How to shop an outlet

Premium Outlets are located in cities all over the country and offer an array of designer shops (Tory Burch, Kate Space, BCBG, Children’s Place, Wiliams Sonoma.. to name a few of my faves) at super-exciting prices. If you like shopping as much as we do, outlet shopping is a wonderful way to spend the day bonding with friends while saving money on the brands you love.

 

Read on for our outlet shopping tips and ideas for creating fun memories on your retail adventure.

And check out the photos from our day!

A successful outlet shopping trip requires two things:

 1) That you get some major deals

 2) That you have fun.

To ensure that #1 happens, sign up for the Premium Outlets VIP Shopper’s Club. This is key because as a member you will receive access to the VIP Lounge where you can print out a ton of exclusive coupons only for members. These coupons will make an already great deal into an AWESOME deal. (You’ll be able to snag some items for pennies on the dollar!) Print them out and take them with you. Also print out the VIP Coupon Book voucher and put it into your purse.

IMPORTANT TIP: Wear a crossbody bag to hold your cell phone, coupons, cash, credit cards and anything else you need so that you can have your hands free to pick things up, organize your coupons before your purchase and carry your bags.

The thing to note about outlets is that they are usually outside of major cities. Camarillo is about an hour north of Los Angeles so instead of making one person do the driving, it might be nice to pool your cash with your shopping buddies and treat yourselves to a car and driver. That way everyone can relax and chit-chat while you travel there and back. If you are going to Camarillo or Desert Premium Outlets, Lil Luxury Group has affordable limo packages so you can travel stress-free and in style. You can even have cocktails on the way there and back!

 

 When you arrive.

 The first thing to do when you arrive at Premium Outlets is to head into the Information Center and hand the receptionist your VIP Shoppers Club printout. You will receive a VIP Coupon book that contains a bounty of valuable coupons.

Just to give you an idea of the savings you get by joining the VIP Shoppers Club, Kier bought a pair of cute sandals(above)  at Nine West $29 (without the coupon they were $69) This is much less than what she’d seen them for weeks prior in a regular Nine West store. Laura scored at BCBG with a $698 dress that she had wanted weeks earlier but didn’t want to spend that much money for. The dress was $49 with her coupons and a sale that was going on. I scored some fall clothes at Children’s Place and Baby Gap. I used the coupons to get $50 off of my total purchase. There were deals galore at Easy Spirit, Forever 21, BCBG, J.Crew, Kate Spade, American Apparel, Armani, Aldo, Sony and Tory Burch.

There is a lot of ground to cover at Premium Outlets so it’s important to hydrate and eat. When we arrived Kier, Lauraand I headed to the Food Court and split a yummy calzone from Villa Pizza. Then we downed some water and were ready to shop! For lunch Camarillo Premium Outlets Assistant General Manager Brian Sikoff invited us to Panera Bread. He came bearing gifts. (Thanks Kitson!) I had the Power Spinach Salad and 1/2 French Onion soup which was enough to fortify me for the rest of our shopping day.