Market Trip

I've now figured out that I travel to NY 7 times a year for buying trips.  I always end up going twice for Spring and Fall buying since the collections are so large and I like to intersperse Showroom trips into those buying seasons.  About a week and a half ago, I headed to NY to look at Early Spring and Resort collections.

Because the collections are much smaller and I do not bring in a lot for this particular season, I had a very focused schedule for the morning at the market and then had two showroom appointments in the afternoon.

Some highlights:

• I visited two new "Made in USA" designers and loved their collections.  I continue to hear this request from my customers and I want to honor their desires (and part of the mission of my store) as much as possible.  Both are small enough that I got to meet the designers as well and had favorable impressions of both of them.
• So many great primary colors were showing up in the collections - think Blue, Red, Yellow, White.
• One of the showrooms I visited was actually in the midst of moving showrooms so they had me look at their collections in the meeting room of the condo building where one of the owners lived!  I got out of mid-town and the Fashion District and up into the residential areas of the Upper West Side.  I loved her building and wanted to just move in right then and there!
• The other showroom I visited was back down in the Fashion District.  I love the light, airy environment of this particular showroom and the fact that it is so small that I can see the collection in detail and in an unhurried fashion.  Plus, I like that they sample the items in my size!  I tried on one skirt (that I have ordered for the store) that I honestly did NOT want to give back.  I half-jokingly asked "Can I take this with me?"  
• As I walked back to Penn Station (no taxi trauma this time around - both taxis I took were without unnecessary angst), I saw a store owner trying to hold a shoplifter inside the store!  It takes a lot to get New Yorkers to stop and look and this ruckus did the trick.  The possible shoplifter had one shoulder and arm outside the store and the store owner was pulling the door to prevent him from exiting.  A whole lot of yelling and swearing going on.  The potential shoplifter managed to get some muscle behind his push and came bursting out of the store just as I had passed by.  Let's just say I got out of the way as quickly as I could!
• For my friend Renee, I wore my Yoana Baraschi Faux Wrap Dress, a Chan Luu Asymmetrical Cardigan (to keep warm on the train), and Delman Black Patent Leather Sandals.  

Next up:  Sidewalk Sale, Year Two