Hi Loves,

We all know that shopping is our cardio, it’s our addiction, our way of life, but when does a shopper truly get to show off all their skills? At the coveted warehouse sale!

If you’ve watched one of my favorite moves of all time, Confessions of a Shopaholic, you know the iconic warehouse sale scene in which two women are fighting over a pair of Gucci boots. I can say that I have never seen two people physically fighting over one item, I have seen people plot out strategies so that they get the best items possible. Most strategies include, but are not limited to: Dragging your tired and caffein deprived significant other with you to hold everything you want to buy, going with a group of 5 people so you all can look for things for each other, hoarding anything that looks at all like something you might someday wear even if its 3 sizes too big or small, passive aggressively starring down another person holding something that they want, and bringing an empty stroller to load clothes into without them getting tired.

Listen, warehouse sales are not the place for the weak. Be prepared to stand in line for hours and hold 20 pounds of clothes in your arms as you walk around making sure you didn’t miss anything you want. I’ve been to 2 warehouse sales in the last six months, Lululemon held their annual warehouse sale in Boston this past fall and it was AMAZING! The location changes every year, but honestly it was the best 3 day shopping experience of my life. More recently the Boston based store In The Pink, had their first ever warehouse sale this April. ITP sells Lilly Pulitzer and similar brands, which I was really excited for since summer is coming up.

Lilly Pulitzer finds from ITP Warehouse sale! 

Plank challenge at the Lululemon Warehouse Sale! – I got free things from this!

So here are my rules for warehouse sales:

1. Know your limit – Know how much money you are willing to spend and be aware of that limit while you’re shopping!
2. Wear comfortable and semi tight clothes – Most of the time at warehouse sales, there is a communal changing room or no changing room at all, so if you’re not comfortable stripping down in front of strangers, than wear things like leggings and a tank top, that you can easily slide things on over to get an idea of how it looks on you.
3. Get there early – Most warehouse sales start at about 8 am, so if you’re looking to be one of the first people in line so that you can get the best selection of things, then be ready to get there at least 3 hours before it opens.
4. Know what you like – If you go into a warehouse sale not knowing what kind of clothing you like, you’ll end up walking out of their with a ton of things you’ll never wear, but were a good deal. Look up the brand thats having the warehouse sale, see what kinds of things they sell, and what kinds of styles you might like. You probably wont find the exact styles you’re seeing online, but you’ll get an idea of what you’ll find.
5. Bring a friend – Everything in life is better when you have someone to share fun moments with! Having a friend with you is also good because you two can give each other an honest opinion of how things look on you, they can be your mirror (sometimes there are none in the warehouse sales).
6. Don’t be scared to be firm – Obviously, don’t be rude, but sometimes these things can get crazy and you have to be alert and ready to grab something if you want it. If you’re going to buy it then you have nothing to feel guilty about, if you’re hoarding clothes but not going to buy them…. I don’t even want to talk to you.
7. Be kind! – Make friends with the other people you’re with, you will be able to help each other out inside the sale. They might see something you would love and think “OMG I have to get this to that girl”, it’s happened to me before, it pays to be kind.
8. Bring a cross body – Do not bring a huge bag with you to a warehouse sale! It will slow you down, you’ll need both hands free to be searching through the racks, and you want something that stays close to your body. Cross body bags are a MUST HAVE!
9. Find the sale on Social Media – Everyone knows that social media is everything when it comes to communication these days, find whatever warehouse sale you’re attending to get updates on what’s in stock, changes in hours, other people’s opinions on how things are. It’s so worth it to find the event on social media, it’s saved me a lot of trouble. Twitter, Instagram, and Facebook are the best for these events.
10. Bring a card and cash – Warehouse sales are not all the same, some are card only, and some are cash only, and you wont know until you get there. So have both available to you, just in case.

Me and Felicity with some other people we met, we all got free bags for being first in line!

So those are all my tips, I can’t tell you how much fun I always have at warehouse sales, if you have the chance to go to one, I say 100% DO IT! You’ll meet awesome people and find awesome deals, and that’s all we really want in life, right? If you have any more questions about warehouse sale shopping feel free to tweet me @mylifease!

Love,

Me/E