How top shops like Barneys, Saks, Bergdorf do ‘Black Friday’

Bloomberg

At the entrance of Bergdorf Goodman, one of the world’s glitziest department stores, the morning after Thanksgiving, a store associate puts a few Saint Laurent handbags on top a glass case. He pauses and looks at the dozen or so people gathered. “Up to 40 percent off,” he announces to the early birds. They gasp and start analysing the red satchels and tan suede totes–then put them back down, and move on.
America’s fanciest shops do Black Friday in a different fashion than their mid- or mass-market counterparts. Lines are short and no doors get busted, but there are still sales to enjoy and deals to find. The finest department stores welcome shoppers with rare markdowns, though they’re still quite modest. It’s hard to find anything treated like a true holiday doorbuster–instead, just 25 percent in one corner, an extra 10 percent off in the next.
Manhattan’s Fifth Avenue is one of the world’s premier shopping streets, featuring both high-end swag and affordable clothing shops. Bergdorf opened its doors around 9 am. By then, the sidewalks are already bustling with people carrying bags from the more modest end of the retail spectrum–Hollister, Aldo, Uniqlo. Fancy shops don’t open before sunrise. They certainly don’t open on Thanksgiving proper, as many discount-crazed stores have done since 2011. Macy’s welcomed customers at 5 pm. Thursday, stayed open until 2 am, then re-opened four hours later. J.C. Penney went even further, with a 2 pm opening on Thanksgiving Day.
Bergdorf Goodman’s 5th floor is its busiest area on Black Friday, with markdowns on its contemporary brands–labels such as Alice + Olivia, Halston Heritage, and Diane Von Furstenburg. On its main accessories floor, there’s the handful of Saint Laurent items and some small leather goods from Balenciaga. Nearly everything in the store cost hundreds, or thousands, or dollars, so even the sale items go slowly throughout the day.
Barneys New York opened at 10 am, later than most of its high-end competitors, and touts 40 percent off “select merchandise.” Some sections of the store are outfitted with black-and-white signs that simply say “sale,” which act as magnets for all who pass by. It’s a similar vibe to that of Bergdorf.
Bloomingdale’s is much livelier, thanks to a six-hour sale to open Black Friday. All kinds of merchandise is flagged with red discount signs. Its sale was popular enough, in fact, to wreak havoc on its credit card processing system. Parent Macy’s Inc. experienced billing issues with both Bloomingdale’s and its namesake department store chain, leaving shoppers frustrated. All these stores offer their personalised services on Black Friday. Barneys, for instance, has concierge services to get tickets to concerts or the theater. For those unwilling to spend hours combing through dresses, personal shoppers are available on most floors.
Quick visits to specialty stores show that it’s business as usual, despite the shopping frenzy elsewhere. Louis Vuitton opened its flagship a bit earlier in the morning, but there are no sales. Chanel and Dior were expected to keep their boutiques open for an extra hour at the end of the day.
For Saint Laurent, Burberry, and Fendi, all is normal. Want the real deals? You have to go downmarket. The Coach store displyed “Up to 50% Off” decals.