Arriving in Montreal on New Year's Eve, I was saddened to find out that not only were all major malls and shopping districts closed on New Year's Day (not so in Toronto) but that they were strangely closed on the day after as well.
I did, however, manage to hit the local mall for a couple hours before departing again for Toronto.
When I first arrived in Baltimore and was on my way to go dorm room shopping I was surprised by the malls. As large a mall as Towson Town Center is, it carried astonishingly few important brand names, or at least what I consider to be important. Stores of European descent such as Mexx, Le Chateau and Zara were virtually nonexistent in this power mall.
Instead they were replaced by American labels as J. Crew, Hollister and A&F. I could no longer find the petit, slim clothing to fit my small Eurasian body.
Since then I've been eager to do some real shopping in Montreal, a city where you can find virtually anything. The shear abundance of stores and styles is notable in itself (hence my anger at everything being closed).
Take Towson's H&M; Its selection of clothing is relatively narrow and conservative, slimmed down to American tastes. An H&M in Toronto or Montreal, however, carries the same styles as Towson's, plus more. It includes more selections and newly released collections.
Sometime within the past year, famed designer, Roberto Cavalli collaborated with H&M to design a line of clothing to be sold in H&M stores under his name. This much sought-after line was unseen in Towson but available in Toronto's Eaton Centre. Cavalli's line was so highly anticipated that when it was released, some entrepreneurial shoppers raided the racks and grabbed merchandise by the handful and began offering to hand out pieces to other customers for $20, much to the dismay of store managers. Yet even after this commotion, I never saw sign of the line becoming available in Towson.
Americans prefer to keep to their UGG boots, Ralph Lauren Polo golf shirts and California-style beach clothing. While outgoing and aggressive in foreign policy, it seems the friendly Americans south of my home border are conservative in their clothing. This is, of course, from the perspective of a foreigner, and I feel this qualifies my opinions, keeping them from bias.
In contrast, the city of Montreal is very fashion forward and European. The French Canadians are self-aware and edgy, qualities that reflect within their personalities and clothing.
Furthermore, a pair of pajamas I purchased on final sale in a Toronto H&M a year ago are currently (or at last glance were) being sold at full price in Towson. This notion of fashion geography is important to keep in mind when travels arise. Do not be shy to make a purchase of something quirky you find in Barcelona because it make as well just turn into the hottest fashion next season, and you will have missed an opportunity.
Though still a bit early to detect spring trends, as I continue to roam the Montreal mall, I was able to distinguish one simple idea. I noticed a very large spectrum of colors, ranging from banana yellow to mango orange to blueberry blue. And though dressing like fruits probably will not be in style this spring, dressing in tasteful selections of colors certainty will be.
S
