Raw footage for "Chicago Slices," a series documenting life in and around Chicago. Skip Blumberg interviews Linda Jarnig, a "Personal Touch" sales person, about shopping for people who don't have time to shop for themselves. Nordstrom offers the service to many, including Amy Mealins, a speech pathologist who has been working with Jarnig for several years.
00:00Copy video clip URL The tape begins with footage from around the Oakbrook Center in Oakbrook, Illinois. A number of people arrive and depart from Maggiano’s Little Italy, a Italian restaurant near the mall. The building itself is made to look like an apartment building along a city block. Videomaker Skip Blumberg makes a few jokes about the “authenticity” of the building. Blumberg makes his way over to Nordstrom Department Store, taking a few shots of the Nordstrom logo on the side of the building.
03:45Copy video clip URL Once inside, Blumberg documents an employee meeting. There is a short break in footage.
04:57Copy video clip URL Blumberg speaks with a Nordstrom employee about taping inside of the store.
05:41Copy video clip URL Blumberg talks to Linda Jarnig about what they plan to tape, and begins to interview her about her experience working at the department store. Jarnig is the manager of a complimentary service called “Personal Touch.” Jarnig and her fellow employees aid their customers in any way they can during their visits to the store. Jarnig then briefly talks about her own shopping habits before giving Blumberg a tour of the women’s clothing section. She shows Blumberg some of the newest trends and talks about the variety of apparel the store has in stock. Jarnig then begins to talk about the current summer fashion trends, explaining that the color palette for much of the summer clothing has become more subdued. Jarnig states that red is the most popular color of the summer, showing Blumberg several examples.
11:30Copy video clip URL Jarnig talks about the popularity of blazer jackets because of their versatility. She goes on to talk about the types of customers she sees on a daily basis, and about the sociological aspect of women’s clothing. “I would say women are more comfortable now dressing as women.” Jarnig describes the transformation from very conservative dress to more liberal types of apparel in the corporate world, and states that men are incorporating a lot more color into their styles of clothing.
14:03Copy video clip URL Blumberg asks Jarnig to show him a few odd color pairings of clothing. Jarnig pairs numerous pieces of clothing that look awful together.
16:12Copy video clip URL Jarnig takes Blumberg back into the office where she goes over a few files on some of their frequent clients. Jarnig goes on to talk about the variety of different body types she and her fellow employees deal must accommodate. “And a woman who’s large can look every bit as good as a woman who’s small, and that’s one of the things that we really try help our customers realize: Everybody can look great.”
19:54Copy video clip URL As Jarnig and Blumberg walk through the store, another employee pulls Jarnig aside to lay out some ground rules for taping. After this, Jarnig begins to talk about one of her clients, Amy Mealins, who will be trying on dresses later that day. Jarnig says that Mealins is a “perfect 10.” Jarnig picks out a number of dresses for Mealins.
25:57Copy video clip URL Blumberg asks Jarnig for her opinion on the Home Shopping Network and QVC, and whether retailers are afraid of losing business to television shopping. Jarnig thinks consumers will still come out to the stores because they want to see and try on clothing for themselves. The two discuss this while continuing to pick out dresses for Mealins.
32:15Copy video clip URL Jarnig comments on a few of her customers who always want the newest styles. “There are those customers that really want to be on the cutting edge of fashion and for them the most important is what’s new and what’s current and they want to be the first to have it.” Jarnig talks about some of her other clients from rural areas who travel to Chicago a few times a year to see her.
34:14Copy video clip URL Jarnig sets up a few dresses in the fitting room before Mealins arrives at the store. Jarnig and Blumberg gather a few more pieces of clothing before she arrives.
37:34Copy video clip URL Jarnig explains the meaning behind the titles for different clothing departments in the store. The department titles, according to Jarnig, are directly related to certain lifestyles. She then continues to gather clothing for Mealins. Blumberg gathers more footage of the inside of the store.
42:33Copy video clip URL Jarnig states that the hardest customer to work with is someone who is unhappy about him or herself. “Nothing you bring her looks right, she doesn’t like how anything fits, how anything works, and it’s really not the clothing she’s unhappy with. It’s herself that she’s unhappy with.”
43:45Copy video clip URL Blumberg takes a few shots of Jarnig pulling clothing off of racks.
44:32Copy video clip URL Jarnig introduces Mealins to Blumberg and fellow videomaker Ahdee Goldberg. Mealins talks about the types of clothing she would like to try on, and then the four make their way back into the fitting rooms. Before trying on the clothing, Mealins talks about the value of Jarnig’s opinion when buying clothing. Jarnig briefly shows Mealins the different pieces of clothing she pulled off the racks before going to look for a few pairs of shoes. Blumberg then briefly interviews Mealins.
39:40Copy video clip URL Mealins is a speech pathologist. She explains that she used to work with mainly younger children and but recently switched to high school aged kids. She also talks about her budget and the need to shop intelligently for clothes. Blumberg asks Mealins about her shopping habits.
53:31Copy video clip URL As Mealins changes into one of the new dresses, Blumberg follows Jarnig while she finds Mealins a few pairs of shoes. She also picks out a couple more pieces of clothing for Mealins to try on. The footage is continued on a subsequent tape.
59:31Copy video clip URL Tape ends.
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