shell) you get the 40% off.

    1. I went there yesterday and did not like anything.

11. First – Kat, congrats on landing Gap as a sponsor. Major coup!

    Second – hearkening back to our discussion of low-heeled nude-for-you pumps for big-footed girls, thanks to whoever pointed me in the direction of Stuart Weitzman. After a few weeks of looking for (and not finding) a less expensive alternative, and after hours of trolling the Internet for my size and realizing it was mostly sold out, I bit the bullet and sprang for the Poco in Adobe Aniline. Trying to convince myself it’s a classic I’ll wear through multiple re-solings; in the short term, they’re perfect for an upcoming event. Thanks ladies!

    1. Like those! I am a Stuart Weitzman fan, although mine are all special-occasiony,or sandals, not workwear. A little backward, I guess, since I wear them less than work shoes. But they are so well made and comfortable.

    2. I have to wonder how many sales sell out because they are posted here. Seems like there is enough traffic. Is so, I am sure more sponsors are on the way.

12. I’m thinking GAP may want it in store because they’ve done research that shows people buy more items in-person versus online. I know I’m definitely guilty of this – I end up walking through other areas even though I planned to just pick up X item. Agree that for convenience sake it should be online and in-store, though. Especially when you schlep out only to find everything in your size is gone.

    1. lol yeah – but the schlep to find the item in your size is gone means you’ll pick up something else to justify the trip (guilty of this!).

    2. I’m sure people buy more when they are in the store, but I’m also sure more people would buy this item if it were valid online.

13. I really like that a lot, wish they had similar promotions (or worthwhile sales at all) in the UK!

    (And Gap folks, if you’re reading this, please tell your buddies over at BR that the trench I bought from Gap five years ago is going strong and the trench I bought at BR in January is already falling apart. Such strange, patchy quality across the brands.)

14. FYI, this promo is not in stores only. You can get the coat for $50 online right now.

Comments are closed.