I did some research and found these:

• Coach definitely has some mainline goods in the store, though I am not sure if all of them are from the retail stores. I went to buy a belt at the boutique, only to find that they had moved all their fall stock to the Coach factory store. Ended up getting the belt for like 50% off.

• A lot of what is in Coach Factory Stores is made for Coach especially for those stores. There are a few short-cuts taken in design and materials, to be sure, which could lead to a shorter life-span than the full-price merchandise found in the Coach store, but it really depends on what you buy and how you use it.

• You also have to factor in the difference in their prices: Generally the Factory Store merchandise is at least 25% cheaper than the regular full-price Coach merchandise.

• Quality has been great for the briefcase and portfolio in Coach Factory Store. The leather on the cabin bag is a step down. I'm very pleased for what I paid. I would like to compare it to a fold-over briefcase from that customhide place, which looks to be of even better quality and retails for ~$230.

• Lots of stuff seems different for the Coach outlets, but sometimes it is hard to tell because of seasonality in the collections. The handbags and wristlets, men's wallets, belts and accessories may be specifically made for the COach Factory Store outlets.

• Coach admitted that something like 80% of the goods in their outlet stores are made specifically for the Coach Factory Store outlet with the 20% balance being overruns or seasonal leftovers from the retail stores

• Coach stands by the quality of the goods for their factory store outlets and that it meets their quality guidelines (whatever that is) but there has to be some compromise in quality and manufacture in order to be able to offer the goods at the outlet at the outlet prices

I love to shop. I do not always have to buy things; I like to look at the clothing and shoes as well as the accessories. I think I learned this from my mother. We lived on a farm so it was a big deal to go into the larger city that was a half hour drive from our house to go shopping. It would be a special treat to be able to go with mom. She would always make it a special day because we got to pick out one item of clothing and we went out to lunch. It was always so much fun that I think I associate good times with shopping.

My oldest sister also loves to shop. She and her husband have a great deal of money so she does a lot of buying also. She still remembers her roots and never pays full price for anything. We often go to sales and outlet malls together to spend time shopping and catching up. The last time we went shopping together we met at a major department store because they were having a large sale and they opened early. We thought we would shop there until the outlet mall opened. I am not one that needs to have brand name items, but I did see a coach handbag that was on clearance sale for a great price. I told my sister that I needed a new purse and I thought I would buy it. She told me to wait until we went to the coach handbag outlet. She said the selection would be larger and she thought I would get a better deal. I put the purse back and we rode over to the outlet mall together.

When we arrived at the coach handbag outlet they did have a wide selection of purses, however the majority of them were from the last season. The prices were remarkably low; however they did not have the style that I had seen at the department store. I told my sister that I was going to buy the one from the department store when we went back to get my vehicle. She bought two wallets at the coach handbag outlet.

We both bought several items at the outlet mall and then went out and had lunch together. My sister was still looking for a particular color bed spread for a guest room. We had not found one that she liked. We decided to look in the bedding department at the department store where we had started our day. When we got back to the store I was happy to find that my coach purse was still there. My sister also found the bed spread that she wanted. We laughed that we could have had our shopping done in half and hour if we had just stayed at this store; however that would not have been as much fun.

Here is the Link to Coach Leather Madeline Bag – Coach Leather Madeline Large Bag Tote 11554 White