Besides The Gazette‘s official senior fashion writer, Eva Friede, a shopaholic and trend seeker, I’ve recently discovered a new young freelancer named Maxine Mendelssohn. She’s one of the youngest of the newspaper columnists and sometimes writes with such a sarcastic tone, I often cringe and wonder “Did she really say that??” The girl is gutsy. She grills her interviewees with skeptical questions and we get their responses. Talk about pressure! I love it!!
Take her recent article on La Swiss, a high end watch store.
Maxine: So who’s shopping here at those prices?
La Swiss: The guys who shop here like fancy cars, cigars, suits and boats. They like the finest things. We get a lot of collectors and people who like the prestige of a wonderful watch. We also get people looking for their first decent watch. Which you can get for $1,000.
Maxine: Yeah, that’s a regular bargain.
Ouch!
I haven’t quite located what days her articles are published, since Ms. Friede’s usually pop up on Tuesdays, so it’ll take some digging. But I totally recommend reading her articles, she’s quite a trip!
Image credits: The Gazette
Ever since passing by Rosenstein Paris on De La Montagne, I’ve been dying to step inside and look but never got the nerve to do so until today. As a half basement store, its windows meekly peek out onto the street, but one look inside and you’ll recognize the unmistakable red church-like arches of Christian Louboutin. I was like a kid with her nose pressed against the glass, those red arches screaming my name.
Today was it. I was going to step inside and have a look and also learn a little more about the other lines they carried mainly Repetto and Lucien Pellat-Finet. To my surprise though, there was an exhibition going on. There were about 20 or so pairs of ballet flats in glass cases with celebrity names.
After a shy introduction to the saleswoman, she opened up and told me that they were having an exhibition to celebrate Repetto’s 60th anniversary in the business. Each pair on display were uniquely designed by a mix of celebrities and world class designers like Helmut Lang, Proenza Scouler, Catherine Deneuve, Brigitte Bardot, Vanessa Paradis and Chloé Sevigny. Some were whimsical, one pair designed by Barney’s was covered with wiggly eye stickers, another had the men’s Zizi shoes made out of wax.
If you thought your mind was playing tricks on you in always finding something new in stores, well you weren’t hallucinating. I read this article in the Wall Street Journal how Spanish-based brand Zara is putting pressure on the pedal to beat out its competitors in the fast fashion market.
While competitors like Forever 21 stock up with new duds within 6 week intervals, Zara packs in new styles twice a week. Collections are kept small to minimize losses on flops and capitalize on exclusivity when they sell out. You can say that they’ve created the fast fashion model and turned it into a multi-million dollar business and lots of companies are catching up quick.
Just another growing problem in fashion globalization. Soon you’ll be able to get new fashion every single day. I give it about 5-10 years before fast fashion goes out of hand.
Today is Hi-Speed.
And tomorrow: Ludicrous Speed!
After years of flocking to Holt Renfrew and Ogilvy’s, high end shoppers looking for a new retailer will have to search no more as Toronto’s TNT will be settling into Westmount this spring.
An acronym for “The New Trend,” the store encompasses some of the hottest designer lines from Pink Tartan to Vivienne Westwood, and caters to the nouveau riche young bloods of the city. The planned 8,500 square foot store will include men’s and women’s clothing as well as kids, shoes & accessories. Hopefully its interiors will match those found in their Toronto-based stores as an open concept with sleek designs.
I personally have never heard of this store, but considering the lines that they carry it will surely entice trend seekers to the Westmount area. It’s also ideally located since it’ll be accessible by metro and in the near shopping vicinity of downtown.
There’s already a listing on Craiglist looking for sales reps, managers, and cashiers, so you know this deal is done. I’m looking forward in browsing through this store!
Image credits: TheNewTrend.com
Gap’s new online shoe store. Fun layout, I like it already.
More online shoe stores are being added to the mix and this time a couple of them are from well-known popular brands like Gap and Amazon.com. I was forwarded a video link to Washington Post writer Ylan Mui’s report, which encouraged the notion that clothing brands are solidly making their move online. With the runaway success of Zappos.com‘s business model of free shipping and returns, these online shoe sites are also rewarding you for shopping there either by giving you a $5 discount to getting a Thank You note in your shoe box. Looks like they’re looking to give Zappos a run for their money!
Piperlime - Owned by Gap Inc.
Very clean site, easy to navigate and has a nice selection of shoes ranging from $50 to $300. US Shipping Only.
Endless - Owned by Amazon.com
Also well organized and prices range from $14 to $800. US Shipping Only.
Simplysoles - Washington D.C.-based
What Ylan calls a boutique online shoe store, handpicked by the owner Kassie Rampel, with a price range of $100 and up. Can Ship To Canada (yes!)
Mona Moore - (a play on words of “Mon Amour” which means “My Love”) Montreal-based
This boutique holds an eclectic mix of handpicked designer shoes and accessories. This is not for frugal but you won’t find brands like Lanvin, Balenciaga, Marni, Pierre Hardy and Miu Miu like here. Prices start $100 and up. 1446, rue Sherbrooke Ouest.
Of course, for Canadian shoppers, we’re all wishing some online Canadian stores would get their act together and try to be as innovative as our neighbors down south, unfortunately it’s not happening fast enough. I did find a Canadian blog that listed numerous Canadian shoe brands and sites who do process orders online.
Happy Shoe Hunting!
