Where To Buy Clothing Buying clothes can be either a fun or frustrating shopping experience, depending on where, when, and for whom you're shopping. Catalog shopping has long been a good alternative to fighting mall crowds and hunting for invisible salespeople. There are negatives to ordering over the phone, such as paying hefty shipping and handling charges, but it's hard to top the convenience of having your merchandise delivered to your doorstep. To expand on convenience shopping, many well-known retailers offer their customers the ease of shopping at home through the Internet. Perhaps you've wondered whether your favorite store or clothier offers online shopping; we want to help answer that question. We went online to track down the Web sites of a number of popular clothing sellers. Not every retailer operates a full-service site, but the ones that do are fairly simple to use, and they all provide security to keep you' transactions private. So relax and have fun shopping! American Eagle Outfitters If you're young, hip, and love to play hard, American Eagle Outfitters is an ideal place to buy your clothing online. On the home page, choose either the Women's or Men's link, under which you will see lists of the types of clothing for each gender. Some categories aren't too extensive; women's sweaters, for example, had only three items. The site, however, does a good job of displaying and describing its merchandise. To purchase an item, select the appropriate features, then click the Add To AE-Bag button. After you add the item to the bag, you can click either the Continue Shopping button or the Check Out button. Clicking the latter button takes you to a purchase summary page, where you can adjust your order. Then, select a payment option, complete the brief order form, and pick a shipping method. Next, click Continue to process your order. The only steps left are to enter your credit card information and click Finish. American Eagle will then send an order confirmation to the Email address you entered in the order form. Columbia Sportswear Columbia Sportswear sells clothes and accessories for all sorts of sports, and its Web site is packed with information about its apparel collection and where you can find the nearest store. Even though this site doesn't sell the sportswear, you can buy it online. On the home page, click the Where To Buy hyperlink, and then click the link under Buy Online. The subsequent page lists two Web sites that do sell Columbia gear: Recreational Equipment Inc. and G.I. Joe's Dillard's This nationwide department store chain has locations in 29 states from coast to coast. Its Web site doesn't offer shopping capabilities, but you can sign up to receive catalogs and learn about in-store specials under the What's Happening link. Eddie Bauer Online Many consumers like the assurance they receive by shopping for clothes where they can try on items before chase them. Making sure of the fit cuts down on those annoying return trips. Even though stores that sell merchandise through the Internet can't re-create the in-person experience, Eddie Bauer Online has created a nice alternative: a Virtual Dressing Room. This dressing room allows you t match items to see how the colors blend. This is just one of several helpful tools Eddie Bauer offers on its site. Other nice features include the ability to buy gift which users can redeem online, and create a wish list so friends and family know what to buy for your next birthday gift. In addition to sale and clearance items, the apparel departments in Eddie Bauer Online are men's and women's sportswear attire. To browse the store, click a department, then a category, and then an item. A color photo of the item accompanies a detailed description. If you're purchasing the item as a gift, you can request a gift box for a $5 fee. The Shopping List page displays your order summary, where you can edit or delete any part of the order. You will see a subtotal at the lower right, but be aware that it doesn't include shipping and handling fees. Gap Online The ubiquitous television ads for Gap clothing may lead you to believe its apparel is only for the young and hip, but it's also for the really young. On the home page, you can click links to BabyGap and GapKids, which are sections of the site that sell clothing for kids as young as newborns. The home page also features a directory of the men's and women's fashions on the site, a store locator, a sale section, and a Gifts section. To see what that new wardrobe might include, click the Men's or Women's link. On the Shopping Bag page, you can change or remove anything you've placed in the bag. If you decide to leave the site without purchasing anything, Gap will keep the item(s) in your bag for two weeks, but that won't assure availability of the merchandise for later purchases. Gap encourages you to register at its site and then sign in with your password and E-mail address. You can also choose to store your shipping and billing information to speed up the checkout process, as well as store the names and addresses of people to whom you send gifts on a regular basis. The site will not store your credit card information. J. Crew This full-service site offers a number of shopping tools and ways to purchase clothing, including a toll-free number, fax, and postal mail. On the home page, you can also access clearance items, weekly sales, and a store locator. But the bulk of the site, of course, is dedicated to the display of J. Crew apparel for men and women. When we visited the site, much of the clothing in both departments was for the Fall season. We clicked men's sweaters and noticed that you can view the sweater collection in one of several subcategories, such as Wool, Cashmere, Novelty, and others. (These subcategories can vary depending on the items for sale.) Other categories offer similar viewing options. Once you've selected your items to buy, you will need to fill out the order form and ship-to-address form, if necessary, on the Checkout page. Like Eddie Bauer Online, this site lets you send an item as a gift, complete with gift wrap and card (for a $5 fee). You can also redeem any J. Crew coupons or gift certificates when making purchases here. JCPenney Shopping at the Web site for retail giant JCPenney is a lot like browsing through one of its many catalogs. On the home page, you will see a list of store departments that serve as links to colorful merchandise pages. There are 18 such links, but not all are for apparel. For clothing, click one of the first three links, which lead to departments for men, women, and children, or choose one of several specialty shops, such as Arizona Jean Co. We clicked the men's department to get a pop-up menu of categories within the department, such as Career Clothing and Outerwear. Some department categories have even more subcategories; Dress Shirts and Sport Coats, for example, are two subcategories under men's career clothing. Items are displayed in full-color photos and are accompanied by a brief description and price. To purchase an item, pick a size range, if applicable, and then a color, precise size, and quantity. Next, place that item in your shopping bag. Then, on the same page, you'll also see the weight of the item, which will figure in to your shipping cost. Next, click the View Bag/Checkout link. The Shopping Bag page gives you a summary of what you intend to purchase. At this point, you can modify or empty your shopping bag, continue shopping, or move on to the Checkout page. First-time shoppers of the JCPenney Web site will need to register, giving such information as name, street address, and credit card number. The site will save this information so you don't have to re-enter it during subsequent shopping excursions. Lands' End Unlike a department store, Lands' End sells mostly clothing, so it's a bit difficult when first visiting this full-service site to know where to begin. The home page is loaded with all sorts of helpful features, such as interactive shopping aids, links to superbly written articles, and announcements of new products. And don't forget the Overstock section, which features apparel at reduced prices. If you've never seen one of Lands' End's catalogs, you probably aren't familiar with its hundreds of clothing products for men, women, and children. If so, we suggest starting at the Shop Our Store section in the left column of the home page. The categories of products, such as Men's Casual and Women's Tailored, act as links to those departments. You can browse through the departments or use the Find a Product link just below Shop Our Store to search for a specific item. Keep in mind, however, that this search tool works only for full-priced products, not for overstocked items. On merchandise pages, you'll see a full color image of the item, along with an At-A-Glance information box and a written description below. To order, click Select, then pick your size, color, quantity, and shipping destination. Next, place the item in the shopping basket, which displays a summary chart of all the items you've selected to this point, plus their availability. You can modify a purchase, clear the form, keep shopping, or head to the checkout. With a reputation for giving its customers exactly what they want, Lands' End doesn't disappoint - even when it comes to checkout options. You can purchase your items in one of three ways: 1. Through a Personal Shopping Account, which places a cookie (information from the Web site) on your hard drive so the Lands' End server will recognize you;when you return to the site to shop. 2. Through a Password, which will help the server remember your personal information but without the use of a cookie. 3. Through the Traditional checkout method, which means you must enter your personal information each time you visit the site and buy something. Another nice feature of Lands' End is you can order a free swatch of fabric for an item that interests you. That way, you will know exactly the shade and texture of the article of clothing and won't have to rely solely on what you see on the screen. Neiman Marcus The Web site of this high-end department store doesn't offer online shopping, but you can use the Store Locator to find the nearest one. In addition, you can read the latest fashion news and keep up with hot designers and trends, plus access lots of store information and customer service programs. SAVIshopper.com SAVIshopper.com is the new kid on the block, having been founded in 1998 as a shopping outlet for young, professional men. It features items from scores of big-name designers, such as Gucci, Tommy Hilfiger, and Ralph Lauren, at discount prices. One unique feature of SAVIshopper.com is the way you can browse for clothing. You can look by item, under such categories as Tuxedos, Pants, and Jackets; by occasion, such as Black Tie or Casual Fridays; or by collections, where the apparel is grouped by designer. If you think you'll frequently shop at SAVIshopper.com, you may want to create an account by clicking the Sign In link on the home page. You will fill out the standard personal information and then have the option to complete a fashion profile. This includes questions about your appearance and build, as well as your preferred designers and colors. Sears The "Softer Side of Sears" hasn't quite made the leap to E-commerce. Even though you can buy such Sears' mainstays as appliances and Craftsmen tools at this site, you cannot purchase clothing. If you are a regular Sears shopper, however, you'll want to visit the site frequently because information changes weekly. Click the Fashion link at the top of the home page, then select a department, such as Women's, Men's, Juniors', and Kids'. We checked out the Kids' section, which listed quite a few specials, such as a 25% to 40% off sale on boys' pants and tops. In each sale listing, the clothing type, such as pants and tops, is another link that takes you to a page with more specific information about what is on sale. The Real Mall Of America Given the seemingly endless number of sites that offer online clothing sales, we surmise that the true "mall of America" is really the World Wide Web. If the stores mentioned here don't have exactly what you're looking for, don't forget that most major search engines offer even more shopping options. Check It Out |