12:30pm: I arrived to see 40~45 people already in line. The doors were scheduled to open at 1pm, so I tried to enjoy the gorgeous Sunday weather. Civilized shoppers seemed content browsing on their phones or chatting away with their friends. After doing some mental arithmetic, I guesstimated I would be inside within an hour. So far, so good.
12:50pm: As the opening drew near, a person came out and asked for anyone on the VIP list to step forward. Within a millisecond of him finishing his sentence, a blaze of chaos ignited. VIPs and non-VIPs, alike, rushed forward. People were cutting, pushing, and shoving. In mere moments, what was an organized line became a stampede towards the doors. Overwhelmed by the sudden onslaught, the sale organizer panicked and (unwisely) started giving away VIP tickets without checking his list. This was like pouring gasoline on a bonfire. It was obvious many who laid claim to a VIP ticket were, in fact, lying their way in. Without verifying the legitimacy of each shopper's VIP claim, emotions started to erupt from the people who were left outside. Many ladies demanded that a manager from Shelly & Renee (the sale organizers) come down and solve the problem immediately. The two photos above show the before & aftermath of the chaos. The person circled in the 2nd photo is trying to regain control of the crowd.
1:30pm: 30 minutes past the announced opening time, the sale was still not ready for shoppers. I overheard people saying that the bags had arrived late. By this time, the restlessness was palpable. Another security personnel came out and issued an ultimatum. "There will not be any more VIP numbers handed out. We will not ask you to show these numbers. Please move back and go back to your spot, or I will shut this sale down!" Though I doubted this person was going to enforce such a shutdown, people did slowly moved back to their original spots.
1:45pm: First 20 people in. Amongst the crowd, people were complaining about how disorganized the sale was. One particular young lady behind me tried unsuccessfully to sneak in with her mother several times. Every time they failed, they crawled back to their old spots. This obviously irritated a few people and so they vocalized how "ill–mannered" these two were. One angry lady even went so far as to snap at the daughter with an expletive; making her cry.
2:00pm: The line finally moved. Only 2 people in front of me. Latecomers, who happened to be on the VIP list, were denied entrance.
2:10pm: After all the drama, I was finally inside the 5th floor showroom. The ambiance could be described as frantic. Many shoppers were hoarding (1st photo below) and though there were 3 cash registers, no one seemed to be controlling this line as well (2nd photo below). So, all in all, chaos outside and chaos inside. Oh well~ Now, let's talk about the merchandise. There was a plethora of exotic clutches and luxurious totes in various hues. I have to say the sheer amount of products available was impressive. Pricing was easy to figure out. Each item was labeled with a colored sticker. Clutches (yellow stickers) were $750, small bags (red stickers) were $1,000, medium bags (navy stickers) were $1,250, large bags (orange stickers) were $1,450, extra large bags (green stickers) were $1,700, mixed materials (brown stickers) were $800, and belts were $100.
2:30pm: I asked one of the employees if they would be replenishing. I was told "No". If you missed this sale today, I encourage you to not waste your time here. Like I said, many shoppers were grabbing at least 5 items so it's highly likely that items will be picked over by tonight.
Price list:
Boxes $300
Clutches $750
Small bags $1,000
Medium bags $1,250
Large bags, $1,450
Extra large bags $1,700
Mixed material $800
