Liquidations always promise big savings, but they rarely deliver, at least in the first few weeks. The Loehmann’s sale, which started last week, seems to be par for the course. Racked sent a writer to the Upper West Side and Chelsea locations a few days ago and said the UWS store on Broadway and 74th was plenty packed, with long lines to get into the dressing rooms. But the actual deals were few and far between.

“Surprisingly, the discounts were about the same as promotional offers the chain had been offering pre-bankruptcy (when the stores were a lot emptier), and significantly less of a deal than the pre-Christmas promotions.”

But intrepid shoppers can find deals in certain areas:

“If you’re really willing to dig through the racks, some of the best deals can be found on previously discounted merchandise. All of that is 30% off the lowest discounted price—which can lead to some significant savings. Mixed into this group is quite a bit of designer merchandise. We found some very old Valentino, Rag & Bone and D&G designs, but a few of the pieces were fairly beat up, so be sure to check everything out closely.”

It’s not clear when the Loehmann’s sale will end, but the liquidator plans to complete everything by March.

Photos by Denton Taylor.