No clue they were back, but the things I got there I’ve not been too pleased with. Bought all on line/on sale. Never shopped in the now-gone store.
Have never bought a piece of clothing from CC, Chico’s or WHBM - the window displays apparently don’t appeal to me!
Chocchip, that was one of my examples…I had shopped in another city at WHBM. Bought a cute sweater. They opened near me and I went in to find another. I was clearly 15 or more years older than their target. Other people I know have noticed the same thing. This particular outlet is trying for a younger demographic.
WHBM and Chicos are the same chain. WHBM targets the younger market, Chicos the older one. People however don’t always fit their market nitches 
I loved having the Coldwater Creek store near me, as it was a great place to shop for MIL. I introduced her to Soft Surroundings at Christmas, and I think she is happy with their things. They both may be a little pricey for her own shopping, but perfect for gift-giving.
Wow, they are the same chain? That makes it even more interesting as you travel. Do they target a different age range in each city or do they think some cities are more fashion-forward or more “dowdy” than the average?
Does WHBM do the ridiculous Chico’s sizes? I have never made it to trying anything on there. I’ve gone in twice and both times the sizing frustrates me so much that I leave.
^^^No, they do regular misses sizes, and some S, M, L, XL.
But beware…WHBM sizing is weird. Sometimes I wear a 6. Sometimes an 8 and sometimes a 10.
And they never seem to have the size I need!
I don’t know what is so frustrating about the Chico’s sizing. They deliberately do that so the more “mature” set isn’t as horrified by the sizes they might need. 0-1 is small and so on. It started because almost all their original clothing was elastic waists and sort of “flowy” so the sizing wasn’t as crucial. They had to go to 1/2 sizes as some of the things got more structured. If you can get someone to help you in the store (one of my complaints was that my Chico’s in Dallas seemed to think it was Saks or something and the sales women were pretty arrogant), you can figure it out.
It took me a little while to figure out Chico’s wasn’t for me!
I had trouble with CC - sometimes the size would be right, sometimes way off. I like J Jill, and I think Talbots also is similar to CC as well. I pretty much only like dresses at Talbots, comfy casual clothes from J Jill, I feel too young to shop much at Chico’s, I feel like Ann Taylor Loft has really gone down hill in quality.
I’ve gotten some jackets and blouses before at CC, but always found them pricey. And the selection could be meh - how many sleeveless shells can you show me? With the shipping/return charges I will not be shopping there.
When I’ve shopped in Chico’s, I’ve found the salespeople to be a great help. They know the sizes and their stock and are good at pulling out the correct sizes and bringing together items for an outfit.
Our Nordstrom Rack always seems to have NYDJ in stock and on sale for great prices.
I very occasionally shopped at CC and was quite successful in their going-out-of-business sale, but they were too expensive for me unless a deep sale. A couple of interesting items from the new online store’s FAQ’s:
And here’s why they might seem similar to Talbot’s:
I just got a pair of pants that are casual but dressy enough to use for a nice work event (if you know what I mean) from the new CC and like them. Hopefully they can find that sweet spot between price and quality - I really hated how their quality decreased over the last couple of years. I can tell when I bought my jeans by how much fabric is in the front pockets.
I shopped Coldwater Creek when their plus pants came in longs. I did very well with that – but the new CC isn’t going in that direction so they won’t be getting my business.
Just got my Coldwater Creek package. Jeans - wrong fit - waist too small for the rest that fit. Ponte slim fit pants, came labelled as “easy fit leggings”, which they were. I would not have ordered leggings! even “easy fit” leggings. If the website (or my order ) had accurately described them, I wouldn’t have ordered them. Leggings are different from straight/slim leg pants for heaven’s sake! The website still describes them as slim leg pants. NO, they are leggings…cup in under your bottom.
I don’t think I’ll reorder. Sad about the pants that I liked.
That’s a shame about the jeans. As for leggings advertised as pants, I’d tell CC exactly what you said about not ordering them if the description had been accurate. CC should pay for your return shipping since they described the item incorrectly. I take screen shots of listings before I order and save them just in case of problems like this. So far, every retailer I’ve contacted about sending me a prepaid mailing label or requesting a free package pick-up has done it once they understand the item was misrepresented. (It seems to happen on about 5% of my orders, and I shop online a lot.)
Never a CC fan - seemed more shapeless and I do better with structure in my clothing. They also seemed to have that palette that I think is very middle aged looking - those faded aqua blues, corals, lavenders. They seemed indistinguishable from JJill to me - and targeting the same demo as Chico’s. Chico’s IMO has a lot of “gimmicks” to distract the eye from the aging middle which I think makes it look all the more obvious.
I do get some basics at Talbots, like cardigans, but am finding JCrew a bit fresher and younger looking and better cut.
Didn’t even know CC stores were gone!
CC clothing has been advertised at our local Ocean State Job Lot (OSJL might be regional…in any event it’s a kinda crappy super-discount place that has closeouts & stuff). I’d imagine that the CC merchandise was from the now-closed stores. But they’ve been advertising it for a while, maybe since back in December. So I’d imagine it’s picked over, if it’s even still there.
Here you go…owned by same co that owns Talbots, Jones and Hot Topic.
http://www.idahostatesman.com/2014/06/09/3226114/idahos-coldwater-creek-to-live.html