We often get asked where we do our own shopping, and the truthful answer is everywhere! Most recently we’ve become pretty obsessed with online shopping, but we still spend a lot of time shopping in-person at the mall and small clothing shops alike. (Boutiques are a great place to focus shopping energies when you’re looking for those special pieces that make a wardrobe pop!)
Recently, we shared our fave Toronto boutiques (which are amazing!), but we want you to be able to find clothing shops that suit your style and budget that are also conveniently located in your neighbourhood.
So we’ve put together a few scoping options you can use to find boutiques that are truly perfect for you.
Scope-it-out :: Option One
Google maps allows you to quickly find places to visit around a city, so it’s a great place to start your boutique search.
- Head over to maps.google.com
- Type your postal or zip code into the little white box, hit enter
- Now that your map is zoomed in close to your home (or work or travel destination), click the “X” in the white box to delete your postal/zip code
- In your now empty white box type a search keyword like “shopping” or “clothing” or “clothing shops”, hit enter
- A bunch of red dots will show up. All of the red spots with a shopping bag in the middle are potential boutiques for your list (zoom in if you only see small red dots)
- Click on one of the “bagged dots” and all the information you need for that boutique will appear
- Click through to the boutique website (located in the google information box)
- Browse the boutique’s website to see if their style might match yours
- If it does, jot down the information and visit the store sometime soon
Time commitment to find a handful of perfect-for-you boutiques: thirty minutes
Scope-it-out :: Option Two
Sometimes small clothing shops haven’t got their google maps listing set up, so you’ll miss out on them as an option. Searching for “best boutiques in…” is another great way to find shops worth visiting.
Some search terms you can try:
- best boutiques {city or neighbourhood}
- where to shop {city or neighbourhood}
- best independent clothing shops {city or neighbourhood}
Although this option can feel fiddly at times while you navigate the reviews and websites, it is a nice way to get the feel for a specific boutique without having to actually visit them. {hint: reading reviews is a great way to gauge how friendly/welcoming boutique staff may be}
Once you find some stores conveniently located to you—that also tickle your fancy!—be sure to make note of them, and schedule some time to pop in for a visit.
Time commitment to find a handful of perfect-for-you boutiques: thirty to sixty minutes
Scope-it-out :: Option Three
Get your explore on! Although this option requires the most time, it could potentially be the most relaxing and fun!
Here’s all you need to do:
- Find a sunny afternoon where you would enjoy going for a walk
- Choose a commercial street to explore
- Put on a comfortable pair of walking shoes
- Grab your favourite beverage to-go
- Walk the street popping in and out of stores that peak your curiousity
- Grab business cards from the clothing shops you like
- Go back another day to shop in the stores you’ve taken cards from
Try as best you can to keep this as an exploring day, with as little actual shopping as possible (there’s time for that later!) Focusing on discovering/exploring should keep this outing as enjoyable and stress-free as possible. If you go into a store and it’s too expensive or the staff is unfriendly, no big deal, you’ll just leave without a card and not have to worry about returning.
Time commitment to find a handful of perfect-for-you boutiques: an afternoon
*If you’re really into doing research before you head out shopping (to narrow the places you visit) you can do a combination of option one and option two, and search for reviews of specific clothing shops you’ve pinpointed in your google maps search.
If you’re travelling anytime soon, you can use these boutique-finding techniques to find cool shops to visit while you’re there, too.
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