Les Soldes

So we arrived in Paris just in time for that special time of year (that comes twice a year in France) - Les Soldes!! We arrived on the 12th - the first day of the sales that hit the city.  Posted signs were everywhere for 20-30 and even 60% OFF!! Unfortunately - I always find that even the sale prices in Paris are more expensive for similar items that can be found in the US not on sale. And that doesn't include the exchange rate.

But, the fun is in the search! I did find a great leather jacket on sale at a new favorite shop - Carroll-Paris. And Galeries Lafayette offered up another great wool jacket - so all was not in vain!

The one thing that hit me though was what a great marketing strategy the scheduled sales are for boutiques and shops ... they might actually maybe make profits. The formula is really quite simple - shopkeepers keep prices high and nothing on sale during the busy holiday shopping season. The Christmas season everyone is buying regardless of price. Then, after they have recovered slightly from the sticker shock of the holidays, hit consumers with big discounts during the notoriously slowest time of the year - January - and boost sales for your first quarter! It really is brilliant!!

I don't think it would take off here in the US though.

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