With no more fanfare than an e-mail blast to customers on its Twin Cities distribution list, Restoration Hardware opened its first outlet store in Minnesota Thursday.
The 10,000-square-foot showroom in the Shops at West End development opened at 10 a.m. with eight employees cutting a ceremonial ribbon. The one customer waiting for the store to open offered to take their picture. Within 15 minutes, more than a dozen people were scouring the store for bargains.
The RH Outlet sells furniture discounted at 20 percent to 60 percent, including sofas, sectionals, beds, nightstands, dining room tables and chairs, accent tables, outdoor seating, and bathroom vanities. A store manager said that the store will carry furniture almost exclusively, not the art, hardware, lighting and bathroom accessories.
Most of the items are discontinued from the main store or returns in scratch-and-dent condition. For the opening weekend, the store placed an additional 25 percent discount on all items.
Radwa Elkaffas of Chanhassen was excited to get the e-mail about the outlet store's debut. "It's awesome," she said. "I love the brand but it's expensive, so I'm glad [the outlet] is here."
Many of the brand's pieces are large in size, including dining-room tables and sectional sofas.
The outlet had one iconic piece from the RH collection, the Porthole Bar, a liquor cabinet modeled on an industrial sphere from the 1920s. Normally, the bar sells for $2,655, but it was $1,593 at the outlet.
Last year, RH added a $100-a-year members program that includes an additional 25 percent discount. But that discount won't apply at the outlet store.
