Daffy's Bites The Dust................

Nobody wants cheap stuff anymore - BULLISH! jk

They did have a way of getting eccentric, unusual no-name designer-y clothes (at least for men) that none of their competitors get. Very unfortunate. I think thoughtless over-expansion was their main problem, despite the narrative in their eulogies. The big players have very scientific processes for site selection.

it's called invasion of UniQlo...

Uniglo: totally different niche market

An article mentioned flash-stores that gobble up the more exciting merchandise, and then sell it ala sample sales. I'm not familiar with those, but it's hard to imagine they appeal to the same customer either. However, they might indeed have picked off the cream of the unsaleable merchandise so that Daffy's stuff got blah. Which it definitely did in the past couple of years.

> Nobody wants cheap stuff anymore - BULLISH! jk

UBER Bullish*t ... ROFLMAO

poorly run retail operation with ubercrappy merchandise.

rip

I will be sorry to see them go!

Its actually a combination of BlueFly et al plus the designer's selling their OWN ultra-discounted stuff at outlets and online. You can get Polo or Burburry etc online for up to 90% off a year out of season in your exact size in the color you want online. Why would you spend hours doing the same in a crowded store? IMO.

Heard they may reopen in ME! Buy buy buy!

Daffy's was a a stupid store, organized for people who like trolling through racks at a bazzar or flea market for a bargain when in this day and age there are a lot better ways of shopping for savings such as the internet. Lots of sites such as BlueFly offer more dignified ways of shopping.

daffy's is much cheaper than bluefly and their strong point was their great selection of small unknown european designers, people would buy things at daffys and resell them on ebay because the prices are so low. and there is a lot to be said for touching the clothes and trying them on before buying. their children's section is just the best thing ever. im sad they're closing.

lucille is so right. i used to get most of my daughter's clothes at daffy's. and it was NEVER really crowded. the fifth avenue store was a fun and nice shopping experience, actually, much preferable to bloomingdales or macys.

no polo (who wants polo?). but great absorba, katy & co., etc. and their selection of italian items was amazing. there is almost no way you can buy that stuff online because the sizing is very difficult.

the soho store was nice too. the herald square one, not so much, although i'm not sure why. it wasn't crowded, but it always seemed a bit depressing to me.

Let's put it this way, don't think it's just a problem specific to Daffy's as in

1) poorly run retail operation with ubercrappy merchandise.
2) Daffy's was a a stupid store

When Filene's Basement and Syms went the same route and Best Buy is also closing stores. Next up .. AAPL store :)

So UBER BULLISH*T as consumer retrench from consumption BUT PLENTY of money to buy overprice NYC real estate!! A dime saved at Daffy's is a dime earned for that $1.2M 1BR with no view!! UBER bullish*t.

Daffy's was great for me up until 10 years ago. Children's section always good. I switched over to sample sales and shopping dept store sales. I am also addicted to flash sales - why do you say that it's not the same customer? I shop dept stores online.

i also shop dept stores online. i love the nordstrom site. and i love the barney's outlet store at woodbury. riversider might have more money for his cream cheese if he widened his shopping experiences.

i think daffy's suffered when the euro strengthened. they had good prices on standard brands, but their forte was always european goods and they just couldn't do as well when the euro appreciated.

nyc10023,

> I am also addicted to flash sales

Where do u get info on flash sales ? thx

Lots of stupid comments, here but I'll give my $0.02 anyways...

Most here are correct; Daffy's was at least 85% crap--lots of ugly, cheap, out of season clothing. However, to people who actually KNOW a thing or two about designers, and especially the design houses who these cream or the crop names HIRE to make their clothing, Daffy's was a goldmine.

Heard of Incotex? How about Mabitex? The men's slacks/trousers are of high quality fabric and are usually rebranded with the likes of Zegna et-al. $150-300 slacks for something like $50-75. Yes, that cheap.

But, we live in a society today where the typical shopper is educated by the brands they see in magazines and on celebrities they idolize. While it's true that many top designers use the highest quality fabrics and construction, many just slap their logo on a $5 shirt purchased overseas and call it a day.

I'll miss Daffy's not for the 85% of crap, but rather for the excruciating hunt and sense of victory when I find that $400 pair of pants for under $100 hidden amongst the 15%.

jbnyc is right. There were definitely some real gems to be found at Daffy's, albeit amongst a lot of junk. I used to get some great merch there--Flavio Castellani jackets, for example. But in recent years the junk has begun to greatly outweigh the fab and I've found that the deals and variety at places like Loehmann's and Century 21 are simply better than Daffy's.

the century 21 in queens is amazing. go figure.

i gave up on daffy's a number of years ago, but in its day it was awesome.

Flash sales:

Gilt.com ruelala.com hautelook.com.

TY nyc10023 ...

I remember Woodbury 25 years ago or so when you could get bargains, then the whole concept became mainstreamed and I think a waste of time.

Not merely mainstreamed ... labels actually have clothes manufactured specifically for outlet stores, at much much lower quality levels than they would ever sell through traditional channels. I'm not sure if Marshall's etc. even go that low.

The best was when true factories & distribution warehouses (mostly in NJ for this area) actually had occasional "outlet" sales to get slow-moving merchandise and "seconds" out pronto. Then word leaked (pre-web) and the whole thing changed.

There's nothing worse than driving through hours of wilderness, especially if it's largely barren desert, and coming upon an "outlet mall" ... the saddest possible variation on South of the Border.

I've never understood the logic: gotta pee, so drop a few hundred dollars on crap while I'm at it and then get back in the Yugo.

I agree generally, but the barney's outlet store is fairly reliable. It's on our way home, I don't think I'd make a special trip for it.

It's great for bras, though. Wacoal for $9.99.

trinityparent!!! Where've you been? Welcome back!

I, myself, personally, wouldn't buy bras anywhere else.

An old learning about Barneys: the main retail store, when they have their sales, is just as good pricing as that ridiculous Chelsea warehouse, but you don't have to change in the aisles, there's a tailor available, and you can try on more than one shoe at a time.
Bergdorf's had even better pricing, they wasn't to get rid of the sale merchandise fast to limit the sale time period and get back to serving the high end.

I'll take a no-name albeit well crafted, Italian/English cut shirt or trousers from Daffy's over a POS Calvin Klein, Polo, etc. from TJ Maxx, C21, etc. any day of the week.

c21 has some great stuff, but it's a chore. like daffy's. TJMaxx is truly awful these days. Loehmann's is a bit better.

i used to shop the bergdorf's sales, and they were fantastic, but recently what they are stocking doesn't do it for me.

i never thought i'd write these words, but i quite like the bloomingdale's in soho.

It was crap, but when you make $50k per year, you can really only afford cheap stuff.

More evidence of the middle class being pushed out of NYC. No more diversity in my beautiful old city...old rich folk.

I think the cost of clothing (unlike bagels & cream cheese) have not gone up much over the last 20 years, on the low end. Death of Daffy's is not pushing middle class out. Plenty 'o cheap clothing at other stores in NYC.

"Death of Daffy's is not pushing middle class out."

No, the LACK of a Middle Class is pushing DAFFY'S out.

You think it's the average middle-class person who has time to paw through the racks at Daffy's? It was never that cheap.

I agree. I wasn't buying crap at daffy's, I was buying very high end items for the same price as mid to low end items at macy's.

last i looked there was no shortage of american eagle, gap, etc. even k-mart. and, of course, TJMaxx and Marshalls. Lots of cheap dreck out there.

Jbnyc agreed on all counts.
I love the $9.99 wacoal bras at daffys, those suckers are $70 at Macy's.
It's the only place in us where I have been able to find sita murt things, patrizia pepe is a long time staple there, tremp loafers in the different leathers I bought a few every year, they always have great designer leather jackets I got a few Stephen ones which retail well into the thousands.It's a good store, shame it's closing.

They also got lanvin and channel Vera Wang other top name designers. It's not my thing, but my mom bought a few valentino suits there. They keep the really expensive stuff behind the counter.

Stupid spellchecker. Chanel.

The average middle class person most likely wouldnt "get" most of the good merchandise at daffys, its high end and fashion forward. In other words, "weird".

You're weird.
No, you're weird.
Ok

nyc10023, Look for the union label, when you are buying a coat, dress or blouse.

The largest apparel manufacturer in the world is China, where the current minimum wage is 93 U.S. cents an hour. But we can do even better -- 21 cents an hour in Bangladesh! Take that, cream cheese workers!

-> The average middle class person most likely wouldnt "get" most of the good merchandise at daffys, its high end and fashion forward. In other words, "weird" -> exactly, hence my guess that stupid overexpansion led to their demise. Cash-poor clothes-horses canter in only certain areas.

The slogan is
Union Yes!

not
Four Unions Yes but No Christmas Tips!

And Uniqlo is fabulous. Better quality than, say, H&M, which is where the young and threadbare can get fashion that will last half a season. These things are all made in China

Daffy's was interesting...there was so much crap, yet some seriously GREAT finds hidden that you would get only 2 sides of the shopper spectrum:

1. The super cheapskates and/or fashion criminals who actually buy the crap merchandise.
2. The very educated consumer who knew what they were looking for and could show up 3 weeks in a row and buy nothing, then all of a sudden load up when a new shipment of some uber-quality stuff came in.

However, they never really got the casual shopper who also liked to walk around Macy's, L&T, Bloomies, etc...I wonder if this was another reason they weren't making enough to stay alive.

"2. The very educated consumer who knew what they were looking for and could show up 3 weeks in a row and buy nothing, then all of a sudden load up when a new shipment of some uber-quality stuff came in."

Must be nice to have that kind of time ...

So many bottom feeder retailers, like daffy's have cannibalized the inventory of unwanted overstock that there is no longer a central retailer that you can depend of for consistancy. Remember before Centry 21 cannibalized itself into multiple outlets? It was way better.
We have become a country of 99cent store people. Purchase the most stuff at the lowest quality.
We should be collectivly purchasing the BEST stuff, care for it, keep it long periods of time and CONSUME LESS.

Daffy's went under because of poor merchandise and poor management. You now have Century 21 which has much better quality than Daffy's ever had. In addition, there are numerous Gap, H&M, and outlet centers selling new clothing for what Daffy's was selling as left overs.

"We have become a country of 99cent store people. Purchase the most stuff at the lowest quality.
We should be collectivly purchasing the BEST stuff, care for it, keep it long periods of time and CONSUME LESS."

AMEN.

Remember when just about every Main Street had a general repair store? Always a guy with a storefront to fix everything from toasters to vacuums. Back in the day, they really did make stuff to last, and it was built to be *fixed* when parts wore out. Today they're built to be chucked into landfills.

I think we should walk around naked..... Less shopping, more sex, less obesity, definitely less smoking. What idiot smokes naked with hot ambers flying around? Oh never mind, the naked drunk smoker in bed who accidentally fell asleep and burned down the entire building.

wow....a falco/matt alliance producing commentary i subscribe to.

double amen

Side benefit, less human bombings and definitely less angry reviews of batman gone bad. Dude just write it up on bad tomatoe?

There was a NYT (?) article recently about how clothing consumption is high (# of items)/person across the income spectrum. On average, 68 (maybe I misremember) per person. Rather sad statistic.

This is sad, because on average, we're not dressed any "better" than before. I hate bringing up grandma, but grandma (young working widow) made her clothes at home or with help of neighbors and we still have a few of her clothes around. Not my style, but well-made.

Alan: I remember going to look at cheap drecky stuff in the Garment District in '99 (20-30 dollar dresses, not discounted) - all made in the U.S.A. We can make cheap dreck here.

"This is sad, because on average, we're not dressed any "better" than before."

AMEN SQUARED!

Just to add more non-real estate relevant fuel to the fire, much of that stuff that was "built to last" and "fixable when broken" was produced in America by people making decent wages that put them at least on the bottom rungs of the middle class.

Has anyone seen Matt in the outfit he uses when giving tours?

SQUARELY on the bottom rungs, if not at least on the middle rungs. My grandfather bought a house, new car every few years, and a brand-new 25-inch color television set (in 1965, when having one was as big a deal as having a giant flat-screen was ten years ago) on the income of a lowly factory floor worker of National Electric.

And you still use that 25" tv on your Formica counter?

The quality of most middle-rung clothing lines (and some upper-echelon ones as well) has gone WAY down in the last several years. Prices have stayed relatively steady but the product is junk.

I am appalled at the current lack of quality of some of the mid-to-higher-end lines (think Calvin Klein, Donna Karan, Tahari). The materials are cheap and the craftsmanship is horrendous.

It seems that consumers are willing to settle for poorly-made crap manufactured in China. If you want something beautifully crafted that will last forever you have to pay big bucks for it and very few people seem to be shelling out that kind of dough these days.

anyone remember the 'Champion' Sweatshirt back in the late 70's, early 80's? It was the super high quality expensive sweatshirt with vertical ribbing on the sides. It was a must have and an amazing product. It put Champion on the map. Their response was to slowly do away with their quality products and replace them with absolute crap. You can't even buy that old great quality item anymore because they simply don't manufacture it.
Retailers and manufactures simply respond to our behavior. There is a constant demand in this country for retail experience. We just like to go shopping. In many places it's one of the main things to do to kill time. I see it when I'm out with the family shopping. Folks are picking over the racks of dreck while mouthing the words to a dance song and tapping their foot to the outrageously loud music. They need to buy, not necessarily what their buying, just the actions of purchase to satisfy some weird retail craving. We buy everything disposable. H&M is just disposable clothing as is american apparel and many others. We spend a fortune on public education yet we continue to produce morons ans suckers. Where's that NYS Regents Exam that demonstrates that your not a schmuck? You should be able to pass that exam before you get a H.S. diploma in this state.

I think 70s is too early for the Champion sweatshirt.

How many people get a non Regents diploma then get federal financial aid to some lousy college?

But if grandma had a choice, would she have spent her time & $ on a few well-made garments or on a few dozen lesser-quality garments. Overwhelming the latter.

Yes, I appreciate a well-made sweatshirt, but I want a new one next year. I don't want to be wearing the same thing year after year, if possible.

"Remember when just about every Main Street had a general repair store? Always a guy with a storefront to fix everything from toasters to vacuums."

We still have one on First Avenue and 55th Street, "Jennings TV", small store with a Mr. Fix-It. The sign says TV Repairs, VCR, Stereo, Radios, Vacuums, Irons, Lamps, Appliances. A touch of small town America right here in Manhattan.

I really don't know about this "quality, wear forever" thing. For most of the 20th century in American cities, people (from lower-middle-class and up) slavishly followed the yearly-changing fashions -- hems, lapels, tie widths, hat brims, etc. -- and would be mortified to wear the previous year's. Or the wrong season's. Or the wrong clothes in each venue, occasion, or event. Business attire at a cocktail party? Gawd no!

It was only beginning in the 1980s that everything became all, like, what.everrrrr.

Maybe it was different in -- and I don't mean to be rude by saying so -- Canaday and Pennsyltucky.

And it can be that way again, if only we can find a way to get garment workers' wages in Bangladesh lower than they are now.

"people (from lower-middle-class and up) slavishly followed the yearly-changing fashions"

ita nostalgia seems to be blind

"It was only beginning in the 1980s that everything became all, like, what.everrrrr."

yes the super casual culture of sweats and sneakers. i blame rap music.

"Remember when just about every Main Street had a general repair store"

every main street still has a store where a nice old man will fix your shit for you. but whats the point if best buy has the newer/cheaper/cooler model? the consumer is not to "blame" for this behavior, progress is. and you like progress don't you?

"We just like to go shopping"

people have always liked to go shopping, bazaars, piazzas, etc where vendors of all kinds sell what they've got have always been central to human socializing.

one of the factors to blame for the diminishing of expected quality is the branding culture that started in the late 70s and picked up steam into the 80s. but the primary driver of this was the large scale corporate takeover and consolidation of manufacturing. there are dozens of books written on this subject. this one is pretty good.

http://www.amazon.com/Deluxe-How-Luxury-Lost-Lustre/dp/0141019670

Good morning.

Hi

Funny to see people say clothing quality has gone down.

My income has gone up over the years so I can afford nicer brands now than 20 years ago, but I buy less and less because the quality is so poor.

I thought this was me being finicky but I guess not, if comments here are correct. Also I now have a problem with the formaldehyde "garment wash," which is on all clothes from Old Navy, J. Crew, Gap, etc. I have sensitivity to it now which either I did not have when younger or because now I get more exposure because it's used more widely.

I think there was a class action suit against Victoria's Secret a few years ago over the formaldehyde in their undies making a bunch of ladies sick. I never saw the outcome so I assume VS just settled with them.

Old Navy says it no longer uses formaldehyde but it does use some noxious chemical that gives me asthma attack if I go in the store.

This stuff is used as preservative because the garments are shipped halfway around the world in cargo containers and even blended fabrics usu contain at least some cotton, which is vulnerable to being eaten by moths, worms, and other bugs during shipment.

I would buy organic clothing -- and I do have a few pieces -- but there is not much of it available and in only a few styles, little of it really appropriate for workplace.

GraffitiGrammarian:

Very informative comment. Few people know about the garment "wash".
Some people think that underwear and bedsheets should be washed before wearing, only to make them softer.
I think there should be caution labels on all "wash"- treated garments that say "wash before wearing".

The best organic clothing category is tee-shirts. Bono and his wife's clothing line is called "Edun".
expensive but nice. Haven't seen any for a while in N.Y.C. stores, it was in Saks.

> one of the factors to blame for the diminishing of expected quality is the branding culture that started in the late 70s and picked up steam into the 80s. but the primary driver of this was the large scale corporate takeover and consolidation of manufacturing. there are dozens of books written on this subject. this one is pretty good

For the run of the mill brands like Banana, Guess, CK, AX, etc, man's clothing is a joke, i.e., the style is literally identical with a different tag. Look at the longer length shorts this past season, they all look the same, down to the damn "double buckle" belt. You could have taken a batch from one store, move it to the next and no one could have told you the difference.

man's clothing?

Zara's , Uniqlo , H&M make it tough for discounters without their own brand label