Nordstrom clearance store gives shoppers Last Chance

PHOENIX - The day begins with Jackie Schell standing in a clearance store stairwell, welcoming 90 or so sun-baked shoppers before the 9:30 a.m. opening.

She recognizes many of the faces, but she lays down the rules just the same each day: "We get our merchandise from a large department-store company that has a very liberal return policy."

She urges them to play nice: "Safety is most important. There will be no running or pushing." And no more fighting.

Then the steel-grate door creaks as it begins its ascent, and the crowd surges toward merchandise that only months earlier had style and held the promise of lifting Seattle-based Nordstrom out of the doldrums.

Here at Last Chance, shirts and shoes, handbags and evening gowns are given one last opportunity to find a home before being sold in bulk and shipped off to some place where people don't have the good fashion sense to know lime green's time has come and gone.

As no-frills clearance stores go, Last Chance is a civilized place, even if shoppers aren't being serenaded with live piano music. But no longer are customers allowed to run, or fight, or play tug-of-war with $600 leather coats on sale for $49.97.

"I saw a guy roll under the door as it was opening and run back and grab all the leather coats," says William Ortez, a corrections officer who shops at Last Chance two or three times a week. "The store had to put him on timeout. People get greedy. It doesn't matter if they're driving a Mercedes, they'll fight over a $10 shirt."

Schell put a stop to that behavior three years ago when she moved here from Lynnwood, where she managed Nordstrom's Alderwood Mall store. While her husband played golf in retirement, she set out to tame Last Chance. It is testimony to her success, and to the price and quality of much of the merchandise, that customers rich and poor obey her rules lest they be banished to Mervyn's next door.

What keeps them in line are prices: Doc Martens shoes and sandals, $19.97 to $49.97; a John Nordstrom sports jacket for $29.97; Coach and Kate Spade handbags for under $60; French Facconable work shirts, $9.97, and lots and lots of size 6 and under shoes, including Kenneth Cole, for $4.99.

A mecca for shoppers

In Yakima, it's widely known that if you want to shop cheap, Shawna Treat is the woman to call. Treat works as a customer-service representative at Horizon Airlines. She regularly leads shopping excursions to Last Chance, where in September she and seven friends and co-workers purchased upwards of 60 pairs of shoes at $4.99 a pair.

"We didn't keep an accurate count because we knew we wouldn't break our record," says Treat. "I know it sounds crazy, but 147 pairs is the record."

During their two-day trip, the eight women spent about $2,900 on shoes and clothes, stocking up on everything from Christmas gifts to next summer's leisure wear.

Nordstrom opened the original Last Chance store in 1992. Before then, the company's unsold merchandise was auctioned off to people who bought it cheap and resold it overseas. That proved to be a costly proposition for Nordstrom, which chose Phoenix for its outlet store because of its proximity to California and the Northwest.

The original store quickly proved to be too small, so in 1995 Nordstrom moved Last Chance to its present location in the Colonnade Mall on East Camelback Road. The tradition of aggressive and rowdy behavior continued until Schell came along.

One way Schell shaped things up was by raising prices on items most in demand, particularly by people buying things with the intent to resell them. On Kate Spade handbags, for instance, she raised the price three times - from $19.97 to $59.97 - before shoppers finally stopped fighting over them.

"My job is to make sure the environment is comfortable for people to shop," says Schell. "To be real honest, I raised the prices to stop the aggressive shopping. It was not a pleasant experience. I had to stop these people from jumping on each other."

To avoid an early-morning crush of shoppers, Schell and her staff unbox and ration merchandise throughout the day. The practice results in a steady stream of customers from the moment the store opens at 9:30 a.m. until it closes 12 hours later.

Last Chance's inventory is made up of merchandise that didn't sell at Nordstrom and Rack stores and items customers wore and brought back. Some of the used stuff reflects just how much some customers abuse the company's return policy. Occasionally items have the former owner's name sewn in the garment, and many of the shoes on display show considerable wear.

But all of the merchandise, new and used, is so cheap that Last Chance allows shopaholics to satisfy their compulsion without going broke.

For most shoppers, though, Last Chance provides a way to clothe themselves and their families in a style they couldn't otherwise afford. "I'm wearing designer clothes at budget prices," says one named Paul. "That's my secret, and I hope this place never goes away."

Such a place doesn't come without certain rules. All sales are final and nothing can be returned.

Serious, budget-conscious shoppers come here often. Wise shoppers know they don't put anything down, including the clothes they wore into the store, without running the risk of having it grabbed by someone looking for a bargain.

During a recent visit, Nordstrom's stylishly dressed spokeswoman, Brooke White, was even asked if the clothes she was wearing were for sale.

Try-on know-how

Experienced shoppers also know that time spent in the dressing room is time not spent prospecting for bargains. Some women wear very little or tight-fitting clothing, so they can try on things over what they're wearing.

It's not a good idea to come with your heart set on buying something in particular. Just as many football coaches will draft the best athlete available, shoppers should arrive with an open mind.

Which explains why Tacy Cawdrey, a Seattle-based Alaska Airlines flight attendant, recently bought two evening gowns.

"I have no idea where I'm going to wear these, but I could not pass them up," she said. "They are beautiful and they were $25."

Robert T. Nelson's phone-message number is 206-464-2996. His e-mail address is rnelson@seattletimes.com.