Shop 'n' Share: Brand Name Clothing at BJ's Wholesale Club

Although my family shops at BJ's Wholesale Club weekly and have purchased clothing and shoes there in the past, I have never taken my time to closely look through their vast clothing section. I usually know what I need. If I needed pajamas for the children, then I would know exactly where to look. When BJ's invited me to check out their spring fashions and gave me a $25 gift card to shop for my family, this gave me the perfect excuse to take a closer look at the clothing available at BJ's.

I have always known that BJ's sold some brand name clothing, but I do not remember seeing so many brand name labels in the past. I was very pleasantly surprised and took extensive notes, so that I could share my finds with my readers. Here are some of the bargains that stood out to me the most . . .

Children's:

• "Red Sox" Onesie & Short Sets (Sizes 6-24mos) $8.99
• Boys & Girls "Ed Hardy" Short PJ's (Sizes 2-12) $8.00 Bought It!
• "DKNY" Girl's Dresses (Sizes 2-16) $18.99
• "Ralph Lauren" Girl's Polo Dresses (Sizes 7-16) $18.99
• "Laura Ashley" Girl's Floral Dresses (Sizes 2-6x) $8.00
• "Dolly & Me" Girl's Dresses w/Matching Doll Dress (Sizes 3-8, Doll Dress fits 18" Doll) $14.99 Bought It!

(New brand name pajamas, a shirt, and a dress w/matching doll dress for under $31)

Men's:

• "Reebok" Men's Performance Shorts (Sizes S-XXL) $9.90
• "Nike" Men's Dri-Fit Shorts (Sizes M-XXL) $17.00
• "Polo Jeans Co." Men's Screenprinted T-Shirts (Sizes M-XXL) $9.90
• "Tommy Hilfiger" Men's Short-Sleeved Knit Shirts (Sizes S-XXL) $7.99 Bought It!
• "Michael Kors", "Tommy Hilfiger", and "Nautica" Men's Polo Shirts (Sizes S-XXL) $19.99
• "Izod" Men's Polo Shirts (Sizes S-XXL) $14.99 to $16.99
• "Nautica" Jeans for Men (Sizes 32-42 Waist) $19.99

Women's:

• 3 different styles of "Vera Bradley" bags - All under $45.00
• Several styles of "Nine West" Ladies Tops - $8.00 to $17.99
• "BCBG" Hoodies & Coordinating Drawstring Pants - $17.99 each
• "Gloria Vanderbilt" Cargo Capris (Sizes 6-18) $16.99
• "Izod" Bermuda Shorts (Sizes 4-16) $16.99

Shoes:

• "Nike" Running Shoes for Men - $36.99
• "Nike" Running Shoes for Women - $35.00
• "New Balance" Running Shoes for Men & Women - $35.99

There are really too many bargains to list them all. Other brand names I came across are Liz Wear, Levis, Nicole Miller, Wes & Willy, and more. Please keep in mind that the selection may vary from one club store to another and the selection changes all the time. We'll save the discussion about luxury handbags for another day. Those deserve a whole separate article.

If you would like to take shopping at BJ's for a test run, you can snag a Free 60-Day Trial BJ's Membership through July 5th, 2010.

I Went On a 2-Hour Treasure Hunt at AJ Wright

Yesterday, my dear husband and I were invited to tour the newly renovated AJ Wright store in Methuen, MA. Since we do not have an AJ Wright in our area, I was very curious about what the store would be like. AJ Wright's parent company is TJX, which means its sister companies are TJ Maxx, Marshalls, and HomeGoods . . . all stores in which I enjoy shopping.

Currently, AJ Wright has 141 stores in the U.S. and expects to add 9 more by the end of the summer. I know that 3 of those 9 will be in the Atlanta, GA area. The store we visited in Methuen is one of two Boston-area stores that have been completely renovated. The rest of the Massachusetts stores will receive a similar makeover soon.

When my husband and I arrived at the Methuen AJ Wright, the first thing my husband noted was that it had a similar feel to walking into an Old Navy store. The entrance, the high ceilings, the size of the store, the lighting, and the placement of the marketing all contributed to this first impression.

Going into this, I knew that AJ Wright carried discounted brand name clothing. I was extremely curious as to how it differed from TJ Maxx and Marshalls. From what I learned from the tour, AJ Wright carries some very famous brand names in urbanwear that its sister companies do not. It also has a larger plus size department, carries both work and school uniforms from polos to scrubs all year round, has a licensed-only toy department, and has a larger bedding and housewares department. AJ Wright also offers layaways.

Here are some of the name brands that jumped out at me as we walked through:

American Eagle Outfitters

Apple Bottoms

Baby Phat

Chaps

Ecko

Enyce

Jessica Simpson

Nautica

Nike

Nine West

Phat Farm

Puma

Sean John

XOXO

Meet Ashley and Keri, 2 of the 3 women who worked so hard to organize this event:

The things that stood out to me the most during this visit to AJ Wright were that the vast selection of handbags were very neatly organized by color. Also, all the clothing in this huge store was organized by size and it was clear the crew must spend quite a bit of time on the upkeep. Something that really jumped out at me was how neatly all the tabletop picture frames were displayed on the shelves . . . all facing the same way and evenly spaced. Plus, my husband was very happy with the selection of licenced team jerseys and other activewear.

We were invited to go on a bargain hunting shopping spree with a $100 gift card. Take a minute to look at some of the treasures we found . . .

I genuinely wish that there was an AJ Wright in our area. It is a store that is full of one-time buys. Since the selection is updated weekly, you really never know what you are going to find. Many of the items we picked up only had two or three in the whole store. The experience is quite similar to sifting through a clearance rack, except instead of one or two racks, it is the whole store that you want to look through. It truly was like going on a treasure hunt.