I'm always a pissant when it comes to sample sales because 1) everything's claustrophobic and disorganized, and 2) I never think the prices are as low as they could be. Yes, that Alexander McQueen jacket is half off but I'm still not going to be able to afford it at $300, no matter how I try to talk myself into thinking that $300 for a jacket is TOTALLY reasonable and this is a long-term investment and no more Forever 21 shit that falls apart the second time I put an arm in it. Plus if I wanted to elbow and be elbowed for one tiny piece of ground to stand on, I'd just stand in the middle of the 6 train at rush hour. But $29 for Free People dresses?! And right smack in the middle of Chelsea market, next to a bakery and some wine store, otherwise known as The Most Beautiful Place on Earth? Yes ma'am! Some miscellaneous rambles: 1. I like having a general idea of what I want to buy before heading over but then whenever I see a beautifully crafted grey t-shirt that I have a million of already, my mind goes out the window. I went today with the intention of buying a distressed denim jacket and ONLY a distressed denim jacket. And then I came out with a dress. 2. The communal dressing room is kind of hilarious once you get over whipping off your clothes in front of a crowd of strangers and realize that seriously no one is paying attention to your cellulite. Except for the seventeen-year-old Russian model preening in the corner. She's totally snickering. The people-watching is fantastic, from the European tourists striking a pose in Eva Franco jungle print dresses to the harried mom carrying armloads of clothes for her sulky daughter to loudly reject over and over again. I will say that the dressing room here is much, MUCH better than the one in 260 Fifth Avenue, where it's basically a section of the room, not cordoned or roped off, where you take off your shirt and realize that the sleazy old guy to your left is batting bedroom eyes at you and the girl on your right is butt naked. 3. The selection was still good, despite being the fourth day of the sale. Not sure how much restocking they do but the Free People stands were looking a tad barren (thanks no doubt to the $30 and under clothing) and the jeggings were untouched. read more

I don't have a great sense of Prive's schedule, but I've stumbled onto two of its sample sales while vacationing in New York, once in 2010 and once last month. Both times, I walked away with some stellar finds, and I hope to come across it again. The sales are held in a big open space in Chelsea Market, with racks and racks of clothing labeled by designer. The selection was great on both of my visits. I left the first sale with two pairs of J Brand jean leggings for $75 each, and two formal dresses that I wore to school dances (it was my graduation year) (from law school, not high school, honestly), both heavily discounted. Last month I picked up a few items by Walter and Torn by Ronny Kobo, and an $8 Free People bra at the register. I know Torn in particular is a really expensive label, and I was pleased with the skirt and top I got for $35 apiece. I wore them to an event when I landed in L.A. two days later. Prive sets up a communal fitting room designated by a big cloth curtain. If you don't mind undressing in front of strangers and maneuvering for mirror time, it's not bad at all. The staff is constantly busy putting rejected clothes back in circ. For the number of people and the amount of merchandise in motion, the sale doesn't feel chaotic at all. I'm in New York on a fairly regular basis, and I will be sure to peep into the Prive space any time I'm in Chelsea Market. It's a great place to do some shopping, with good enough bargains to warrant spending on a whim. read more

I've been to this one a couple times & I've not really been impressed. One thing you should know about me is that I'm very, VERY picky when it comes to clothing. Not only do I wear a size that's hard to fit but, if you've read my profile, you know that I don't like wearing the same thing that everyone else is wearing. So I do go into sample sales with some high expectations & overall, I've not found much I truly liked at sample sales & have bought even less at them. The space itself for this particular sale is not bad. There is some organization of clothing, prices are well known & it is cleaner + more spacious than some places I've been to. I've never actually tried anything on here since I've never seen anything I liked enough to consider trying on that was also in my size so I can't speak about fitting rooms. Another thing to know about me: I try to avoid buying clothing I won't wear in the near future unless I have to b/c something just looks that good on me & the price is awesome. I go in here yesterday & the first thing I notice is that every single top they have for sale here is freaking sheer. Seriously! I saw one blue shirt here that I thought looked nice but when I did the hand test, I could not only see the outline of my hand but the color of it as well. I can buy prostitute clothing for much cheaper than the prices these tops were going for. Then when I saw things I liked & might consider, I couldn't find a tag anywhere telling me the size. Not seeing a size means I'm not interested. I'm not even speaking of one garment but entire selections of the same thing in a section. There also could have been far more clothes in a size that would actually fit me. It could also be that I have different tastes than the style of clothing this particular sale carries but I've just not been impressed. I wouldn't bother if you're looking for nice things to wear to the office or something that doesn't feel too showy (I had no luck finding things for either category); you'll be happiest if you wear a Medium or Large since I saw much more of that stuff. Maybe I also should show up sometime other than a Friday afternoon but that's been my experience. read more

I bought 2 sheet sets, saying made in Italy. Got them home, opened one and it is nothing but garbage. Crappy fabric, bottom sheet doesn't fit a queen, doesn't fit any other size either. Sewn together in a cheap way. No Italian would want their name on this crap. They want to charge me over $288 for 2 discount sheet sets. Could get better quality at Macy's for full price and not pay $288. This is a scam business, stay out!!!!!!! read more

I don't see the hype of these types of places, firstly when you go in they inspect you like I can fit a giant sweater in my tiny purse, secondly the selection itself is tiny in terms of size variation and thirdly the discounts are not anything to write home about as I can get better looking items for less in a friendlier location. So I do not think places like this are worth my while, they're just set up to move unwanted merchandise in an unpleasant setting. read more

I'm giving away my favorite shopping secret with this review. I love this place. I'd say 50% of my favorite pieces of clothing come from this revolving sample sale. I got a great Free People jacket for $35. Ben Sherman tank for $15. $35 for a Theory dress to name a few... Yes, they do have icky communal dressing rooms but just wear your best pair of boy-short panties and it's like a day at the beach with less sand and more zippers. read more

These sales are my favorite thing about Chelsea market. Everything is dramatically discounted, the selection can include some intriguing items, and I just really love communal changing rooms..... oooohhhh yeahh.... You are SO rocking that skirt right now! Yes, buy it. Yes. Nice granny panties, by the way. read more

Wandered in out of curiosity. This was an empty space inside the Chelsea Market used for a sort of pop up sale. I had to do a double take at prices (don't laugh, I live in a tiny, 3-stoplight town) since most items were at least $125 or more. Okay, I get it, designer labels, so pants that were originally $395 priced now at $195 is a bargain. Styles were very modern and lots of blacks, whites and grays. Both men and women's wear, hats, belts, purses, etc. Patrolled by tight-lipped security. I walked out with nothing but lots of people apparently feel spending $350 for a few items in NYC is normal. God, I need a raise. read more

In a city where everyone is a fashionista and sales tax is through the roof, prive offers great sample sales - and I happened to catch one today. It is conveniently located in the chelsea market, and the space is excellent - large and spacious unlike some of the other sample sales I've been to. The racks were all pretty well organized, and the prices are clearly marked. I loved how efficient they were with the fitting room, you leave whatever you don't want and they constantly have a group of people bringing out the rejects and hanging them back onto the correct racks. Major major props for organization and space. They do offer some in-season stuff .... which means that SOME of the clothes are not actually that much cheaper, but if you look close enough, (like me!) you'll find some awesome designer deals at 70% off. read more

Without revealing too much of my "secret," this is THE place to be if you want stylish designer clothing at huge discounted prices. This does not even really feel like a sample sale since the quality of everything that I bought and tried on is as good as it can get. The space is well organized by designer and even has all the prices listed out so there are no surprises - you don't even feel like you're in a true sample sale. Yes, the dressing room is communal but at least it could fit a whole lot of people - I never had to wait more than 3-5 minutes to try something on. I secretly have to admit that this is where I go during my lunch break. Hey, I have 11 Yelp checkins so far. It has to be THAT good. read more

Amazing deals. Designer labels at very reduced prices. They get different merchandise in all the time so worth checking out often. They have both Men and women clothing. A bigger women selection of course ;) Located in the Chelsea market a great place to shop on a Sunday afternoon or any day for that matter! read more

Don't forget to walk all the way to the end of the Chelsea Market because otherwise, you'll misee Prive's amazing sample sales! (Better yet, enter from the 10th Ave side!) Their space is big enough to offer you a good selection, but also small enough to manage looking through all their racks without exhausting yourself. The changing room in the back left corner is just a communal space with several mirrors lined up, so make sure your boyfriend doesn't follow you in there. Once in a while, I think prices could drop a little lower, but that's just the poor girl in me talking. They have really good deals and I think I'm just getting greedy!! Sign up at www.PriveDesignerSales.com to be notified of upcoming sample sales! read more

disappointing. Tourist oriented rather than a sample sale you want to seek out. If you're in Chelsea Market, kill a few minutes if you want.

I just love going out for lunch and finding a sample sale! I have gotten very nice items at these sales and it's always fun to just look what they have. it doesnt get too packed for the most part and sized are really good. I was looking for a nice white blouse for a while and got a $300 white buttoned down shirt for $60 and I love it. It is such good quality. I also got an Alice and Olivia dress for $40 and numerous other products that I love. read more

This review is more on behalf of my girlfriend than myself. Went here on our most recent visit to NY. I never heard of or familiar Prive, so finding this place as we were wandering Chelsea Market was quite a pleasant surprise. We visited Chelsea Market on a weekday afternoon. My girlfriend went to some store in the building and I went off to look for a restroom. As I'm searching for the restroom, I see a long line of girls and read 'Helmut Lang Sample Sale'. I go back and tell my girlfriend that we should check it out. I'm familiar with HL and know his stuff is expensive, so we lined up more for kicks and not expecting to actually buy anything. The reason for the 5 stars is I got to admit the selection was pretty damn good and it was very reasonable. We found majority of the items were between 60-80% discount. Although there was nothing for guys, I was just simply impressed that sample sales like these even existed and at these discounts. I'll definitely be back here and hopefully we can catch a good sample sale like this one read more

horrible experience, they don't tag the cloths and have this terrible bag check, they missed our bag and on the way out they got super nasty, and even threatened to get violent... avoid read more

I bought few clothing items during the sample sale held at Chelsea Market. One of the item had a security tag still attached after the purchase. When I returned to the store next day, the sample sale was over. When I asked the greeter about it, she suggested me to call the number on the receipt but I ended up leaving a voice mail then I was suggested to go to Anthropologie so I did. Employees at Anthropologie didn't even bother trying and they turned me down because it wasn't their product, even though I showed them the receipt with timestamp, showing that it was bought few feet away. When I returned back to the greeter, she couldn't do a thing. When I asked for her supervisor or manager, she said there wasn't any available. If someone got killed there then I'm sure the management would've showed up but that wasn't my case so I couldn't get any help from the management. read more

I scored two extra large Mackage coats for 700$ .. Once you're in you're on your own , there's no sales clerk to help you but that also means there's no pressure to purchase. Their items were well organized & there wasn't too much of a crowd. read more

To be honest I only came here for Free People. I already have an idea of what I want, so when I go I'm already searching. It's always busy and filled with tourists, and people who don't work during work hours. The dressing room is just a big communal room where women are taking everything off. Though I really don't think you need to be butt naked to try on a dress, I'm just saying. Tourists who have never been to a sample sale asking people if there are more sizes or whatever. Lady get out of my way! You can find a lot of good deals depending on which designer it is. But you have to be ready to find what you need, try it on and get out. We're not here to make friends. They have a email list that will tell you when they're next sale is. read more

This is a great pop up sample sale shop where I've picked up some of my favorite items over the years from designers like Walter and Laundry. You'll never know what you'll find and some of the deals are really great (for example, my favorite robin egg blue military style wool coat I nabbed for about 80% off retail. plus, the actual coat never went into mass production. YAY). When it comes around, head over quickly, the best stuff gets picked over in a heartbeat. read more

Hugely discounted designer clothing - great location and space and lots of selection. Everything is organized by designer, type and size. There's plenty of staff to keep everything flowing - it could have been a lot more hectic but I had fun shopping and walked with some great deals. read more

I have been following their sales for 4 years, back when it was The Art of Shopping. Always great finds from designer labels like Rock & Republic, 7 For All Mankind, Vince, Theory, and others. The sale is laid out nicely like a large boutique. Really easy to find things and they always have all sizes available. read more