Avant-garde Stores
A list of the coolest avant-garde shops around.
Alan Bilzerian
Back Bay - Boston, MA United StatesYou may be intimidated by the "ring the bell to enter" policy, but don't let that stop you from stopping by Alan Bilzerian. For years now, Bostonians have depended on the store to keep them on the bleeding edge of fashion and it...
Alan Bilzerian
Newton - Newton, MA United StatesYou may be intimidated by the "ring the bell to enter" policy, but don't let that stop you from stopping by Alan Bilzerian. For years now, Bostonians have depended on the store to keep them on the bleeding edge of fashion and it has not let them down. The store does not get caught...
Aloha Rag
Ala Moana - Honolulu, HI United StatesOkay, we admit it, our vision of the Hawaiian wardrobe is based on movies and tourist visits. So, Aloha Rag is at once a shattering of stereotypes and an amazing shopping experience. Aloha Rag carries hip, edgy "big city" brands--avant-garde constructions for both women and men that...
Andreas Murkudis
Mitte - Berlin, GermanyReader Suggested: It's pure, it's simple, it's totally stylish. Run by the brother of (fashion designer) Kostas Murkudis.
Apartment
Mitte - Berlin, GermanyReader Suggested: Still the hot spot to find the newest and avant-garde fashion designers.
Atelier
SoHo - New York, NY United StatesFor men who'd like to make a statement with their clothing without resorting to sequins or bright prints, Atelier provides a refreshing alternative. The dramatic space is lined with clothing and accessories that are mostly white, black or...
Betty Blue
Pioneer Square - Seattle, WA United StatesYou don't want Marc by Marc, you just want Marc. You wish Yohji would have the decency to write his full name on a piece of your clothing. For those tired of diffusion brands but not quite ready for flagship brand prices, Betty Blue provides...
B Store
Savile Row - London, United KingdomReader Suggested: B Store has long been at the very sharpest edge of London fashion. Opened in 2000, owners Matthew Murphy and Kirk Beattie started in a small unit on Conduit Street, Mayfair and soon began to make waves on the burgeoning London fashion scene. Designers like Peter Jensen, Bernhard Willhelm and Siv...
Butter
Boerum Hill - Brooklyn, NY United StatesOn our visit, Butter was doing its very best to stay low key. The storefront is small and the only adornments were two opaque screens blocking a view of the clothes inside. It wasn't working. The store was packed regardless, with women...
Carve
The Lab - Costa Mesa, CA United StatesReader Suggested: cool store that sells things you can't find most places: comme de garcons, visvim (i believe, i haven't been in awhile), apc, y-3, levi's vintage clothing, spring court.
Colette
Louvre/Tuileries - Paris, FranceAfter walking through Colette, you will see every store that you thought was cool before under a new light. There is cool, and then there is "we sell our own mix CDs and our own water" cool. Colette is a store like no other. It sells a...
Comme des Garçons
Chelsea - New York, NY United StatesFrankly, we'd be disappointed if the New York Comme des Garcons shop wasn't tucked into a nondescript building, with a futuristic cave for an entryway. All of the requisite pieces of the sprawling Comme des Garcons universe are appropriately scattered throughout the austere, yet...
Creatures of Comfort
Melrose Heights - Los Angeles, CA United StatesCreatures of Comfort is actually rather restless--anxious to find who's next in fashion and scouring near and far to make it happen. Looking far they introduce up and coming labels from Japan, the UK and France. Looking near they are among...
Dear:55
Lower East Side - New York, NY United StatesRemember the avant-garde clothing of the 1980s? The loose silhouettes, the dark hues, the flowing tailoring. Dear:55 honors these constructions in a completely refreshing and exciting way. The store features vintage Comme des Garcons, Yohji...
Des Kohan
Miracle Mile - Los Angeles, CA United StatesDes Kohan's fashions don't need to scream to make their point--black, brown, beige, navy, and white are the colors in the shop's rainbow. Dresses, separates and a host of belts, bags and shoes distinguish themselves with the careful...
Doshaburi
Barrio Gótico - Barcelona, SpainReader Suggested: I went to Barcelona Bread&Butter week in January 2007. I found a nice clothing store in the Gothic area. They have many labels I like: Levi's Vintage Clothing, Levi's RED, Marjan Pejoski, KTZ (Kokon To Zai), Bernhand Willhelm, Bless, Ann Sofie Back, Wendy&Jim, Petar Petrov,...
Dover Street Market
Mayfair - London, United KingdomReader Suggested: Incredible guerrilla store from Comme des Garçons where they give space to up and coming designers. The selection is always amazing and changing frequently, you'll find everything from Lanvin to Boudicca to Balenciaga to Jens Laugesen. The building seems more like a warehouse but it just...
Dover Street Market
Aoyama - Tokyo, JapanReader Suggested: Incredible guerrilla store from Comme des Garçons where they give space to up and coming designers. The selection is always amazing and changing frequently, you'll find everything from Lanvin to Boudicca to Balenciaga to Jens Laugesen.
Famous Friends
East Village - New York, NY United StatesStart with the denim. For Famous Friends, a hip casual wardrobe starts with a fine pair of jeans. And they have several examples of such: raw selvedge denim from Scandinavia, high-end denim from Levi's, a selection from Japan's most...
Fatal
Online StoreAfter the 17000th online store selling trendy denim opened, we're glad someone finally figured out that bringing the wacky, avant-garde and ultimately more interesting side of fashion to the internet might not be a bad idea. Fatal is that...
Elsewhere
Sites we dig
Sites
- Hint Mag
- IHT Style
- JC Report
- LA.com Shopping
- Men.Style.com
- NY Mag Fashion
- NY Times Fashion & Style
- Refinery 29
- Style.com
- Superfuture