Nearly Free Samples--Angelina DiFrancesco

During my first week at Ann Taylor in Hong Kong, I received a curious email that immediately caught my attention. "Sample sale this Thursday & Friday! All pieces  $15.00. Preview this Wednesday with damaged and marked samples for only $3.00!" To put that into perspective, 15 Hong Kong dollars is only $1.93 USD and 3 Hong Kong dollars is 39 cents. You can't get much better than that!

Here I am digging through the tops at the sample sale with my associates.

You can see that the whole room is full of tables piled high with garments.

The sample sale is a seasonal event held as a way to unload garment samples and make some money back. Samples are created by the factories and then sent to the office in Hong Kong. The first sample is the line review sample, of which there are three copies. We mark one sample and send it to our counterparts at the New York office for approval and fitting. We keep the other two samples in Hong Kong. One is for the tech team and one is for our local QA, or quality assurance team. Once a sample passes all tests and is approved by New York, we can order in bulk. Sometimes the first fit is approved, but other times New York requests another, called the 2nd fit sample. For more complex garments, a 3rd fit may be necessary.

My associates Kitty, Sindy, and Clara enjoying the sample sale.

They were very helpful and picked out clothes for me to try on.

With all these samples floating around, it is no wonder that Ann Inc. gets stuck with a lot of extra garments. Samples cannot be sold in stores and the sample sale is open to employees only. I walked into what is usually a meeting room, but instead it held large tables piled high with numerous garments. That was when the madness ensued. Everyone was digging through the piles and grabbing whatever they could get their hands on. I had a hard time getting into the fray, so my associates kindly picked garments out for me and gave me feedback on the fit. The garments were marked "SAMPLE," "1st," or "2nd," indicating there place in the development process. Unfortunately for my small-framed associates and I, all of the samples are size 8 or size 8 petite. With the help of a belt and the serendipitous fact that loose fits are in, I was able to pick out an Ann Taylor jacket and a LOFT sweater for only $3.86 USD. Ann encourages us to wear its clothing, but it doesn't have any stores in Asia. Many of my associates have never been to the brick and mortar stores, so the sample sale is an important way for them to experience the brand.

Angelina DiFrancesco

Ann Taylor Sourcing Far East Ltd.