REVIEW: Virtual Sample Sales

I’m sitting in my finance class playing brickbreaker on my Blackberry when I get an e-mail from my sister that refers me to a new website called Hautelook. This online club organizes exclusive 12- to 48-hour private sales of designer clothes. Each day members receive emails announcing the brands on sale and the duration of the virtual sample sale. Membership is free (but I say priceless), and each time you refer some to the website, you earn $10 credit toward your next purchase. Consider these designer names from a recent sale: Elizabeth and James, Fig, Organic Kids Fashion, Danielle Stevens Jewelry, Decades Two Men, and Ella Moss. Arriving soon: Energie, Splendid, David Aubrey, Acrobat, Minnie Rose, LaRok, Vincent Longo, and Luna Luna. Quantities are limited, but the discounts reach up to 75 percent off labels. Each sale page features a clock that counts every second until the sale ends. My recent acquisitions: A pair of Scoop NYC leopard flats that retail for $165, but I nabbed for $58; My Belle de Jour dress from Elizabeth and James is still in the mail ($445 mere mortals, but I landed it for $195).