Gabby’s Outlet

This store is closed.

Filene’s Basement it is not. Which is unfortunate because Gabby’s has the potential to be the ultimate discount store for designer and not so designer clothing in the East Valley.
The cons — too little merchandise. Gabby’s needs to put a little more $$$ capital behind its bargain basement merchandise. Yes, it carries Liz Claiborne, Alfani, Anne Taylor, Ralph Lauren’s Purple Label, Michael Kors, and quite a few other american designers that fall into the Macy’s crowd but Gabby’s only carries a few sizes in each item. So, yes, you may fall in love with that gorgeous Alfani silk sweater for $ 5 but only if you are a PS (Petite Small). Racks upon racks of New Religion Jeans and Lucky Brand, again 0 – 2 then maybe a few 8s, 10s and at that point really, I just give up! Typical of discount stores but the selection is anemic. The choices range from mid range women’s career, weekend and day ware. Imagine if the second floor of Macy’s caught fire and all that was left was the 2 – 4 sizes, a few 8s and one or 2 size 14s. This is Gabby’s.
The other con — the layout and design of the store is worse than K-mart’s blue light special promotion. Yes, I’m a bargain shopper but you don’t have to make me feel like a leper about it by making your store look even cheaper than it is with enormous, hideous orange signs directly above the merchandise areas that read: SHOES/​ZAPATO., MEN/​HOMBRES. I get it, you are trying to market to a multicultural crowd but the signs read cheap… try again. The shoes and the accessories are straight Mesa flea market. If you have had a hard time finding the right pair of white pleather high heels, you are in luck, everyone else — forget it.
The pros — the prices $ 5– $ 10 on all items on the day I was shopping and the complete lack of shoppers. You have the entire store to yourself. It is staffed by the beauty school attendees from the hair academy in the same strip mall — I kid you not — and yes, they do in fact cut one another’s hair next to the check out stands while you shop. The surreal factor is high, very high and so really shopping could be secondary to experiencing the oddity that is Gabby’s.
And yes, I did buy the silk Alfani sweater and it looks fantastic and it was $ 5 so, as long as they stay open I will be back, hideous orange signs and amateur beauticians be damned!