Well, friends, I’ve had my first pop-up shop experience. And I am smitten.
The folks with Lands’ End had reached out to let me know the company was setting up their first-ever holiday pop-shop — and only one of two in the country — in the Copley Place Mall in Boston, and Mimi and I took advantage of our weekend holiday adventures in Boston (more to come later this week) and decided to do a little Christmas shopping.
I’ve written about my love for Lands’ End here on the blog before but most of my shopping was done online. Yes, I know they have dedicated sections in some local Sears stores, but that doesn’t even close to having an entire store dedicated to Lands’ End, so I knew we were in for a totally different experience. So off we went.
The 3,000 square foot store itself had a rustic feel and a clean and organized layout: women’s collection on the left, men’s collection in the right, kids and home/luggage (including their famous canvas tote) in the back.
As hard as it was to resist the women’s side of the store, I focused my attention on the men’s side. I wanted to grab a few things for. Dr. G for Christmas. (Hey, husband, if you’re reading this blog post — even though I told you not to — stop right now).
Meanwhile Mimi immediately made a beeline to the back of the store and this enormous fuzzy white polar bear.
After a quick peek at the girls holiday dresses (Mimi found one she liked, as you can tell below, and was also a big fan of the lounge/”fireplace” area), I zeroed in on a bunch of 1/4 zip option tops for Dr. G, including a mix of both fleece and sweater material.
In the end, after much deliberation, I decided on these two:
2. Textured fleece half-zip pullover (in merlot)
But when I went to check out, the fabulous cashier pointed out that if you spend $150 you get a 30% discount … and this adorable tote bag, which comes free with every $150 purchase.
Now how could I resist?
So I grabbed the third item I’d had my eye on (this cotton half-zip pullover in french blue), and she was right: the total was about the same it would have been without the third item. And I got my tote bag. Talk about a win-win!
Because they’re gifts, and since Dr. G is kind of between sizes in tops, I asked about the return policy, and no fear. The cashier gave me a (free!) pre-paid return label, so if Dr. G. needs to exchange a size, or return something altogether, it’s a piece of cake.
So in the end, with the 30% off, I got two sweaters that Dr. G. can wear to work, and one casual fleece top for weekend, plus the I <heart> Boston tote (for me!) for just over $100!
And little did I know that I could have received an additional 25% off with the donation of a gently used men’s, women’s, or child’s old winter coat to Lands’ End’s Coats for Kids coat drive (going on until Dec. 20).
From the ambiance to the product selection to the fabulous customer service, I had a blast shopping outside the catalog in a “real” Lands’ End store and, most importantly, I’m thrilled with how we made out. In addition to clothes, the Lands’ End Holiday Pop-Up Shop also has other gifts, like the tote bags, home decor, Christmas stockings, etc. And monogramming for certain items is even available on-site.
Happy shopping!
Have you ever shopped at a pop-up store before?
Disclaimer: I received a Lands’ End gift card to facilitate my shopping experience at the Pop-Up Shop, but all thoughts and opinions are, as always, my own.
Danielle Kempe says
Very cool!
I love that they’re a Coats for Kids drop off location. My 1st job in the nonprofit space was managing that program, and my friend Julie currently handles their PR.