Shopping Strategy: The Louis Boston Sale

1. The week before the sale, scope out the store, try on the pieces that catch your eye, and make a wish list.

2. Decide when you’ll go: The designer gems available for half off in the first week make battling the mob worthwhile, but be aware that discounts dip another 10 percent the second week. (Sale leftovers eventually head to Filene’s Basement in Newton.)

3. The doors open at 10 a.m. on sale day, but plan to arrive by 9 a.m. to be among the first in line.

4. Since Louis’s lot can hold only 40 cars, take a taxi to avoid parking on Newbury. The saved minutes could be the difference between a Zac Posen secretary blouse and disappointment.

5. Don’t bother chasing down salesclerks to check in the back for other sizes—if it’s not out on the floor, you’re out of luck.

6. Forget the usually luxurious fitting rooms: At sale time they’re quickly transformed into a jungle of abandoned garments. While management frowns upon it, you’ll find the dark corners of the main floor a better bet for trying things on.

7. Although Louis’s rickety staircases have been known to shake during the first wave of the stampede, they’re a smarter, faster option than the small elevators.

Sale runs 1/9–1/21 (closed Sundays), 234 Berkeley St., Boston, 617-262-6100, louisboston.com. For more information on the Louis Boston event and other top local sales this month, go to bostonmagazine.com/januarysales.