Is Oak's Major In-Store Sale Signaling the Beginning of the End?

Racked is no longer publishing. Thank you to everyone who read our work over the years. The archives will remain available here; for new stories, head over to Vox.com, where our staff is covering consumer culture for The Goods by Vox. You can also see what we’re up to by signing up here.

While you were sleeping, another really good end-of-season sale started: Everything in Oak's retail stores — in New York, that's Noho and Greenpoint — is now 60% off, according to an email blast from the company. And while the huge discount isn't too surprising to see this time of year, with retailers like Opening Ceremony offering up 40% off select seasonal merchandise, and Kirna Zabete going up to 50% off, the discounted merchandise in this case may be tied to American Apparel's plans to shut down the business.

Oak's founders have offered $600,000 to buy the brand back from American Apparel in the midst of its bankruptcy proceedings, who previously filed to shutter the business by the end of the year with liquidation sales, but this has yet to be approved.

We reached out to Oak to clarify the nature of this sale and are awaiting an official response; we'll update you when we hear back. If this actually is the start of a closing sale, we might see a scenario similar to American Apparel's recent New York City closings, where everything from standing racks to curiously-posed mannequins were up for grabs.