Saks.Com: Shop The Avenue From Home
Written: Jan 15 '05 (Updated Jan 17 '05)
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Perhaps one of the most prestigious shopping avenues in the world is Fifth Avenue. Saks Fifth Avenue is one of the Grand Dames on Fifth, and a stop I always make while visiting New York City. You can also find Saks on Worth Avenue in Palm Beach, Michigan Avenue in Chicago, Wilshire Boulevard in Beverly Hills, and many more renowned streets in the USA. If you don't happen to live anywhere near these famous shopping streets, Saks.com is your answer for designer apparel and high design home accessories.
Even though, I live on Michigan Avenue in Chicago, I did manage to spend quite a few dollars on the Saks website this holiday season. It sure beat fighting the Christmas crowds, and as a Saks first member, I always get free shipping......every day of the year. All you have to do is stay in the house and click on your mouse! Grab your credit card, any card, as they accept The Saks card, American Express, Mastercard, Visa, Diners Club, and Discover, and come shopping with me. Since we are shopping from home, let's begin with the.........
The Home Page~
The home page at Saks.com changes almost daily or at least weekly. I love that, and I am never bored by the look of the page when I log on to it. Today the main story is about designer Diane Von Furstenberg's vintage spring trunk show. Since I wore her wrap dress in the 70's, I'm passing. There are also five trendy pictures to click on featuring a Marc Jacobs handbag ($1,200),A jacket by Marc Jacobs ($328) Burberry shirt for men ($195), a great Miss Sixty spring jacket ($249), and a pair of Dolce and Gabbana spring mules ($495 but, hey, they are snakeskin!). Too rich for your blood? Keep reading, I promise that I will find something wonderful for us under $100!
From the home page, one can also shop from individual catalogs that you might have received at home. The rest of the shopping experience is broken down to the following categories: Shop By Designer (My favorite way to shop) Women's Apparel, Shoes, Handbags & Accessories, Saks Beauty Place, The Men's Store, and Gifts, Home, and Kids.
Also on the home page are bullets to click for shopping someone's Wedding Registry, Purchasing a Gift Card,
Finding a Saks store, Viewing Your Account, Viewing your Saks shopping bag, a Help button and a Search option. For me, this home page has everything I want from an Internet site. I will begin with the Search option, especially since I promised you something for under $100.
Searching For A Bargain~
Let's try that Search button now. I could use a new pair of jeans, how about you? Surely we can find a pair of jeans for under $100. I simply type in the word jeans and press go. This is what I find: Eight pages of jeans, and a few odd items like a men's pair of low rise briefs! There were many brands from which to choose such as: the very trendy Seven for All Mankind (men's and women's), Adriano Goldschmied, a new one to me, Hugo Boss, Blue Cult, Bluemarine,Briono, Burberry, Cambio, Charles Nolan, Citizens of Humanity, Company, Salon Z, Consumers Guide Milk, Dana Buchman, Ernest Sewn, Eileen Fisher, Elie Tahari, Ermenegildo Zegna, Frankie B, James Cured by Seun, Jean Paul Da'mage, John Varvatos, Joie, Juicy Couture, Marc by Marc Jacobs, Miss Sixty, Notify, Paper Denim & Cloth, Real Clothes, Rock & Republic, St. John Sport, True Religion, Victorinox, and Zegna Sport. The most expensive pair were the Bluemarine Denim Brocade Jeans at $415.00. The least expensive were the Victorinox Geneva Classic Jeans for men at $89.50. See I told you we would find something for under $100!
Though the site always has some things on sale, there really isn't all that much. Perhaps a page or two (if you are lucky) in each category. To find the sale items, one must shop by category and scroll down to the orange "sale" link. Two years ago, I hit the jackpot in the home section. I was hosting a Tea Party bridal shower in my home, and looking for party favor for the 25 guests. Saks.com had wonderful "tea pot for one sets" marked down to $7.50 each. The retail value was $20.00 each. It does pay to search the site for bargains such as mine.
Designers~
From the lengthy list above you can see that Saks.com offers some of the newest, trendiest, an hippest names in fashion, Their site also has classic designers such as Gucci, Dior, Lily Pulitzer, Yves Saint Laurent, Bruno Magli, Escada, and Donna Karan, to name just a few. You won't find much in the genre of just "name brands" like Levi's Jeans, Cover Girl Cosmetics, Liz Claiborne, Jockey, etc. You will find some "midlevel" bridge brands such as Ellen Tracey and Saks own brand of Real Clothes. Chanel, Laura Mercier, Kiehls, Jo Malone, Fresh, La Prairie, and Trish McEvoy are some of the beauty brands represented on line. If you have ever been in a free standing Saks Fifth Avenue store, you know how massive their cosmetic sections are. The Internet site pales in comparison.
Gifts~
Saks is a great place to buy gifts for anyone on your list. The Gift section is categorized by price points to include "limitless luxuries" or types of gifts such as: Gifts for her, Gifts for him, Gifts, for the pet lover, Gourmet gifts, etc. On the check out page you may indicate if the item you are purchasing is a gift and receive complimentary gift packaging. One can also type out a gift card for the recipient.
If you were purchasing a gift for the pet or pet lover in your life, currently you can find Penhaligon's fine leather leashes and collars. Not real exciting, but they are on sale and are very high quality. A little more fun are the gifts for kids. If your gifted child is very special, you might purchase the Airflow Sky King airplane in shiny red or pink for $440. Then again, you can find a very cute little Gund stuffed animal for only $20. A gift for the home might be an item I purchased as a holiday present which was a Kim Seybert Martini Glass w/ Crystals for $55.00. Or at a lower price level the site offers a selection of "Hip Hotel" books for $29.95. Both are great choices for a gift.
Customer Service~
I have only had one situation where I needed help. One day quite a long time ago, I had trouble placing an order. The site just would not work for me. So I went to the Help section and found a link for "Live Help" and clicked it. Within seconds, I was messaging a "live person" who personally took my order without using the normal check out procedures. This was very helpful and without it, Saks probably would have lost my sale. You can reach customer service by phone 24 hours a day.
Saks First~
By now you have likely heard of department stores and airline loyalty programs. Saks has one of the best. If you are a Saks charge card holder, you are rewarded for shopping with them. Saks keeps track of your purchases throughout the year. These can be purchases made in the brick and mortar stores or on-line. Once you reach $1,000 in purchases, you are automatically enrolled. You will earn a point for each dollar spent. They have many double and triple point events during the year. You can bet I either hit the stores or the Internet site on those days! There are different levels of membership in Saks First. As a Saks First Plus member I receive a gift card of 4% of my total purchases made throughout the year. Pretty nifty, right? Saks first members receive free Internet shipping via FEDEX, Premier members receive free local delivery, perks at Ritz Carlton Hotels, and a complimentary "mystery" gift card on your birthday. Last year mine was for $100! You can read all about these perks and more at www.saksfirst.com or follow the links at Saks.com.
Shipping and Delivery~
Saks gets delivery right and on time with every one of my orders. I have not paid for shipping in a long time, but I feel that there shipping charge is par for most high end department store sites. They also provide tracking information on line, if you register on the site. The site states that Standard Shipping will have your package arriving in 7-10 business days. There are also expensive options for Rush Shipping, if you need your item in a hurry. My packages have always been at my door in five days. Saks is better than most Internet stores in the delivery department. At this time, Saks.com does not ship internationally. If you live abroad, you can order, however, for delivery within the United States.
Your Saks Bag~
The Saks bag area is your shopping cart. Interesting, Saks rarely empties the contents of my shopping cart. I f I do a little shopping on Monday, but not complete the purchase, the items almost always remain in my "Saks Bag." This can be a bit dangerous, if you don't pay attention. You may just be purchasing something that you no longer want.
Check Out~
It really is very easy and painless. Saks stores your credit card number, if you wish. The site also recognizes my account number as a Saks First member and automatically deducts my shipping charges. I enjoy just clicking my mouse to any address I have stored on my Saks address book without any additional typing. Except for the one time described earlier, I have never had an issue with the check-out process.
The Saks Scoop~
Be sure to sign up for e-mail alerts. In doing so, Saks will send you special sales announcements, free shipping offers, and you will be the first to know about new merchandise. If you were looking for the ever so popular UGGS sheepskin purses and clothing this season, Saks was one of the first to have them on their site. If you are a charge customer, you can view your account and pay your bill on line. This is a service I don't take advantage of often. Who wants to see the damage?
Saks website is better than most, but comparable to Neiman Marcus. New on the Internet scene, Bergdorfgoodman.com should take lessons from Saks. You won't pay more at Saks.com for the designer merchandise that you can find at other high end Internet stores. In fact, you might get lucky and find a bargain.
Give Saks.com a try, Soon you will be ready for Fifth Avenue!
Recommended:
Yes
What product did you purchase or try to purchase? Many things over the years!
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Member: Deborah
Location: Chicago
Reviews written: 30
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