Before a recent trip to NYC I tried to cut back on shopping so I could spend wildly while in NYC, on merchandise not available in San Francisco. But it was difficult because so many designer pieces were available to me online through sample sale or flash sale websites. So I wondered, if I can already buy these clothes at home, is there anything new left in New York? Is New York still the American shopping mecca? This is the first in a series of posts trying to answer that question.
One thing that New York definitely has on other American cities are fast fashion chains. It’s always the first States-side stop for foreign retailers starting to tap into the vast U.S. market. Fast fashion giants H&M, Zara and Mango came to San Francisco by way of New York, and we have yet to receive Topshop, Desigual, and Uniqlo. I only had time to hit Uniqlo (I was really disappointed to miss Desigual because I also missed it when I was in Spain last fall), but there I found a gem: Costello Tagliapietra for Uniqlo!
Left: I liked this dress, but the material was thin and if I stood the wrong way various lumps and folds became visible.
Center, right: Crew necks can be tricky for women with short hair, but the draped cowl neck is super interesting. Sweetening the deal, the material was light but not so thin that it was unflattering. At $30 a total no-brainer. I also bought a +J (the Jil Sander collaboration) t-shirt, and a purple denim skirt from the Uniqlo denim line. Given that there is no Uniqlo in SF, this was certainly an NYC-only experience.
Shopping Showdown / ACCESS TO FAST FASHION:
San Francisco: 0
New York: 1
What's your opinion?