Chanel boutiques getting rid of waitlists

[m_ichele]

Ah the notorious LA traffic. How could I forget, it took me 2 hrs to get somewhere that was 30 miles away

I would struggle weighing the pros and cons of making a chanel trip lol (LA traffic + more chanel options) VS (standing on a long line at SCP + convenience of other luxury brands) lol what a headache

I live less than 5 miles from work by freeway and I can usually drive it in 10-15 minutes but with traffic it took me almost an hour once to get home pre covid
If you have a day to spend, LA is my vote. I would just leave early to get there by store opening because they close at 6 I believe. Last time we went, they weren’t even taking walk-in to the boutique so we couldn’t even enter but things are opening to a little bit more capacity. I would still make an appointment though just to ensure you’re able to go in.

 

[Lisa3823]

Fellow SCP shopper here and I completely agree with everyone else’s comments. Even pre-COVID the line at SCP Chanel was always pretty hefty on weekends and many weekday evenings, the Louis Vuitton at SCP is usually just as bad too. Definitely try to get an appointment, but if that doesn’t work, NM at Fashion Island is only 15 minutes away from SCP and I think it’s much shorter of a wait at the NM Chanel. It can be hit or miss in terms of the stock, but I’ve definitely had luck getting items at NM that SCP was completely out of before.

 

[Sln123]

I posted this in the 21A forum but I think it applies here too.

I was notified today by my SA at standalone boutique that there will be no more waitlists reserve lists for her store going forward. This is at Costa Mesa. It just came up today. Would be good to know if this is happening at other boutiques
If anyone has any intel at other boutiques, please share. It’s unclear as to how the bags will be allocated going forward. I know department stores seem to be moving to a lottery system but I don’t understand how that works.

Also, I think this is a result of ongoing problems...aka resellers.
I have never resold a Chanel bag so it’s really sad that items I’ve been tracking for upcoming seasons won’t be reservable anymore. Sigh. #disappointmentisreal

I heard the lottery system at NM. After she told me I was in a reserve list?! Literally posed.

 

[mandaron]

[QUOTE="LilyLA, post: 34396173, member: 603341
I was just told by San Francisco SA the same, no more wait lists……. Wtf are they thinking

 

[Chanel0524]

[QUOTE="LilyLA, post: 34396173, member: 603341
I was just told by San Francisco SA the same, no more wait lists……. Wtf are they thinking

No more waitlists for everything? This was the San Fran freestanding store? My SA is there too, I haven't heard anything from there.

 

[mandaron]

I wonder how this would work for me as I do not have a boutique nearby. My nearest boutique is 5 hours away. I’ve always worked with SAs from out of state. Slightly freaking out here

Me too, I have no way of getting anything now - I live nowhere near a boutique. I would have to get extremely lucky on vacation to get any of the pieces I want. I’m pretty pissed. I was on the list for a medium CCH bag, it came in while I was abroad(so I got no calls or texts for some reason), and I haven’t heard from my SA since; she won’t answers my calls or texts, just gone. I’m really upset with Chanel! honestly there are other brands with the same quality, better customer service, and they actually try to get you the item… there are pieces that I really do want, but I don’t think it’s worth the crazy rat race plus paying thousands and thousands more than what I would have paid 12 months ago. Ridiculous- I hope they ruin themselves

 

[BrandSnob]

Saks NYC no longer taking reserves on classics, you can reserve/waitlist other styles though

 

[minnie04]

[QUOTE="LilyLA, post: 34396173, member: 603341
I was just told by San Francisco SA the same, no more wait lists……. Wtf are they thinking

instead being told no more waitlist . SA I just knew not long ago from Sf boutique told me wait list closed. Oh well, I’m not sure how Chanel will treat loyal customers anymore . They really try too hard to be exclusive for such short period of time and their attempt seems successful, people even go crazier to hunt down their handbags . Bad luck for us who live nowhere close to boutiques .

 

[Yolanda0205]

Saks NYC no longer taking reserves on classics, you can reserve/waitlist other styles though

Would you know if minis can be reserved/waitlisted? I remember years ago when I got my first mini, the SA was able to hold the bag for a day and let me see it in person. Now I just had to make purchases remotely just by looking at pictures or risk someone else taking the bag while I rush off to the store…

 

[miss_mandee]

Would you know if minis can be reserved/waitlisted? I remember years ago when I got my first mini, the SA was able to hold the bag for a day and let me see it in person. Now I just had to make purchases remotely just by looking at pictures or risk someone else taking the bag while I rush off to the store…

same experience - I got my mini in 2018 and the SA was able to hold the bag for me for 48 hours.
this week - my SA told me the REV SLG I wanted was in but said she can't hold the item for me - I would have to either pay right away or hope it's still there when I can make it. She is wonderful though and I texted her today when I can drop by and confirmed it was still available.

 

[chaokuay]

My experience as a husband shopping for my wife:

I'm in the OC area - my SA did not advise of any "waitlist" when I asked about a small CF in black caviar back in Sept. They said these were hard to come by and told me to be in constant contact with her, while also hinting that some $$$ has to pass through before we had a chance. This part I understand, as more luxury brands require an initial "investment" before us plebes can see the good stuff. I only recently started an account @ Chanel, so my purchase history over the last 3 months consists of 2 bags, some jewelry, and a scarf.

My SA contacted me when the bag finally came in last week. I was asked to provided my card info for the hold, before another SA can claim it for their client. I asked for a different HW combo, but they advised it was "reserved". In the end, everything worked out, but it does seem unless you are a VVIP, it's first come/first serve, at least with decent spend history. Having a good, honest, and sincere, relationship with your SA really helps.

My experience = VVIP - reserve / VIP - priority first come/first serve. Everyone after gets the scraps

 

[jessgirlbby]

My experience as a husband shopping for my wife:

I'm in the OC area - my SA did not advise of any "waitlist" when I asked about a small CF in black caviar back in Sept. They said these were hard to come by and told me to be in constant contact with her, while also hinting that some $$$ has to pass through before we had a chance. This part I understand, as more luxury brands require an initial "investment" before us plebes can see the good stuff. I only recently started an account @ Chanel, so my purchase history over the last 3 months consists of 2 bags, some jewelry, and a scarf.

My SA contacted me when the bag finally came in last week. I was asked to provided my card info for the hold, before another SA can claim it for their client. I asked for a different HW combo, but they advised it was "reserved". In the end, everything worked out, but it does seem unless you are a VVIP, it's first come/first serve, at least with decent spend history. Having a good, honest, and sincere, relationship with your SA really helps.

My experience = VVIP - reserve / VIP - priority first come/first serve. Everyone after gets the scraps

how long did you have to wait?

 

[jimmyshoogirl]

I forgot to mention this or ask yesterday. Late last year my SA at the standalone in my city said they no longer offered reserve lists to clients. So I started working more with my NM SA because they did reserve for me. Yesterday I went to the standalone to see the new collection. Bought some shoes and jewelry from the previous collection. After my sa rang me up she said “oh you are now a preferred client so you can reserve now. We don’t offer this to every client.” I said oh I got upgraded and she laughed and said yes. “Just let me know what you want for the upcoming seasons.”So they did take reservations last year, not like she said. What changed this time? Did I need to buy more? Am I restricted to the limits still? I’m definitely going to ask her about the limits for sure but just wanted to see if anyone knew what this was about. I can tell it’s different because she’s spraying the inside of my shopping bag with some perfume (I can’t remember the name but she was super excited about it) and a thank you card

 

[yeeitsvyy]

I forgot to mention this or ask yesterday. Late last year my SA at the standalone in my city said they no longer offered reserve lists to clients. So I started working more with my NM SA because they did reserve for me. Yesterday I went to the standalone to see the new collection. Bought some shoes and jewelry from the previous collection. After my sa rang me up she said “oh you are now a preferred client so you can reserve now. We don’t offer this to every client.” I said oh I got upgraded and she laughed and said yes. “Just let me know what you want for the upcoming seasons.”So they did take reservations last year, not like she said. What changed this time? Did I need to buy more? Am I restricted to the limits still? I’m definitely going to ask her about the limits for sure but just wanted to see if anyone knew what this was about. I can tell it’s different because she’s spraying the inside of my shopping bag with some perfume, I can’t remember, and a thank you card

That is really interesting. I read on another thread (I think the 22b one), someone said their SA mentioned that you have to be elite plus to reserve bags. Do you think stand alone boutiques are starting to do this now? I asked my nm SA and they have no idea what each status means and how much you have to spend to reach a certain level. Also, don’t know what kind of benefits you get with each one. From what it sounds like department stores aren’t doing it yet…

 

[glitzgal97]

I forgot to mention this or ask yesterday. Late last year my SA at the standalone in my city said they no longer offered reserve lists to clients. So I started working more with my NM SA because they did reserve for me. Yesterday I went to the standalone to see the new collection. Bought some shoes and jewelry from the previous collection. After my sa rang me up she said “oh you are now a preferred client so you can reserve now. We don’t offer this to every client.” I said oh I got upgraded and she laughed and said yes. “Just let me know what you want for the upcoming seasons.”So they did take reservations last year, not like she said. What changed this time? Did I need to buy more? Am I restricted to the limits still? I’m definitely going to ask her about the limits for sure but just wanted to see if anyone knew what this was about. I can tell it’s different because she’s spraying the inside of my shopping bag with some perfume, I can’t remember, and a thank you card

I was told I was upgraded from Elite plus to VIC last week but I am still subjected to the limits, but my SA did ask me what I wanted from the fall collection and she would put in my request in the buy!

Some boutiques have allowed me to reserve bags, others have told me first come first serve