Originally published at sacbee.com.
Fashion - just a click away
By Leigh Grogan -- Bee Fashion Writer
Published 2:15 am PDT Tuesday, May 25, 2004
Sacramento, we're really clicking now.
For fashion-starved shoppers, the Internet is fast becoming the shortcut to the sites and sounds of the New York and Los Angeles runways.
What makes two of the more recently launched sites - TheShop at http://www.style.com/ and SheFinds.com - unusual is that they are there to help you, the shopper. One will expose you to designer apparel lines you wouldn't find here, and the other can help you find exactly what you're looking for. And they aren't tied to any particular retailer.
TheShop by Style.com, which was launched last week, showcases different designers and cosmetic companies every week.
Dee Salomon, senior vice president and managing director of Style.com, says the site has served as an online fashion resource for four years. Shopping has always been on the site via links to advertisers such as Neiman Marcus. TheShop's link takes this a step further with a week's worth of handpicked shopping options.
"What makes this unique is that it allows young designers, who can't afford hefty advertising rates in magazines, to have a virtual lease of an e-commerce system for a week," Salomon says from New York.
TheShop provides the shopping-cart function: It processes the order, calculates the cost, including shipping and tax, takes the credit card and then forwards the order directly to the designer, who mails the merchandise to the customer.
"We don't handle any inventory at TheShop, only the orders," Salomon says. "At the end of a week, we change what's offered, which usually includes a mix of accessories, clothing and beauty products."
Pluses and minuses: Great potential for seeing what women in New York and L.A. can buy. Some items, such as the first week's Prescriptives offering, can be found at most department stores. Users must check the Web site each week as the listings change.
SheFinds.com debuted in February and serves women whose top worry is that they tend to find styles that are out of their price range.
Its creator, New Yorker Michelle Madhok, is a former beauty-and-style adviser at America Online. She will perform personal searches for $10 to $20; all other services are free.
She estimates that 57 percent of women regularly shop online, with 34 percent making more than one purchase a month.
"SheFinds.com is (for) the woman who doesn't have time to poke through fashion magazines or browse stores," Madhok says over the phone.
She sends out two free e-mails a week to subscribers. The first, on Tuesdays, is a trends letter that spotlights what's hot, items that can be found anywhere from Saks Fifth Avenue to Target. On Thursdays, she e-mails a report highlighting items that are on sale or clearance and where they're found. One of Madhok's recent finds was a Mossimo (the Target designer) pencil skirt for $10 at Amazon.com.
She also conducts what she calls "New York shopping tours" for groups of about 15 people. The package, which costs $640, includes weekend hotel accommodations in Manhattan, two two-hour shopping tours, a one-hour exercise class and spa treatment, cocktail hour, dinner and brunch. Airfare is not included.
Pluses and minuses: Perfect for someone who isn't shopping for a particular brand. Money is saved because shoppers aren't paying for a store's rent. The newsletters are informative and helpful. Free e-mails are worth subscribing. Takes longer for personal searches.
Worth a click
Here are several other shopping Web sites to check out:
* http://www.oliveandbettes.com/: Olive and Bette are two friends who started a clothing business in New York. They now have three stores that offer what they describe as "must haves," from T-shirts and skirts to scarves and cowboy hats. The two recently established a Web site for out-of-towners so they won't "miss a fashion step, no matter where you are."
Rating: Cute stuff but definitely for the younger crowd with money burning a hole in their pockets - for example, $40 tees, $96 skirts.
* www.maccosmetics.com/bridal: This addition to the company's regular site launched on May 17 and is dedicated to the beauty needs of the bride-to-be. Besides being able to purchase M.A.C cosmetics, visitors can see six real brides - representing a variety of skin tones and ages - get made up by M.A.C artists.
Rating: Not a bad idea, but for such an important occasion it's just as easy to book an appointment at a M.A.C counter and see the makeup on yourself.
* www.amazon.com/jewelry: Music, books, DVDs - so why not jewelry? The jewelry component was launched to offer lower prices on a variety of baubles including rings, necklaces, earrings, bracelets and watches. If you find the same item from another seller for less, Amazon will lower its price if the lower price can be verified.
Rating: It's a fairly comprehensive collection, so it's best to go in knowing what you want to buy and how much you're willing to spend. Good deals on hoop earrings; diamond studs are a little pricey.
