We ventured out on a field trip to our local outlet mall. It was a chilly day, but popping in and out of different shops warmed us as we perused the racks and hunted for treasures and deals. The adventure began as recon, “looking” to see what was in the shops and checking out the new Athleta outlet. Our observation was that there were two types of outlet stores — ones that sold a “knock off” version of their retail lines, and ones that sold discontinued/overstock/out of season items from their retail stores. Read on to see what we thought of six of our favorite retailers’ outlet mall stores.
What We Found at the Outlet Mall
J.Crew Factory, Banana Republic Factory, White House Black Market Outlet, and The LOFT Factory each have their own “outlet” line of clothes/shoes/accessories. They do not sell items from their retail shops in their outlet mall locations. Because it’s their own clothing line, they’re like “knock offs” of their retail stores. The prices were much lower but the quality wasn’t the same, although some of the styles were great. A case of you get what you pay for? And all the more reason to shop in person.
Athleta and Tory Burch each sold items from their retail locations, in a limited quantity. They were also selling their past season lines at a significant mark down. It seemed like they had centralized all past season and clearance items to their outlet location from the retail stores. Makes sense.
Where should we go next? Let us know what store you’d like us to feature in the upcoming months!
1 Athleta Outlet
Athleta just opened their first outlet in the summer of 2022. (Fun fact: it’s in Chicago!) The store had a limited supply of current retail items and LOTS of past season clearance. They carried both womens and girls.
WHAT WE LIKED: We loved that everything in the store was an additional 30% off (the special of the day).
WHAT WE DIDN’T LIKE: They did not carry the full retail line — our educated guess is that this is the stuff that’s about to or currently on sale in the retail shops. One small half rack of petites and we didn’t see any plus sizes.
2 Banana Republic Factory
Banana Republic and their factory store are getting back to their 1980s roots. The store had an “Out of Africa” vibe. We felt like Amelia Earhart was going to pop out from behind a mannequin.
WHAT WE LIKED: large variety (petite and plus sizes available in store), and they kept to the same “theme” as the retail store with lower prices/quality items.
WHAT WE DIDN’T LIKE: The quality of the fabric was hit or miss, so it’s worth checking it out in person since online returns aren’t free.
3 J.Crew Factory
The J.Crew Factory store offers it’s own clothing line separate from what you’d find at J.Crew. Styles are very similar.
WHAT WE LIKED: J.Crew’s factory brand is a higher quality factory brand than some of the other outlet stores (like the LOFT outlet). The store (and their online site) have a lot of colorful styles.
WHAT WE DIDN’T LIKE: Some fabrics aren’t as soft as the J.Crew fabrics, so shopping the J.Crew Factory in person is helpful. (They don’t offer free returns online.)
4 LOFT Outlet
The LOFT Outlet carries its own line — totally different from than the retail store. They were full of Valentine’s Day and spring. All of winter was on their clearance rack.
WHAT WE LIKED: They had a TON of inventory. Lot’s of pattern and bright colors for spring.
WHAT WE DIDN’T LIKE: The quality of the fabrics felt flimsy, see through and would possibly pill easily.
5 White House Black Market Outlet
WHBM is another retailer with their own outlet store clothing line. It’s a much smaller selection than their usual product line. Outlet merchandise can be found on the regular WHBM website.
WHAT WE LIKED: There was a large selection of basics, like camis and t-shirts, to stock up on.
WHAT WE DIDN’T LIKE: We felt like the selection was limited, and (again) found the outlet brand merchandise was not up to par with their regular brand.
6 Tory Burch
The Tory Burch outlet store had a mix of some regular priced items, but mostly items at a discount. The Tory Burch outlet sells out-of-season and overstock items you can’t find in their regular stores, so quality is usually what you’d expect.
WHAT WE LIKED: They had a wide selection of everything offered through Tory Burch, except the ready-to-wear clothing. You’ll find a huge assortment of bags, shoes and accessories.
WHAT WE DIDN’T LIKE: Tory Burch does not have an online outlet site.
The tote bag pictured is not available online, but you can find it in the outlet. Christa recommends it!
Pro tip: If you like Tory Burch but want a deal, sign up for the Tory Burch newsletters. As a subscriber, you’ll be notified when they have their semi-annual sale in June and December and you’ll receive early access. Act fast, though, because it sells out quickly.
More Shopping Tips
CHRISTA : By subscribing to the emails for your favorite stores and following them on social media, you can stay up-to-date on sales, and sometimes get early access to sales. I think you’ll save as much that way as you might shopping in the outlet — and in many cases get a better quality product, too.
MEGAN : Go with a list, if you are looking for something specific focus on that. I would check the online store website before you go, then check quality and sizing in person. If you are looking for something that’s sold out in the retail store (Tory Burch and Athleta), the outlet mall would be a great place to check! Be patient, outlet mall shopping is hit or miss at best.
Visit our Style page for more shopping tips and links to our favorite finds.
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You’ve save me a trip! Thank you.
If you are looking for something specific it’s worth the trek!
Which local to NoVa outlet mall did you go to? Leesburg? Potomac Mills (haven’t been there in YEARS!)? One of the Maryland or Delaware malls?
We went to the one in Leesburg.