Fashion
June 26, 2017

6 INSIDER TIPS FOR SHOPPING THE NORDSTROM ANNIVERSARY SALE

 

Today I’m prepping you for one of the biggest and best sales of the year – the Nordstrom Anniversary sale. Like you, I love a good sale, and this one is my very favorite. I’ve been shopping (and studying) this sale for years. The Anniversary Sale is famous for having the hottest items on sale before anyone else, and notorious for how quickly good items sell out. Here are SIX insider tips to get the best deals on hot items before they’re gone + how to be entered to win one of THREE $100 Nordstrom GIft cards to use during the sale!

 

6 insider tips for shopping the Nordstrom Anniversary Sale.

 

TIP 1: KNOW THE SALE 
The Nordstrom Anniversary sale is different than most of the big sales because instead of marking down clothing items that have been available for a while or are from past seasons, all of the Nordstrom Anniversary Sale items are brand new for the upcoming Fall season! This is your first look at the upcoming trends, and a rare chance to get brand new seasonal items at a deeply discounted rate. Once the sale is over, the items that are not sold out remain available, but the prices all increase to their normal price.

 

TIP 2: KNOW THE DATES

Nordstrom card holders get access to this sale first. It’s called the ‘Early Access’ portions of the sale, and it runs from July 13th-20th (get your own Nordstrom card + $20 if you apply by July 9th to shop the sale here). It opens up to the general public July 21st-Aug 6th. The sale ends, and prices go up, August 7th.

 

TIP 3: SHOP EARLY!

In order to get the sale price during the early access from July 13th-20th, you have to have a Nordstom card. You can sign up for one online here. Get first dibs on the sale by applying for a Nordstrom debit or credit card. If you are approved before July 9th, you will receive a $20 Nordstrom Note toward your first purchase during the sale. Plus, as a cardholder, you will receive Early Access to shop the best arrivals at their Anniversary Sale discounted prices. If the card isn’t for you, you can join Nordstrom Rewards here without applying for the credit card, and you will still receive a $10 Nordstrom Note to spend at the Anniversary Sale!

Is it worth it to get a Nordstrom card just for this sale? YES! The pieces with the best discounts usually are sold out by the third day of the Early Access portion of the sale. That means that if you don’t have a Nordstrom card, you won’t even get the chance to purchase the item before it sells out.

A few years ago I didn’t have a Nordstrom card, so I had to wait until the sale opened to the public to shop. I was so disappointed to find that a lot of the items on my wish list were sold out or out of my size. It’s absolutely crazy how fast some of the items go. If you don’t have a card yet, it isn’t too late to register for one and be able to jump on that cute new Kate Spade bag, or booties right when they go on sale.

 

TIP 4: START YOUR SHOPPING HERE!

Make sure you check out my Nordstrom Sale Roundup Post here, the morning of July 13th. I will be giving away THREE $100 NORDSTROM GIFT CARDS to use during the sale! In order to enter, you must leave a comment on my upcoming Nordstrom Sale Roundup post before 7am PST the morning of July 13th. The post will be live super early the morning of the 13th, so jump on over, leave a comment, and get your shopping started here!

!My Nordstrom sale round-up of all of the best items from the sale as well. You can see the ones I did for 2016, 2015 and 2014.  I pour through pages and pages of sale items (so you don’t have to) and only pick out the good stuff. Throughout the sale, I post about all my favorite buys (and why they are my favorites), I give dressing room peaks of multiple items and talk about the fit/style of each one, and I give fall styling tips to get your mind working on how you will want to style your sale buys.

 

TIP 5: SHOP ONLINE

Online, online, online. I cannot stress this enough! I always post all of my top picks from the sale by 6 am the morning the sale starts. Then, in order to give you a detailed description of which items are good quality, flattering on, and cuter in person, I always brave the crowds to find the best stuff in person, and I do a dressing room round-up the day after the sale goes live so you can get a good feel for the cut/sizing/fit of the best items. Then I also do a post with all of the full fall looks I end up taking home with me. I do all the legwork for you, so you have all the info you need to get the best items of the sale.

My advice to you is to get yourself a Nordstrom card if you don’t already have one, and check out my blog first thing the morning of July 13th. I usually pull an all-nighter the night before the sale, narrowing down the items online, to select the best stuff. Then, place your order online first thing.

If you aren’t sure about sizing, order 2 sizes. Nordstrom’s free shipping/return policy makes shopping so painless. Your order will come with a return label, so if there is anything you don’t want, just stick it on your box and set it outside for the mailman to pick up. You don’t even need to make a separate trip to the Post Office!

Another good smart tip is if something you love is sold out in your size, buy it in any size you can find. Then hold on to it. Two weeks or even two months later when they restock the sizes and it’s regular priced you just take yours in and do a straight exchange! There is always a small chance it might not be restocked, but since these are all pre-fall items, they almost always restock. (if you are super worried, give them a call and ask, they might be able to tell you if they will be getting more in!)

 

TIP 6: SHOP SMART

I always do my research to know which items are hot and will go quickly, and I will make sure to alert you of which items will go the quickest, and of any restocks throughout the sale on Instagram and my Instagram stories. Make sure you check there regularly during the sale. In the past years, the items that sold out the fastest were:


CAN I GET A PREVIEW OF WHAT ITEMS WILL BE AVAILABLE?
Yes! The online preview catalog of what will be available is LIVE NOW! Just head here, and scroll all the way down to the very bottom of the page. You will see big letters that say “Early Access Sale,” with a link to the Women’s catalog and Men’s catalog.

 

Here are some of my wish lists from years past…

2016 WISH LIST

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CLICK ON ANY OF THE IMAGES ABOVE TO SEE THE DISCOUNT!
2015 WISH LIST

ONE / TWO / THREE / FOUR / FIVE / SIX / SEVEN / EIGHT / NINE / TEN / ELEVEN2014 WISH LIST

1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11

If you have any questions or have specific items you will be looking for in the sale, just let me know in the comments!
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28 thoughts on “6 INSIDER TIPS FOR SHOPPING THE NORDSTROM ANNIVERSARY SALE”

  1. Hi I love your Instagram and your blog! I am expecting my first child in a few months and am finding it hard to find nice maternity clothing! Would love to see some nice maternity pieces or pieces that can be worn with a baby bump :)!! Thank you!

    1. They usually have lots of great maternity options too! I was pregnant during the sale in 2015, so all my nordstrom finds were bump friendly 😉 I have a whole section on my blog dedicated to maternity fashion (and separated by trimester), just click on the “Maternity” option under my LOOKBOOK tab! Congratulations on your pregnancy!!

    2. Can’t wait to shop the sale. This is the only time I can afford to buy stuff at Nordstrom.

  4. I always see this sale and want to be a part of it. I have watched your wish list for years with dreamy eyes!

    1. I hope you can find something for yourself this year! 😉 I’ll try to round up good picks for every budget! There is always a good striped top that goes on sale for around $15..I’ll watch for one for you this year!

  5. You forgot to mention my favorite trick of all!!! So say you love something but it’s sold out in your size. Buy it in any size you can find. Then hold on to it. Two weeks or even two months later when they restock the sizes and it’s regular price you just take yours in and do a straight exchange! Of course they may never get more in, but in my experience that rarely happens!

    1. Oh my gossshhhh, how could I forget this?! So good, I’m going to go add it to this post! Thank you!

  6. Hey so does the debit card and the rewards program also allow for early access? Starting on the 13th? Or just the credit card? Thanks!

    1. Hi Heidi! The debit card worked for early access in the past, but I just got word that they are only allowing sign ups for a Nordstrom Credit card this year (meaning no option to get a debit card). I want to do a bit more research and will post the exact details about this on here on this post when I get them!

        1. Hi Isabelle, yay! Congratulations! After you got approved you should have received an email with a temporary Nordstrom card number. If you cant find it just give them a call and they will give you your number. If you don’t get your card in time just give them your number and you can still access the sale. You will use this to login to your Nordstrom.com account to shop it online early as well! Hope this helps!

  7. Thank you for this! I have been a Nordstrom shopper since I wa sa freshman in high school but it is always nice to read posts like this before the sale as a refresher for all the tips and tricks. This is by far my favorite time of year!!!

    1. Me too Melissa! It’s almost like Christmas morning!! So glad you enjoyed this post!

  8. I cannot wait for the sale! I am looking to buy a cognac Tory Burch bag- I don’t own any Tory yet! I am also potentially interested in a suede jacket if funds allow! I am a cardholder so I’ll be shopping online July 13th! I would love to win a giftcard!

    1. My very first Tory purchase was a cognac bag and I use it constantly! Such a good classic investment! I’m so excited for you! Seriously, Thursday can’t come soon enough!

  10. Wow I love your list of picks from 2016! I hope they will have similar items this season again 🙂

    1. Thanks Inna! From what I have previewed so far I think they will! I see a lot of similar booties that they had last year!

    1. Right?! Last years selection was decent, but this year is so incredible from what I have seen!

  12. Hi . Just hopped over from your post about lash extensions.
    Your blog is great. Thanks for your hard work, and looking forward to that sale!

    1. Thank you so much for your sweet comment! Love having you as a reader! I cant wait for the sale either!

  14. Thank you so much for posting! I always look forward to your posts and picks for clothing!!

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