STORE WARS: Macy’s vs. Last Call
Starting March 13th and running through April 2nd, Dappered.com is hosting a bracket based tournament with the purpose of eventually crowning the all around Affordable Men’s Style Retail Champ for 2012. For a full introduction see this post. The bracket on the right will be updated as the tournament progresses. Click on it for the full size. Make a case for your preferred competitor in the comments section, but don’t forget to vote at the bottom of each match up. On with today’s showdown:
Strengths: Heritage, consistency, and variety. They’re the wardrobe anchor for many a man on a budget. Off the rack suiting might not fit superb, but if you’re willing to settle a little on some areas of fit, and you’ve got a good tailor, you can look extremely sharp. Plenty of casual stuff too. Variety of brands is strong. In-house names like Alfani, Alfani Red, Bar III, and sometimes INC can produce some positive surprises. Their One Day Sales. Decent affordable jewelery selections for the ladies in your life if you play the sale game. Brick and mortar shopping experience is usually pretty consistent.
Weaknesses: With that heritage and consistency comes the tendency to be safe and predictable. For affordable style, they seem to be a solid B 90% of the time. Rarely A+. “Full retail” can be eye-roll worthy when compared to their perpetual sale prices. You really have to play the wait for a sale/coupon game with Macy’s. Can also seem to be a bit out of touch with younger and more fitted styles. Not a lot of must-have unique items. Website can be clunky sometimes. Over-promotion of a so-so shipping policy with countless catalogs, emails, and web ads that scream “FREE SHIPPING!” and then in tiny print reminds you that free shipping only kicks in “with $99 purchase.”
Strengths: High end, sometimes drool worthy goods often available at stunningly affordable prices… as long as you wait for an extra 25% – 40% sale. It’s usually their shoe selection that draws the most attention, but big name suits like Hickey Freeman will show up from time to time. Free shipping can usually be found with codes (like FSANN4).
Weaknesses: Selection can struggle (they’re an outlet after all) and those “drool worthy” items can sometimes be few and far between after their shoes. Waiting for an extra 25% – 40% off sale is an absolute must. Can produce some excellent finds, but can then go quiet for a real long time. If you’re patient, it’s easy to find dessert at Last Call. Making a full meal on the other hand ain’t so easy.
Your votes determine who goes on to the next round. Cast your ballot below. Voting ends at midnight ET.
UPDATE: Macy’s in a walk. There are some finds via Last Call, but ol’ reliable Macy’s wallops em’.
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Store wars: Macy's vs. Last Call
- Macy's (71%, 599 Votes)
- Last Call (29%, 243 Votes)
Total Voters: 842
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I have yet to have a good experience with Last Call. My first order they sent me two left shoes in two different sizes. After getting the run around from customer service I had to return the shoes and call around to different stores to order another pair. Since then I have bought a couple other items during their big % off sales and everytime I’ve returned something it requires a ridiculous 2-3 weeks to get the money credited back. Maybe I would like them if I had a physical store closer to me, but their internet experience has been so lousy that I refuse to buy anything from them ever again.
Macys always has something I can buy. They’re not great but they have good sales and a selection.
I tried out Macy’s with their Black Friday sale and felt like that bombed. I kept one of the items but returned the others – two of the sweaters had stitching errors right on the collar. It made me realize that there wasn’t much in the way of quality control going on. Still, it was easy to make an in-store return, and I am impressed with the INC line.
Not as much experience with LastCall, but I got the $15 wallet recommended here, and it was perfect.
Macys isnt great but at least its affordable sometimes
I’m going to give Last Call a little love. Part of the reason I like them is that everything there isn’t necessarily made for their “B” line. When you look at someone like J Crew Factory, on the other hand, there isn’t much crossover from their retail namesake. So if you like brands like Magnanni and Bruno Magli and have patience, you can do well at Last Call compared to retail.
You have to play the sale game with both of these places so that can be wash in my opinion.
Never tried Macy’s, but a lot of things won’t ship to Canada. On the other hand, bought a pair of Sebago Hamilton boots on Last Call and got raped by brokerage fees. I might give Macy’s a chance.
I have never purchased anything from last call, although I have seen quite a few things I would like except I just don’t like the pricing mostly. Macy’s was my bailout when I knew nothing about style but wanted to start and experiment. Although I haven’t bought anything from Macy’s in a while it remains a good option for the beginner.
Between Last Call and Nordstrom Rack, these are the last two closeout stores that carry mostly true clearance items and not just made for discount store versions (a la J. Crew Factory). A real treat if your in the vicinity of a brick and mortar. Their memorial day and labor day markdowns can slash prices deep. My first time I found some Cole Haan wingtips and some Saville Row london captoes for about 160 altogether…
I felt some drool worthy Isaia and Caruso sportcoats at Last Call. Still too expensive for me at over 50% off, but wow…
There is a chance I could get a deal on something I like at Last Call, but not there is almost no chance I will find what I need there. Online that is.
I really think that if more people were familiar with Last Call, it would be getting more votes.
Last Call is so much more than just Neiman Marcus overstock. They do get their own inventory (and not just in small batches). My sis-in-law used to work from NM corporate and she verified my suspicions as such. That being said, when they do get NM overstock, it’s some of the best stuff in the store.
Macy’s is a middle-of-the-road store selling middle-of-the-road stuff. They take the shotgun approach to retail. Sell everything under the sun and people will buy something. Sure, I own things from there. So does everyone else. But when have to check tags to make sure you’re not buying polyester, it makes you wonder what you’re doing in a store like that.
Their clearance tie rack carries Isaia, Canali, etc. for $40 when you stack it with a sale.
This is a tough call for me. I’m not really crazy about either of them. Macy’s is pretty mediocre, but I’ve only ever gotten one thing from Last Call. Maybe I’ll sit out voting on this one.
Never heard of Last Call until today. So apparently it’s heavily discounted stuff from Needless Markups. Macy’s customer service for returns, etc. is top-notch.
I was going to buy a suit off macys website during a recent one day sale. I called their help line, no measurements. I called a big store’s men’s department and not only did they not have the measurements or know what I wanted by measurements, they were unwilling to get out a tape measure and work for 3 minutes to make a sale, even when I offered to tell them how. Not impressed. Maybe I’d bother if there was a store around me.
I got 2 shirts with the neiman marcus brand 2 months ago from Last Call. They were $32 dollars. Free shipping. Spread collar, no tailoring needed. Got em thanks to a Dappered post( I had also never heard of them either) the quality looks good for 30 dollar shirts. I’ve bought a few more items from there since then. They’re my favorite this year but I’m pretty sure they won’t win since they’re fairly unknown. I can’t recommend them enough, great value if you wait for that extra 20-25% off sales.
I have to go with Macy’s. While I have neither the patience nor the eye for thrift stores, I am always willing to give Macy’s clearance sales and one-day sales a look-see. I will always find at least one thing decent scattered among their house brands (I like INC but Bar III, not so much) and the stores can be consistently inconsistent. The Macy’s near my house charges full price for all Tommy Hilfiger clothing but the one downtown seems to be giving the stuff away, during sales (last time, I picked up a load of oxfords for $10 apiece) Throw in all of mid-range brands that I don’t get anywhere else (like Hilfiger and Calvin Klein and Kenneth Cole) and how much I can often find the stuff on sale or clearance, and Macy’s is a favorite.
Last Call, I think, is too new. I think a lot of guys are like me and haven’t gotten into the habit of checking it out. Plus, it aims for a much higher caliber of man that I.
Considering the the pair of jeans I ordered literally over a month ago from Last Call are still on back order, and that I had to inquire of my own accord twice to receive any sort of update on my order, I’m going with Macy’s on this one.
If you can go during the midday and find the well-hidden clearance racks in your local Macy’s, you’ll discover some great deals. Ditto for their end-of-season inventory switchups. I don’t have much experience with Last Call, so point for Macy’s.
Surprised last call isn’t faring better. Oh well. I voted for it because their products are far superior and I do not mind waiting for sales.
I guess I’d say don’t aim low. There’s no reason you can’t be a higher caliber man.
Macy’s post Christmas sales are amazing. And the peacoat I bought from there has lasted me a long harsh winter with minimal signs of wear and tear. Both are only good if you wait for sales, and Macy’s has much more frequent and
However, Macy’s website is atrocious, it’s really hard to find what you want sorting through all the garbage brands, but in store is good.
Finances are a pretty good reason.
Lastcall is fantastic. My guess is that many voters have not purchased from the site. The Neiman Marcus dress shirts are phenomenal (as are the brand’s ties); Better than anything from Macy’s and even better than the Nordstrom brand. They now are the only dress shirts I buy. Macy’s just has so many various sales that you can never be confident that you’re receiving the best price. They also greatly restrict their coupons. Lastcall is pretty straight forward and the sales are true sales (not just marketing gimmicks). This vote was easy for me.