Nordstrom Anniversary Sale Tips From a Former Employee
Hey guys! I can’t believe it’s already July and already time for the Nordstrom Anniversary Sale. I am more excited than every because this is the first year that I am not an employee. Yes, I know it sounds weird, because you’re right I don’t have a discount anymore. But, the sale already gives you up to 40% off which is more than my employee discount anyway!
The reason I am most excited is because everything was a complete surprise to me. I didn’t have time to check out the catalog so I had no idea what to expect in terms of product! As a former retail employee and manager at Nordstrom, I’m not gonna lie this sale was one of our most stressful if not the most stressful time of the year.
The anniversary sale is almost as big as our Christmas sale. There is so much prep work that goes behind it, setting up all of the private tents (who remembers those?) or now the gated off areas. And then completely redoing the entire floor again for the public sale. So this year as a customer, let me just say I’m gonna grab a latte from the Ebar and really enjoy myself.
As a former employee, I can give you a little bit of behind the scenes scoop..
If you’re completely lost at this point and have never heard of the Anniversary Sale, (which to my surprise as an employee, a lot of frequent customers had no idea what it was) let me tell ya! This sale is incredibly unique because I’m not sure any other store does anything similar. If you are familiar with retailers, and like to shop sales, you know they typically happen at towards the end of the season so the store can clear out and get ready for the next season.
This anniversary sale is the complete opposite for our benefit. It’s only early-mid July, but yet we are going to get the opportunity to shop the newest Fall product at a discounted price! Not a slight discount, but up to 40% off! And if you know Nordstrom, the product ain’t cheap so this sale is everything!
What do I need to know?
Early Access (Nordstrom card holders only): July 12- July 19th.
Public Sale: July 20- August 5th
So to sum it up, there are two different dates that are important to remember. First off is today, July 12 through July 19th. This sale is one big way that Nordstrom likes to reward their credit card holders. If you have a Nordstrom credit card, you earn a “VIP” week so to say. For everyone who doesn’t own a credit card (and isn’t interested in getting one), you can shop July 20th, this is called the public sale. The public sale will have the exact same prices and product, however there is no guarantee that your size may be sold out at the time of the public sale.
They do hold back some inventory for the public sale to prevent this from happening to an extreme level. But, if there is something you are absolutely dying to have, I would consider opening up a card! If you open up a card you will get rewards money back as well.
How do I shop?
Very easy! You can shop online or in the store! I recommend going into the store and trying on the clothing to make sure everything fits just in case you order the wrong size and then it’s sold out when you try to reorder the size. However, my strategy is to browse online, get an idea of what I like, what I want to try on and then see if I can find it in my local Nordstrom (if you have a local Nordstrom).
I buy as many things as I can from in-store because yes it does help the employees with commission (and lots of them are my friends!), but I also like to walk out with the item in my hand so I can enjoy it immediately. Immediate gratification is the definition of our generation right?!
However, if you weren’t aware, not all Nordstrom’s receive the same product. Depending on how big your store is, the more product you will get and it’s also determined on location. If you are shopping at The Grove, in Los Angeles, you’re going to have more of a focus on west coast and lighter layers as opposed to the Michigan Ave store, in Chicago.
So keep this in mind! And even if you were satisfied with your in store purchase, I encourage you to still check out the online selection because you will have access to everything.
If you’re like me and have to work on the first day of early access, I won’t be in the store until around 7pm and will only have two hours to run around the store and check everything out. Since this is the case I will be browsing online during my lunch break and created a shopping cart before I get there. There is also a feature on the website and their app that allows you to see if the item is at your local store or not.
Where do I start?
If big sales like this seem overwhelm you and you aren’t interested in Christmas in July, I have two solutions for you! Either 100% shop online, and order a few sizes if you’re iffy or schedule an appointment!
The employees at Nordstrom all have a great sense of style, are ahead of and knowledgeable on the trend’s, and will be able to be your right hand person the entire time. If you ever need a size, they got you. It makes the anniversary sale way more enjoyable if you have someone getting your sizes, making suggestions (they’ve seen the product every day for the past few months so they know exactly what is available) and finding the product from another store if they sell out.
As an employee, it was my goal to make appointments with people. I loved creating relationships with customers and getting to know more about their story and their lifestyle so I wasn’t just picking out random clothes, but I could pick out functional and realistic clothes for lets say, the mom of four kids who is constantly running around the house and to soccer practice.
You can walk in that day and just start working with someone, or I suggest setting up an appointment ahead of time because that way they can pull together a room for you full of what you are interested in trying on and everything is ready to go. How great is that?! So if you are that mom of four kids and don’t think you have time to stop in the store, then set up an appointment over the phone with the stylist manager or the page the department you typically shop in most.
If you set up an appointment before, you could be in and out of the store in under an hour! Then there is no excuse. And did I mention appointments are FREE.
What do I buy?
I will headed to the store to try everything on and pick out my favorite pieces from this years anniversary sale. Stay tuned for my next blog post and YouTube video!