12 Hours at the San Diego H&M: An Account

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A Racked LA reader who camped out all night for the Versace for H&M collection just sent us a detailed account of what went down at the H&M store at the Fashion Valley in San Diego and it sounds totally chaotic. Her report:

I got there at 1:30am and 40 people were in line outside on a bridge connecting to SD's trolley. At 4:30am the line starts moving to the front of the H&M store. Fifteen minutes later, a grandmother and her daughter cut the line to be the 20th and 21st in line. Ten gentlemen at the front of the line tell the security guards about the cutting and they do absolutely nothing.

Then two men starting fighting about who is first. Security gets heckled, followed by more fighting at the front about who is first and who is an eBay whore; in the midst of all this someone pokes grandma with an umbrella and people point, saying "cutter." H&M personnel try to get inside but cannot get people who have been at the front of the line since 8pm last night to move or budge.

Security keeps threatening to kick people out and they NEVER DO. Around 6:20am, wristbands and details about how to shop are passed around. An hour and a half later, the line moves to the main entrance. At 8am sharp the doors open for the first wristband group (red). By the time my blue wristband reaches the men's section (around 8:20am) the jackets were gone and only the designer books remain. I rush to the women's line. The green wristband group manages to score what's left of the jackets but, to their credit, SD Fashion Valley does a good job of checking women's goods to make sure people do not grab more than two per product. A girl with a blue wristband heckles the cutting grandmother and her daughter.

Now it's 8:45am. There is one bomber jacket and one motorcycle jacket and both are grabbed before me, the fourth person in the blue line. I grab the denim floral jacket and leggings, a ring and a bracelet, and get on the waiting list for the last motorcycle jacket on the mannequin. I am guaranteed by a salesperson to be the first to get the panther necklace because I was first to request the necklace.

The clock hits 9 and there are plenty of people still shopping, though most of the studded purses remain untouched. By 1:20pm the male Versace mannequins are striped of their goods. Now I'm just waiting for H&M to call so I can collect my panther necklace.

· Versace for H&M Backlash [Racked LA]
· Versace for H&M: We're Inside! [Racked LA]
· Versace for H&M: Shoppers In at Beverly Center! [Racked LA]

7007 Fiars Road, San Diego, CA