Anyone who knows me, knows I love to shop. I also love to get something on sale. Outlet stores and malls have certainly evolved over the years. They have gone from overstocks and "second" merchandise to new and current season merchandise. Contrary to popular belief, most of the goods sold in outlet stores today are new. The days of last season’s cast offs, over-runs and past trends are virtually over. This has come about in the past 10 years or so. After the economy took a nose dive in 2008, the makeover of outlet stores began to rise. In fact, outlets have been one of the fastest growing retail segments in a down economy. Tanger’s (we have a Tanger Outlet Mall in Williamsburg that has expanded at least 3 times over the years) average shopper has a household income of $69,000.00 (which is above the nations average of $48,500.00). Tanger is also opening new outlet malls near major cities; Phoenix, Houston and Washington DC in order to compete with traditional malls. Nordstrom Rack will double its stores by 2016 featuring prices 30-70% below those of Nordstrom’s. Every woman loves to brag that she paid $300 for a $500 retail Coach bag. The brand must equal the brand in quality and appearance in order for outlets to continue to grow.
(Source: DailyFinance.com 10/01/12)
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