Filene's Stocked With Jil Sander

While many of you were waiting at Uniqlo to get your hands on Jil Sander's lower +J line, we were scoping out the real thing at Filene's Basement, on Union Square. Seriously, the Jil Sander rack was one of the only standouts at the discount store. The majority of Filene's clothing selection was so bad it could cause a sensitive shopper to break out in hives.

But lets concentrate on our shining Sander, which was marked an extra 40% off. We found a classic $3400 khaki shearling coat reduced to $800, after the additional discount. Granted, Jil Sander isn't really designed by Jil Sander and the price is be several times more than the $150 rough-edged wool pea coat at Uniqlo. This is shearling, however, and it's top quality and not off-label.

In addition to the shearling coat, there are plenty of blouses, slacks and jackets all priced between $150 and $300. Still not convinced of the value? Uniqlo's +J nylon jacket is $179.90!



After you explore the Jil Sander merchandise, head straight over to the designer accessories display. (Please don't blame us for any adverse allergic reactions if you diverge from our plan. The rest of the store IS that bad.) The accessories are priced a bit high but still noteworthy. We found a Chanel camellia flower pin for $250-- definitely too expensive for a cotton flower without any pretentious C's. There is also a Prada clutch from last year's crystal collection that is $1500, a perferated Prada bag in tan with white piping for $1049 and a huge Gucci logo bag for $3000.

Before purchasing any of these accessories, look them over carefully. A sales person admitted that the Gucci bag has been purchased and returned at least a dozen times. Doesn't that put the bag in the pre-owned category?