#LillyForTarget : The Aftermath

It's been a day since Lilly for Target debuted at Target stores.  I admit, I ended up going to my local Target at 8:00 Sunday morning to check it out. There was a maxi I really wanted and I was curious about the pieces and quality. My Target only had about 10 other ladies waiting, which I guess was good was we only got a limited selection at my store. No sandals, jewelry, or home,  and limited clothing and accessory pieces.

My store only got one of each size, so the maxi I wanted in a medium grabbed up before I got to it. People were friendly and there was so "mob" mentality either.   I did end up getting two scarves and a pair of flip flops. I spent $60, which is definitely more than my usual spend in a shopping trip. I went home, got ready for church, and then began to hear the stories unfold throughout the day.

I heard about the glitches on the website and people working to buy things ahead of time. It literally crashed Target's website and many things were sold out online by 3:00 in the morning-five hours before the actual launch time.

Some stores also had people taking whole racks in every size, without a second thought.

I also scrolled through the #LillyForTarget hashtag on Instagram-which exceed 22,000 pictures in only 24 hours.  My stomach began to turn as I say pictures of people's hauls that clearly exceeded $1000 dollar. Who can afford that? And, if they couldn't wouldn't they be buying the real Lilly Pulitzer? This is one image from Instagram, I'm not tagging because she showed this image yesterday, so excited about her loot only to repost today selling most of it off.

Then the pieces hit ebay and Instagram shops with people asking double or triple the retail prices for pieces. Some more than the cost of a designer Lilly Pulitzer piece would cost.

I began to think about the $60 I'd spend. Did I buy those things because I really loved them, or because I got caught up in the craziness that was the #LillyForTarget launch. I've already worn one scarf and the flip flops, but I'm taking the other scarf back. Mathew 6:19-21 says: “Do not lay up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust destroy and where thieves break in and steal, but lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust destroys and where thieves do not break in and steal. For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also."

#LillyForTarget is such a great idea, but as I was talking with friends last night I wondered what went wrong. Having a few pieces is fun, but do we really need them all? What if stores had set limits on what people could buy, allowing more people to actually get their hands on a few pieces at retail prices? What if greed didn't get the best of those who bought only to turnaround a make a quick buck?

I don't write this to offend any of you who caught a case of "buy all the things," I just wanted to share my thoughts with you today. This craze will pass, and a new one will come. It's up to us individually as to how we'll react when it does.