Marshalls

Of the two Marshalls in town, this is my least favorite. I feel like the selection of women’s clothes are not as good or plentiful as the TJ-​maxx across the street or the Marshall’s in columbia heights.
The shoe selection is bigger here, but it also lacks a good selection of house hold items as well.

While I’ve found awesome bargains here and I really dig the brands they carry, it’s just not as good as the TJ Maxx the next block over. There was a lot of hype when this location opened a few months back (in the former Filene’s Basement location) — throngs of people clamored about for the raffle tickets they were giving away and jammed the elevators going down to bargain hunt. I’ve been back several times (probably 5 – 6 times) since, and it’s always a bit of a mixed bag.
Pros:
–Good selection of name brands. Kate Spade, Tahari, Michael Kors, Marmot, Ralph Lauren (even black label items!), Cole Haan, Ugg, etc.
–Prices are pretty spot on for a discount shop.
–More efficient check-​out/​faster than the Marshall’s in Columbia Heights.
–Shoe selection is awesome!
Cons:
–No kid’s selection. Obviously not a big deal for everyone, but it makes a difference to me.
–Accessibility. The elevator downstairs is shared with the National Press Building and takes forever because people staying at the hotel or going to other floors have key fobs that somehow can override the elevator (at least, that is what I was told by an employee as to why it is so abominably slow). It seriously takes forever to get downstairs, or back up again, so if you are traveling with a stroller or in a wheelchair, take note.
–Returns are a hassle. I returned an iphone accessory here with receipt and the associate doing the return had no idea what to do. Ended up having to call a manager over and they rang it back up incorrectly and gave me back less money than I was owed. Got sorted eventually, but took way longer than it should have.
I’ve purchased quite a few things here but as of yesterday, my favorite score is: a long swing wool & cashmere pea coat by Cole Haan for $ 79. Bam.

Get sales on name brand stuff. Hit or miss.
I found a lovely top for $ 24.99 — it had a snag in it. I really wanted it BUT wanted a discount because of the snag.
The associate who was at the register assured me that I’d get a refund and she called for a manager.
The manager arrives, looks at the top and tells me that I can have the shirt for $ 24!
I really thought he was joking — so I said, «really? a 99cent discount?» and he said, «yes»
Needless to say, I did not get the shirt. That’s not even a 5% discount!
I look at him as I am walking out of the store and he is at a counter trying to get the snag out of the shirt — probably so he can put it back on the rack and get full price for it!
BOO!

Mehhh equally not impressed by this compared to TJX a block away (not really saying much). This place is more cramped, reminds me of the new Marshalls in Georgetown. Maybe I should try again later. Came in rushed to find a dress for a holiday party and left feeling dizzy and underwhelmed.

Found out about it from the bus advertisement so i decided to go check it out and i was very impressed for now just hope they keep up the good work and keep it from looking like Formans Mill on the first of the month.

I will admit it, I am a bargain shopper. But when I say bargain, I really am looking for a true bargain. This Marshalls doesn’t fit the bill. There are no high end label bargains to be found here. Maybe a few mixed in if you really look, but I didn’t have a few hours to do so. Oh how I miss Filene’s Basement!
This new store is very nice looking. The staff were just wonderful, greeting people, smiling, friendly. But the quality of the stuff is just not good, clothing and shoe-​wise. The home goods section looked ok, but I was really looking to feed my clothing fix. I was expecting this downtown location to have a better selection and higher quality brands than my local Marshalls in VA, but I was sadly disappointed.
The sister store, TJ Maxx is a block away and has a better selection and some surprisingly high end names hidden away. I will keep going there when I want to waste my lunch hour and paycheck on bargains (that I don’t need!). I was really underwhelmed with this new store.

Holy cow! I am in heaven with this Marshall’s! This store has the most incredible shoe department! Yes, I am a female and can’t get enough black boots, black shoes, any color shoe for that matter! The rest of the store is average but née to have in the neighborhood along with their sister store TJMaxx.

I am so happy that a store has finally replaced my beloved Filene’s Basement. Filene’s folded in 2010 or 2011 and there has not been many discount Dept. stores to shop at in downtown D.C. Marshall’s had their grand opening today. It was loud and crowded, but fun: a DJ, DST step dancers, free popcorn.
PROS:
— lots of cash registers
— having another discount shopping store in D.C.
— shoe selection looked great
— things are well organized (for now)
— good prices
CONS:
— lcouldn’t find the ‘Designer’ section, usually filled with Cynthia Rowley, Trina Turk, etc.
— very large men’s section
— cashier was slow despite long line and assistant had difficult time finding a price (also, slow)
— large kitchen section, which could be for shoes!
I hope that it carries more designer clothes and petites and doesn’t become a mess like every other Marshall’s or TJ Maxx.

This Marshalls location opened today, occupying the space left vacant by Filene’s Basement two years ago. The store’s debut featured raffles, free popcorn freshly popped in a popcorn machine, and a DJ spinning old school tunes. This all combined to put shoppers in a great mood to shop.
I looked through the selection of women’s clothes, bags, and shoes but didn’t find anything fabulous worth purchasing. I do hope this location plans to stock up on current designer fashions because today’s offerings were pretty uninspiring.
My friend had a bit more luck in the housewares section, which had a decent selection of picture frames, towels, etc for the home. There weren’t a lot of people on line so she managed to check out quickly.
There were sufficient staff members on hand this afternoon but most of the women seemed more interested in having personal conversations with each other than in helping customers. As this was opening day, I’m sure the staffing level will decrease after the first couple of weeks. I only hope that this store can keep its merchandise organized and that it does not become plagued with long checkout lines like the Columbia Heights Marshalls store.