All stories about "On The Scene"

Cold, impatient line waiters outside Barneys Co-op this morning

A Racked reader has some sage advice for Barneys Warehouse Sale shoppers:

Hey. I used to work in an office in the Barney's Co-op building (the building actually takes up a good portion of the block, and Barney's owns the whole thing) and I have a potential tip for mastering the warehouse sale. The head of maintenance for the building once told me that Barney's replenishes inventory throughout the sale, even until the last days, and it's not necessarily the case that the best stuff goes out first. He would recommend waiting a couple of days into the sale, definitely on a weekday, and getting there around 10:30-11am. I never took him up on the advice, since at the time I was on too tight of a budget for even the warehouse sale. Luckily, I left that job for a better-paying one and I will be heading over to the sale Monday morning for sure.

It's Valentine's Day, sure, but today's also the opening day at the Barneys Warehouse Sale, kicking off this morning at the Barneys Co-op in Chelsea. Racked is on the scene all morning to cover the madness. Strap in.

It's been a full hour since the first dedicated shoppers, fingers and toes numb from the extreme cold, trickled into the Barneys Warehouse Sale. At present, the sale is a madhouse. We've reached code red. The relative calm of the first 30 minutes has been replaced by pulling, shoving, grabbing and stripping. Dazed-looking security guards are milling about, not doing much to help or hinder.

Hilariously, there are racks and racks of Kate Moss for Topshop merchandise. No one is even going near it. Where was all that stuff when people actually wanted it?? Aside from that, there's a lot of great clothing to be found on the racks; on our quick run through we spotted some very cute Rag & Bone vests, 3.1 Phillip Lim dresses and jackets and just so. much. more. worth emptying your bank account for.

A warning: as always, the bag-check situation is perilous, so if you go now don't bring much more with you than a wallet. There's a big sign saying they're not responsible for checked belongings worth more than $50, which doesn't even cover the cost of a nice handbag.
· Live at Barneys Warehouse Sale: We're In! [Racked]
· Live at Barneys Warehouse Sale: What's My Line? [Racked]