New York Shoppers Hit Loehmann’s GOB Sale

New York City shoppers with stiff upper lips came out in Friday’s wintry mix to mourn the demise of one of the last great designer discount retailers by—how else?—snapping up deals.

The liquidation of Loehmann’s stores, which started Thursday, was the final straw for many discount shoppers who’ve watched their favorite chains, one-by-one, post the yellow signs: Going Out of Business.

“First it was Daffy’s; now it’s Loehmann’s,” Upper West Side resident Emma Whitmore said.

The 93-year-old chain was the place to find great deals on Italian designers, she said. “I’ve been sentenced to a lifetime of T.J. Maxx.”

Brooklyn, N.Y., resident David Dinolfo is also a long-time Loehmann’s loyalist. “It’s so sad,” he said. “There’s no more Filene’s, now no more Loehmann’s.”

Although he didn’t bag any deals on day two of the sale—the store hadn’t marked down the men’s stuff yet, he said—he’ll be back.

Mr. Dinolfo said he’s got his eye on a DSQUARED2 jacket, currently marked at $900. “That was the price it was last week,” before the sales began, he said. He’s looking for a 60% markdown.

Some of the highest-end women’s clothing items hadn’t been marked with the yellow and orange tags yet, either. So early in the sale, most items were between 10% and 20% off.

Loehmann’s Holdings Inc., the owner of the 39-store chain, filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy in late December. The sale of its merchandise to a group of liquidators was approved Tuesday and sales began Thursday.

It’s the third designer discounter to liquidate in the past few years. Syms Corp., which owns Filene’s Basement, went down the same path in 2011; Daffy’s Inc. liquidated in 2012.

“It’s so depressing,” Sarah Bozek of Syracuse, N.Y., said. Ms. Bozek noted she used to live up the street from the Loehmann’s on Broadway and 74th St. and shopped there all the time.

In town for a business trip, she couldn’t believe it when she saw that Loehmann’s was going out of business and said she couldn’t pass up the opportunity to shop.

She purchased jeans, a few shirts, a sweater and a tank top for “only $128,” she said. “Joe’s Jeans! So sad.”

Write to Stephanie Gleason at [email protected]. Follow her on Twitter at @StephGleason.