While browsing through a few past GG posts, the subject of the Parisian boutique Colette came up. So many items we’ve posted about are sold exclusively at Colette, which is great for the sake of exclusivity, but for us New Yorkers, who want to have everything available to them at all times, it was really depressing to know that the only way to get any of these items is to go all the way to Paris, France.
Although Colette does have an online presence, this train of thought led us to think about the web stores that only had an online presence. Wouldn’t it be cool for them to have free standing stores as well?
Sometimes the product is so expensive or exclusive that it’s a hassle to go through returning the item if the product doesn’t fit properly, or if the color or material isn’t the way it looked online.
Also, because of exclusivity, at times some items are hard to get at all before the rest of the world wide web goes crazy and buys it!
There are many cases where it would be cool if there was an actual store we could visit. While we realize that the Internet wouldn’t be so amazing without the help of online shopping, we can still imagine can’t we?
After the jump is a list of some of our favorite online stores that we wish we could get up and walk into whenever we wanted.
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Gilt Group provides instant insider access to today’s top designer labels, at up to 60% off retail. Become a member and find something new every day for women, men, kids and home as well as exclusive local services and experiences and one-of-a-kind travel packages.
The only problem with GILT is there’s no shopping cart. After a short amount of time if you don’t buy, the item goes back on the market for the next consumer, so make sure you have your money ready when you visit.
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NET-A-PORTER is the world’s premiere online luxury fashion retailer.
Since launching in June 2000, NET-A-PORTER has successfully established itself as a luxury brand, with impeccable packaging and unrivaled customer care.The pages of NET-A-PORTER feature high fashion editorials, updated weekly with new content and product, which is viewed by over 2.5 million women each month. Soon, NET-A-PORTER will be launching a men’s site as well.
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ASOS is a global online fashion and beauty retailer and offers over 50,000 branded and own label product lines across womenswear, menswear, footwear, accessories, jewelry and beauty with approximately 1,500 new product lines being introduced each week.
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oki-ni was founded in September 2001. Initially both a gallery space/store and a global online destination, oki-ni was created to work with established brands and progressive designers to offer innovative products to knowledgeable fashion consumers. oki-ni has been known to collaborate with various designers on products and to get items exclusive to their website.
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Founded in 1998, Bluefly is a leading online retailer of designer brands, fashion trends and superior value.
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Amazon.com is a U.S.-based multinational electronic commerce company. Headquartered in Seattle, Washington, it is the largest online retailer in the United States. If it were an actual store, it would probably be the size of an entire mall.
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Since its launch in 2000 as a modestly sized online boutique specializing in hard-to-find denim lines,
Shopbop has grown to become one of the leading fashion retailers in the world. Curated with a chic,
modern woman in mind, Shopbop offers a comprehensive collection of designer apparel and accessories
to suit every style and occasion.
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Since 1999, Digital Gravel has been the premiere site for fresh clothing and accessories from various street-wear brands. They have been independantly owned and operated the entire time. Make sure to buy quickly if you see a shirt that you like on the site, because Digital Gravel’s stock has been known to move quickly.
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Known for their political, media related and sports satire, Hot Press Tees has become the go to place for tees that reflect the current views of the people. Designs are ripped from the headlines, satirized, printed and set to ship same day. Since their opening the company has come up with a new t-shirt design every week. You can rest assured that if it is big in the media, Hot Press Tees has a shirt coming out for it.
