The May 2012 Anthropologie Tag Sale prep post

Note: Here’s Anthropologie’s official Tag Sale email.

The most wonderful time of year for Anthro lovers is just about here — the Tag Sale starts tomorrow!! Before we play the Sale Guessing Game, let’s cover the basics of what a Tag Sale is and discuss some rumors!!

Let’s start with one important disclosure: though this post consists of tips kindly provided to me by various Anthropologie employees, everything in this post is UNOFFICIAL. That means that NONE OF THE INFORMATION in this post has been confirmed by Anthropologie’s home office and is all SUBJECT TO CHANGE. So please take everything here with a grain of salt as it could be right or it could be wrong.

To begin, what is a Tag Sale? It’s a semi-annual sale for Anthropologie to clear its store sale rooms out. They need to make room for spring markdowns, plus summer clothing and even pre-fall stuff. Many stores will move all the sale racks front and center with lots of signage inviting you in to shop. The name comes from what we call garage sales in the Northeast, and back in the early 2000s Anthropologie used to actually “tag” sale items with the new, lower price for the Tag Sale. Note that the Tag Sale applies to SALE items only, not full-price items.

What makes the Tag Sale different from other sales? For one thing stores will pillage their backstock. This means that a few hidden gems might be uncovered — maybe an item that went on sale a couple months back is discovered and put on the racks; or an item that is marked down suddenly has more stock. In the past the Tag Sale was special because prices were cheaper than what we usually saw from sale items. So an item that was usually $59.95 on markdown might be $39.95. Or Anthropologie might make a blanket discount like take an additional 30% off all sale items. It used to be that these were rare discounts that you hardly ever saw at Anthropologie. But as the store’s performance has lagged over the last few years, these extra % offs have become more frequent, which leads me to my next point…

What’s the big deal about the Tag Sale? If you’ve been waiting (and waiting, and waiting) for 2nd/3rd/etc cuts on an item it will likely come tomorrow. The big hook, however, has usually been the extra % off sale items or aggressive sale pricing. Since that’s become more commonplace the Tag Sale can feel more like a big markdown week to some than a real event. Also, it’s not like everything will be on sale. I’m expecting a bunch of new sale items tomorrow but that new cool thing you want will probably still be full priced tomorrow.

Here are some commonly asked questions about the Tag Sale…
Will there be any extra discounts during the tag sale?

According to my tipsters, there will be an extra 25% off apparel, accessories and select home sale items during the Tag Sale. (Please remember this is UNOFFICIAL and not confirmed information.) Remember that since the online sale section doesn’t update until about 9 AM ET, this percentage off would not kick in right away.
Update 5/15: Anthropologie reached out to say there will be no extra % off this time around. Sorry ladies!

Is the tag sale in-store only or online too?
The tag sale is both in-store and online. However there are sometimes price differences, with items being lower-priced in stores. Sometimes there will be an extra % off in-store only.

Is the tag sale clothing only? Or will home wares be marked down too?
Expect to see items from most departments on sale. I’ve heard clothing, accessories, beauty and select home will all see cuts. No furniture though.

When does the tag sale begin?
Tuesday, May 15, aka tomorrow!!!

Will I be able to get price adjustments during the tag sale?
Yes. Anthropologie will honor price adjustments, including promotional markdowns, within the usual 15-day period. You cannot apply both a tag sale PA and birthday discount to an item though.

Will I be able to do a charge/send during the tag sale?
From nearly every store. Some of the busiest stores (i.e. Rockefeller Center in NYC, Chicago Ave in Chicago) may not be doing charge/sends depending on how busy it gets.

Will my store open early on tag sale day?
UPDATE: Yep, according to Anthropologie’s website stores will open up an hour early for anthro members. (See graphic above.)

What about Canada?? And London??
Online, the Tag Sale should start at the same time for everyone in the USA and Canada. In-store USA and Canada should both start tomorrow. For Anthro lovers living abroad however I cannot confirm the timing of the Tag Sale, or whether there will be one.

Any tips for a successful tag sale??
Read through my tips in the this tag sale prep post. Beyond those tips, if you’re doing a store search try to call right around store opening hours or about 30 minutes after a store closes. Don’t call during high peak times which are lunch time and between 5:30-7 PM local time. Remember to be polite with SAs even if they don’t give you the answer you want! This time of year is very busy in-store and items will get shuffled around in ways you can’t even imagine. And lastly remember your budget!! It’s easy to get overwhelmed by the excitement. Nothing is more important than sticking to your budget. Have fun but be careful. And as always, happy hunting!

We’ll play the Sale Guessing Game as usual a bit later today. But before we do, what are some items you’d like to see hit sale tomorrow? Here’s my Tag Sale wishlist from full-price items: