How To Shop The Dillard's New Year Sale
It is actually funny that I am writing this blog post as I had no intention to write this post but I had so many questions about the Dillard’s New Year Sale when I posted a few days ago that I thought I would do a little blog post on how it all works in case you have never been and plan to go next year. Let’s start off and say that the Dillard’s New Year Sale is not for the faint of hearts. It is a mad house of mainly women shopping to get the best deals so just be prepared. A little back history on the Dillard’s New Year Sale if you are unfamiliar — it always happens on New Year’s Day and it is their biggest sale of the year. All clearance items are mark down and then you get an additional 50% off that price which makes for some great prices on designer brands. I have been going to this sale for years and as crazy as it gets, I love shopping the sale every year and I always come home with some great items that will last over time.
TIPS ON SHOPPING THE DILLARD’S NEW YEAR SALE LIKE A PRO
Get to the store early but not too early! Most likely, it will be cold outside and you definitely do not want to stand out there for hours unless you do then you do you! I normally try to get there about 15 -20 minutes early to get a decent parking spot but I don’t actually walk towards the door until a few minutes before they open. Most stores will open at 9:00 AM but you may want to call your local Dillard’s and find out for sure when they plan to open. If there is a specific department you want to go to first, be sure to try and park closest to that door.
Dress comfortable and light. It will be so packed in the store that you will get hot and will not want to wear your coat for very long so I suggest wearing a hoodie or sweatshirt if it is cold and wear a t-shirt underneath in case you get hot, you can wrap your sweatshirt around your waist. You will also want to wear comfortable shoes as you will be most likely be trying on shoes and you will also have some wait standing in line to check out and the last thing you want is for your feet to hurt.
If you can, I should suggest wearing a crossbody type purse versus something big and bulky. It makes it easier to get around and it is one less heavy thing on your shoulder while you are shopping and carrying around your purchases plus it keeps your hands free to shop.
Bring your own BIG bag! If you ever been to Dillard’s than you know they don’t have shopping cards or baskets. Sometimes you can find a cardboard box that they will give you to put your purchases in but that gets heavy pretty quickly so I suggest bringing a big tote back or I like to use those big blue IKEA bags. They are light and they can hold a lot of stuff.
Bring a bottle of water if you can and/or snacks because you will be there for a few hours. If you are one that needs a drink or snacks, pack some in your purchase. There isn’t a convenient place to grab water or food and you won’t want to have to head to the food court for that until you are done shopping. I normally shop for everything I want, check out once and then drop off everything in my car if I need to go to another store.
Go solo or grab your girlfriends to join you! Because it does get so crazy, I wouldn’t suggest bringing small kids if you don’t have too. They will not enjoy it and neither will you. This year, me and a few girlfriends went together and it was perfect. It’s always nice to have someone help give you opinion on things or hold your place in line if you need to run to the restroom, etc.
If you think you might like it, add it to your bag because it might not be there when you go back. It’s easier to grab the item and then decide if you plan on purchasing it or not. Dillard’s does offer a 3 day return policy so if the fitting room likes get long which they will, you can always buy it, try it on at home and then return if needed but be sure to remember that you only have 3 days otherwise they will not accept your return.
MY TOP DEPARTMENT PICKS FOR THE SALE
The shoes department is always first! They always have the best shoes for a great deal and I always shop this department first. I go for the Nike’s and then work my way around.
Purse Department - This normally is where everyone wants to go to first for the designer purses but I hardly ever shop the purse department during the sale.
Whew, I know! That’s a lot of information for a department store sale but it really is a great sale that I look forward to each year and I love going and seeing what good finds I can get AND if all of this information overwhelms you — the sale is also available online starting at 12:00 AM. However for me, part of the fun is actually shopping in person and hoping they have my size! ( I got 6 pairs of shoes y’all!) I hope you found this post helpful and that you make plans to check out the sale next year! I mean, you do have 362 days to plan for it!
