Your humble blogger found herself at Target this morning , not - it must be confessed - entirely by accident. As you may or may not know, today is the launch of the much anticipated Missoni at Target co-branding extravaganza.
However, apparently knowing about this event (having read about it in numerous fashion and shelter publications) and preparing for this event were two very different things. By the time this modern mother arrived at her nearest Target at 8:43 a.m. the shelves were empty, the employees shell-shocked and women were wandering around desperately asking other women with two and even three carts full of merchandise if they were going to "keep all of it." The store was relatively empty save for clusters of disappointed women standing around the empty Missoni displays talking in hushed voices. "The Target website crashed this morning," "They aren't getting any more shipments," "Someone said they might bring out more housewares in a few minutes." "I should have gotten here earlier."
When asked whether people had been lining up outside early that morning the woman at the check-out counter shook her head and reported "It was crazy. It was like Black Friday. All these women running through the store..."
Obviously the modern mother should be more organized. She should have asked a friend to drop her children off at school. She should have had a strategy, sneakers and possibly an accomplice. She should have perused the
look book to know what items she wanted. One might have gone to women's clothes, one to housewares, then on to shoes and girls. Better add walkie-talkies to the plan in case Verizon and at&t (like the Target site) went down due to this incredible once in a lifetime event.
Of course, to be clear, we are talking about Italian knitwear in fuzzy zig-zag patterns: sweaters, skirts, scarves, socks. Plus shoes, plates, bowels, vases. But of course, it is
luxury knitwear. Traditionally found in the hallowed salons of Barneys and Bergdorfs and on the Rue de Faubourge at very un-Target prices.
So what gives? How does this marriage of high and low work? Obviously it draws people (many of whom were driving pretty posh SUVs this morning) into Target. But is it good for the luxury brand? As of this writing 12:53 p.m. September 13, the
Target site is still down and a quick search on
eBay for Missoni Target has produced over 600 items that had to have been purchased in stores this morning. Does this kind of secondary market add to the brand value? Or is it the expanded reach and awareness they are looking for? Does knowing about the brand mean that more people will scrimp and save for the real thing? Or is it just a lot of fun in an otherwise dreary economic climate? Who knows, maybe after today
Chanel and
Jimmy Choo will be lining up to partner up.
Anyone know anything about this month's
jobless numbers and that
Poverty Report coming out this afternoon?
Pictures from target.com and NYTimes.com
