Flash Sales Are All The Fashion

How do you break through these days?  You offer deals, deals and more deals.  FLASH sale websites offer great discounts on merchandise for a limited time and have taken the ‘diss’ out of discount.

Whilst flash sales started as a way for brands to unload excess inventory, it soon became an effective way for brands to advertise and find new customers in the hope they visit the brand’s website and buy full-price merchandise.

Paving the way is The Gilt Groupe who started this phenomenon in 2007.  They are still the leader today but a few websites have given them a run for their money lately: ideeli.com, swirl.com and hautelook.com.  While most of these websites focus on fashion, they do offer other categories such as home, travel and dining.

In order to shop on these FLASH websites, you must become a member – as easy as entering your email address and a password. Members receive regular email alerts on the latest deals and find it useful to be presented with a selection of items with advice on which brands to buy.  And while that may cater to those who are overwhelmed, it also caters to the impulse shopper who feels the thrill of a good deal and a “just in time” experience.   To the skeptic who thinks there must be a catch… there isn’t really!  While some items are “final sale” most can be returned for FREE. We’ve not met anyone who has not been completely satisfied with their experience.

So where can these websites go from here?  Some brands have already taken advantage of their popularity by not only unloading overstock merchandise but introducing new products as well.  For example: To introduce the 2011 Jetta, Volkswagon sold three of the $15,995 cars for $5,995 on gilt.com.  Fifty-five thousand people who missed out added their names to a wait list and Volkswagon sent them $500 coupon to buy or lease a Jetta.  They sold 69 full price cars as a result of this promotion.

So, if you don’t mind your inbox being cluttered with daily email alerts (you can turn these off), and you love saving the odd dollar or two, jump on board and enjoy the deals.