american apparel flea market a scorching hit
Sunday’s American Apparel Factory Flea Market event was a hit — turning out a broad cross-section of Angelenos young and old (though mostly young, we must admit) to Downtown’s Industrial District under a burning-hot midday sun. Official estimates peg the number of attendees at nearly 6,000 for the day.
The parking lot of American Apparel’s pink headquarters building was turned into an oversized rummage sale, with 75,000 clothing items sold, both normal and “factory rejects.”
Despite many garments’ having holes or stains on them, there were great finds if you had the sharp elbows to dig through the bins while some kid in short shorts and gladiator sandals takes the last good tri-blend tee.
Those who arrived later in the day can be found brushing up on their needle-and-thread skills right about now.
Tips for next year: Get there early, bring a bottle of water, use sunscreen, and remember: The cash-only line moves much faster.
-Full Flickr Photo Set
-the ultimate american apparel event: 2008 factory flea market
Let us know your thoughts on the event in the comments.
10 comments
Was American Apparel’s event planner too cheap to put up tents? It’s Southern California, people. The sun’s out all the time. Not a surprise.
Looks like there were no dressing rooms (not practical, huh?) Yikes- I would be very scared if I were in that mob. Hope you found some good clothes!
Poorly organized. People waited in 2 hour lines in the sun as there friends ran to McDonalds and Farmer Boys to get food and drinks. Food and drink vendors were accessible to people that already paid to go in and shop. Vendors lost out on food sales. Live music started at 8 after 80% of people had shopped and left. half way through the day, the shopping area was a disaster with nothing labeled correctly. High price to pay for a low price.
shopper …your an idiot. you realize that american apparel didn’t make money from selling the food right. they made their money at the door and by selling clothes. why would they care about the people on the outside who may/may not pay? the fact that it is on the inside just gives you an incentive to wait in line that much longer.
The event could be summarized in one word, chaos.
Although the event was a huge success in the standpoint of the manufacturer, the discounts and bargains customers were looking to get was disappointing and lackluster. If the event was held earlier in the day to avoid the heat or if a large tent was established to make things more civilized, it wouldn’t have made a difference. Paying $15 to enter a place where clothes were not only ripped or marked “defective” was hard to avoid. Every other item was either in bad condition or had some minor defect. That’s why its $5 dollars. Next time, i’ll go up to the showroom and buy my clothes defect free at wholesalers prices.
I think for most of us the fact that the clothes were in weird sizes or defective was pretty much assumed. Why would a company just sell all their clothes at a discount for no reason out in their parking lot?
Clothes such as jeans, jackets, shirts, etc. were in fine sizes. I don’t know what you guys are talking about. Btw, there was really nice breeze at the time so no tents needed! Sunscreen, yes, but that’s all. There were some cutters though and people made a big scene, but overall a very enjoyable sale.
Well, I got there at around 9 AM and didn’t even get to go in until 1:30. My advice for whomever wants to go next year basically reiterates what you already said. By go early, maybe more like 6 AM. Waiting that extra hour and a half after already waiting for three hours before the “official” entry time and watching all the shiny bags and cute dresses being snatched up was agony. I also don’t understand how, if charging $12, they can’t at least put up more than one tent, or have the people who were handing out free Smartwater stand in the line. My shopping skills were inhibited by the sun and I just wanted to get out of there and get something to drink, rather than spend more money. Regardless, I did a lot of digging and found things without holes that I would not have bought normally for their being too expensive at retail price.
Kduh – ’cause American Apparel is crap quality made with crap labor.
i went! and it was so ridiculous. supposedly it was 5 dollar entry. but they let ppl in early for…. 12 or 15 dollars. total rip off!. the first was the best:)