By Jane Han
Staff Reporter
Could the pinstriped Armani suit really be selling for 70 percent off the original price of 1.6 million won? What about the leather D&G jacket and the cashmere St. John sweater, marked down for less than 500,000 won? Shoppers, pawing through clothes and bumping into each other, were in disbelief Friday, as the price tags at Lotte Department Store in downtown Seoul seemed too good to be true.
``The clothes are much cheaper than what I expected,'' said Kim Ji-eun, a 34-year-old housewife, who has been counting down to the three-day premium sale for a first dive into the mall's fresh inventory.
Hundreds of others apparently had the same game plan, as the store's marbled floor was mobbed with eager customers lining up to get into the designer bags-only corner, which allowed only a batch of people in at a time.
The crazy lines, in front of the fitting room and the cashier, however, didn't seem to bother the bargain hunters.
Lunch-break shopper Lee Hyun-sook, who had been in line for more than 20 minutes to try on a black-satin Vivian Westwood skirt, said discounts are so steep that ``it's a loss not to buy.''
Convincing shoppers to make this kind of judgment might have been just the agenda top retailers like Lotte and Shinsegae department stores set when they slashed last fall and winter prices by 40 to 70 percent.
Seasonal sales typically cut prices by 20 to 40 percent, so their recent outlet-like markdown of luxury goods makes a statement.
``It's not simply up to us to put designer items on sale,'' said Kim Sung-bae, a spokesman for Lotte, the country's No. 1 department store chain. ``We have to have enough inventory subject to discounts and participation from brands or their importers.''
He explained that the latest sale featuring almost 15 foreign labels was made possible through the large stock of last year's left-over merchandise and support from Shinsegae International, one of the largest luxury goods importers responsible for labels including Coach, Diesel, Armani and Comme des Garcons.
Plans aren't finalized, but Kim says he foresees more luxury bargains this year.
``When things don't sell at full price, we put them on sale,'' he said, showing a slight hint of pessimism.
Department store sales rebounded last month, driven by the Lunar New Year holiday shopping spree, but sales at top retailers have been sharply shrinking since September of last year. February is traditionally a slow month for emporiums, which is why the luxury sale was scheduled for this month, according to industry sources.
In that sense, Lotte's closest rival, Shinsegae, proved that the strategy worked, as its three-day markdown of premium goods last week handed a handsome same-store sales jump of 7 percent.
While the slash-and-burn prices seem to be doing the trick now, the challenge for retailers is to offer it just enough so that shoppers don't get too spoiled.
``If these fire sales continue, who's going to be willing to pay full prices?'' asked one merchandiser at a local retailer who didn't want to be named.
She said that her job is to make sure that top labels ― although they may be offered for a lot less during these blowout sales ― keep their brand power and mystique.
``I won't have an Armani jacket rolling around on the floor in the middle of a shopper stampede,'' she said.