Vera Bradley Outlet Sale a bonding and shopping experience!
I have never been to anything quite like the Vera Bradley Annual Outlet Sale. This year on a hosted trip to Fort Wayne, my mom, Lora Disque and I headed for the city to attend this annual event. Coming into town, it was clear this is a Vera Bradley town. We saw the factory and several bill boards announcing the sale, it is a BIG event. In case you didn’t know, Vera Bradley is the name of what began as a luggage design company. The company was founded by Barbara Bradley Baekgaard and Patricia Miller in 1982. The company is best known for its patterned bags, but I was soon to learn that they are so much more!
I even read about the store at the Fort Wayne History Center in the Innovations section. Vera Bradley is a household name, but not just in Fort Wayne, the company and its products are loved by women all over the world.
The Vera Bradley Annual Outlet Sale runs five days in a row. What makes this sale so special is that buyers can find Vera Bradley products up to 40-60% off the retail prices. Before attending the event you have to purchase tickets and register to attend the event. During the sale they have specific sessions that the shopper can attend allowing a limited amount of customers at one time. There is a $3600 limit for purchase. Although I love my Vera Bradley, not a problem, this would only be an issue I think, if you were purchasing for resale.
Mom and I registered back in Illinois. Once at Fort Wayne, we arrived ahead of time a few minutes before our shopping session. The event is held at the Memorial Coliseum. They are chosen because the Allen County Memorial Coliseum is the largest events venue in Northern Indiana. The place is huge and features over 1 million square feet of meeting space, a 13,000 seat arena, and 5,000 parking spaces. Parking costs around $5.00 for the event. Thankfully there are people to guide you so you know where to go.
Once inside the venue there were greeters at the door that ushered us into a room filled with the colorful Vera Bradley products scattered all throughout the room on tables. There were baskets that the greeters had given us to put the bags in. While I was expecting to see bags and luggage, I was surprised to see all the other things offered by Vera Bradley like stationary and accessories, umbrellas, holders for IPADS etc. We had received a lovely Vera Bradley bag as a gift and we both were determined to find cross body billfold purses to match. Our goal was to use the bag as an anchor purse with the cross body billfold as a small essentials purse to take out of the larger one.
The search was on! After looking we selected our billfold and picked up and thought about many other purchases. The umbrellas in particular caught my eye, but we reined ourselves in and made our way to the payment area. Here too, the staff was extremely organized. We paid for our billfolds, and were on our way.
We learned what great prices and products are available at this annual outlet sale. Coming to the sale is also a great time to see the rest of this beautiful city. That’s exactly what we did; we had a girl friend getaway in Fort Wayne, really pursuing art and history. Plan your trip for 2018 by logging on to http://www.visitfortwayne.com/events/vera-bradley-outlet-sale/faq. Keep in mind this is also a great chance to stock up on Christmas presents and have some special friend/or family bonding time. Mom and I made memories in Fort Wayne that we will always remember and every time we carry our Vera Bradley purses we are reminded of the fun we had!
