/cgl/ - Cosplay & EGL

>>8517582
>FtB
>sigh

I miss this store, even tho it was slightly over priced, I was able to get Pink Hime items when it first opened, I meet a lot of friends.

Idk if it was just in the wrong place or area if interest. But it was good and its closing made it harder to get lolita items locally.

I wish an AP or Btssb store would open in LA, it would be a dream.

I think they can work but they can't be lolita-exclusive. So general j-fashion is best kinda like Tokyo Rebel in NY.
They also have to be in popular cities, but that goes without saying.

Other than that, it's just more convenient to shop online and cheaper for both the costumer and the seller.
Selling generally expensive items of niche fashions isn't cheap on its own specially if sales are most always low and your selection isn't too great....

Physical stores for j-fash outside of Japan just take a lot more work than their worth...

>>8517590
>Idk if it was just in the wrong place or area if interest

Apparently the lady running it had VERY bad business sense.
If that's the case, then it was always bound to fail.

>>8517595
Some of their pieces were really cute and things I hadn't seen sold anywhere else and the price was reasonable and some of it was like...a common used Meta JSK trying to be sold for 250+

to make it worth the extra costs, they need to be able to partner with brands for exclusive items. they should also sell local brands (as Tokyo Rebel does with Morrigan NYC) and other unknown/hard-to-find things.

finally, they should host events for customers.

for example:
>Store hosts regular coordinate contest, gives winner(s) a gift card
>Store has membership program with unique rewards after X money spent
>Store hosts tea parties for members; entrance fee still required, but you get to meet models or there is a contest or raffle there
>Store sells at local conventions, gives coupons there or sells raffle tickets
>Store partners with local fashion/design/beauty school, offers to carry or promote students' work if it is relevant to alt fash

In addition to selling more altfash than just lolita, springing for a permit to sell food would be great. The kind of stuff you would see at a cash register: small candies or biscuits or cans of coffee at a crazy markup. People will spend huge bucks on impulse snacks, especially imports, which can help defray costs of maintaining a physical space.

>>8517590
wait, Fairytale closed? When?

>>8517820
A while back. The physical shop is gone and now they just have an online shop.

>>8517614
I picked up an H. Naoto bag there for $20. I love it.

>>8517595
weren't their prices crazy jacked up too?

>>8517839
every time i try to go to their website it says website not available?

>>8517595
>>8517614
That's hilarious since they would buy things from people for $45 and sell them for $200+

>>8517907
Wait, for real? Who would sell something to them so cheap? I get they're a consignment shop but how does that even work?

I think it's nice in theory and convenient for new releases, but I don't know if they get much business the rest of the time. I have only been to Baby in NYC once at the opening. The stock they carry normally is mostly unpopular unsold items. It is nice to get a separate reservation date for new releases and lucky packs if you miss the Japanese ones.

The atmosphere kind of sucks tho tbh , trying things on is awkward as fuck too. It's just better to shop online anyway.

>>8517856
Not only that, but they did away with consignment and instead outright bought things to sell. But in that, they became super picky about what they sold. They refused to not stock any old school, super goth, or super classic second hand pieces.

>>8518171
Oops *refused to stock

They also really underpaid for dresses and flipped them for too much. I remember they once were selling a black JJ jsk for nearly $300.

I sadly bought a expensive worn slightly damaged meta jsk that I paid for $150+ taxes and I can barely sell it for $60 if I am lucky. I was a noob who didn't know better and just wanted my first brand dress honestly. I am goin to sell it but I hope I can get $60 ~ $70 put of it

She did have terrible business sense and also just stopped caring about the store. She also didn't pay anybody but the "store manager". The shop girls "volunteered" so many hours it was basically their second jobs. It only got worse because she just stopped showing up in the end.

>>8518215
Wait the shop keeper girls never got paid?

>>8518233
Is that even legal?

>>8518215
Shit that explains why every girl I've talked to who I assumed worked there never would come out and say "I work here," they all said some variation of volunteering, or stopping by when they had free time.

That's really shitty. What's the owner up to now?

>>8518238
No its not legal but since they were just "volunteers" that means they were "donating their time" which is pretty iffy since most of those girls worked their asses off in the shop a lot.

If they didn't get paid something and put in those hours, I will feel highly disappointed tbh.

How about the San Francisco Baby and AP stores? What are they like? Anyone know what it's like working there?

>>8518245
>worked their asses off
every time i went in there, there were 2 to 3 girls behind the counter browsing the internet or fucking around on their phones.
though to be fair, i would have been slacking like hell too if i wasn't getting paid.

JapanLA has their own shop I've never been in though. I'm curious if it's got a cute shop too.
I've also been curious how they manage to stay afloat.

The only way that I can see a Western J-fash/lolita-specific store really doing well over an extended period of time is to

>A. Also include another sub-cult fashion, like vintage pieces.
or
>B. Also re-sell general kawaii shit, like Alpacassos and homewares.

>>8518269
JapanLA is cute and is on the more punky/alt end of Melrose ave, which is a big draw for both normie tourists and altfashion tourists. It's a big space but they have a ton of stock and everything is fairly expensive, since either it's produced by them or it's authentic sanrio/san-x merch. You get a good mix of local weebs coming out, tourists with families whose kids like hello kitty junk, and altfash tourists who come over from all the goth and punk stores. They also hold mini art gallery things for Japanese/local artists I think. I wouldn't be able to say with 100% certainty that they're doing amazing but they're at least doing well for themselves - if the size of their staff and the amount of good collabs they've gotten ahold of is anything to go by.

>>8517860
Same, thought they were getting prepared for the new one.

Is it worth going to the AP Sf store? They seem to be low on stock and the only thing they have is unpopular pieces.

>>8518261
Similar to Fairytale, AP also does "unpaid internships".

I've thought about this a lot because I originally was a fashion merchandising/business major in college, and have flirted on and off with what it would take to make a shop for such a niche market successful. Sorry for the inevitable essay.

What to sell: Not just Lolita and not just J-fashion, you want a spectrum of goods that can cater to both "destination shoppers" (people who came to specifically shop at your store) and random walk-ins. Good news is, Lolita blends well with a wide variety of merchandise. Most profitable is going to be a focus on "kawaii" items and imports like magazines, books, anime, etc. The more diversified you are, the more of an audience you can build.
>Carry general J-fashion as well as Lolita: fairy kei, Larme, gyaru, kawaii crap, even Tumblr 'aesthetic' stuff. I'd offer basic things like pastel tennis skirts, graphic t-shirts/cutsews, DreamV style cardigans and tops, etc. Appeal to both your niche and normies who wander in with what you stock in clothing.
>Carry cheap TaoBao/eBay crap as well as high end brand goods. Your business is going to rely on your ability to never let someone leave empty-handed. Parents of kids/teens may not be willing to shell out for a big-ticket item like a brand JSK but they'll have a hard time saying no to a $4 pair of cute socks. Even Lolita dedicated shoppers will add a pair of tights or a headband to a purchase; carry the small trendy stuff that wouldn't be worth making an entire TB order for.
>Carry a section of "cute but useful" stuff like stationary, desk organizers, postcards, plastic bins, etc. This is universally popular among all crowds, normies and J-fashion alike.
>Carry a small section of anime/fandom goods and magazines/books (especially the mooks with the bonus gifts). This can be both a way to get people into your store and an add-on buy.
>Makeup: A small section of Étude House/Holika Holika/Dollywink, especially stuff in cute packaging.

>>8518823
Location/Staff/Events: Have limited online stock as well as your physical location.
>You want a 'destination' where you can get tourists as well as locals. Choose a district known for weeb or Japanophile stores, or one known for alt fashion.
>Your staff are the physical representation of your brand. They need to dress nicely, wear the brands you carry, and treat customers well. You don't have to be the fashion police but they represent your store and they shouldn't dress awfully.
>Offer exclusive things for frequent shoppers (novelty items, VIP tickets to events, early access to preorders or reservations, point cards).
>Hold events (especially in conjunction with local comms/conventions); donate prizes or gift cards at big tea parties. You can do small in-store things like special sales or 'collection reveals' with an indie brand. Big events could be a sponsored tea party at a con or meet-and-greets with designers/models.
>Everybody loves a contest. Host online contests like "make a collage with this specific item from a designer and win it if the designer picks it", and in store ones like "guess how many bows are in this jar to win a gift card". It doesn't have to be big giveaway, but participation gets people excited and interested and spreading the word about it.

>>8517615
Dang anon, I think you should open up a place.

>>8518880
i will partner up with >>8518823 who seems on the same page.

>>8518884
Hell yeah, anon. Let's pick a location and get some investors.

>>8518897
haha. i'm too close to NYC and Tokyo Rebel, where you at?

just give me a year to finish my master's and get my life straight.

>>8518884
We are witnessing magic in the making, gulls.

>>8518215
>>8518244
There was an excellent tea party the older FtB shopgirls ran and they'll probably continue to host nice events.

To the end of FtB she didn't give a fuck and left all the work for the girls.

I don't like the Ftb owner, between her awful sense of business and irritating personality.

>>8518901
Middle of nowhere in Ohio. Most obvious locations already are taken but I think LA could work if we branded ourselves differently and picked a location near the alt district like JapanLA or near Kinokuniya instead of in hidden in a tiny strip mall in Japantown. I'd say Chicago but there's not really a good place for it location-wise.

>tfw changed major to hair and makeup tech and I've got two years of school/cosmetology license certification left
>tfw no rori shop-owning for me for a while

>>8518917
LA might be shit for frilly fashion, it's in a hot and dehydrated area.

what about Portland? lots of freaks and arty types, and close to culturally impoverished Canadians.

>tfw 99 problems and a business degree ain't one
>tfw just did my overdue taxes for my own business this week after the state has hounded me since October
>tfw handed out business cards before opening etsy shop

ideas are fun though right?

>>8518931
>impoverished canadians

Ay. Ay. What you say bout my moose?

>>8518931
Portland could work, never really considered it. Sets us apart from the SF stores but not too far for destination shoppers.

>>8518946
also still on the West Coast and thus easier to arrange shit to/from Japan

I think meowtan turned her shop into a physical store. I wonder how long it will last:

>>8518931
I think people are too low income in portland....... maybe seattle would def be better. My friend lives there and its more a low key vibe and is very free and hippy. Not suitable for a lolita store. People couldn't support it financially.

>>8518931
I think that Portland or Seattle would be great.

Portland, Seattle, the weeby part of Chicago, Toronto, Vancouver maaaybe, Atlanta, Austin (another maybe) are at the very least alright locations for this sort of thing.

>>8519043
>the weeby part of Chicago,
what part is this? are there weeb shops already there?

>>8518917
>near Kinokuniya
That could work. Or at least move out of the lower part and up into the outside area where they're in a more high traffic area. That area gets a lot more visitors and people who'd visit out of curiosity.

>>8517962
Girls desperate for money?

>>8518727
I think it is, I was able to pick up a pair of tea parties after being able to try them on.

>>8519240
eh, sort of. There's Arlington Heights, which is a little out of the way, and Chinatown. They have some novelty/specialty shops there but when I originally posted I forgot that those stores are sort of out of the way.

>>8518727
It's in an area with a lot of other stores, so it might be worth it to pop in if you're visiting other stores in the area.
The store is pretty small since rent in SF is through the roof and they'd have to close if they rented a larger area. AP shares a space with Harajuku Hearts so there's also Putumayo and Enchanted Enchantilly.

>>8518727
I was wondering this too.

Making a trip to Cali soon and is it actually worth it to visit? Like do they have additional things that aren't on the website? If not she shop must be very empty.

>>8519320
I went to SF last year and the store had almost nothing in it and the shop girls were kind of rude. I'd say go if you're going to be in the area but no need to make a special trip out there.

Running a physical lolita store will NOT work. People need to stop trying. Lolitas buy online, they dont go to physical shops. Plus physical shops are marked up, you will likely not beat the market price

>>8519320
I like Baby more than AP shop-wise. AP is in a really small space and it's dim inside. Stock is very limited due to them not having enough room and being in there feels like everything's cluttered.
Baby is far more spacious and well lit. All the displays are more spread out and imo the shop is more well kept than AP too.
I've never found either store's shop girls to be rude.

Baby's a LOT better location-wise too since it's in Japantown, on the floor above Maru Q, instead of in the financial district like AP where there's mostly office buildings and very expensive stores.

>just getting into lolita, a britbong
>hear baby and pretty have physical shops in france
>think "sweet, I can just get a train and stay in a hotel for a day whilst I get to actually try the stuff on before buying"
>see their in shop prices
>NOPE the fuck out
With the cost of the return train trip, night at a hotel, in city travel and then the actual shopping
it'd be just the same if not more than just ordering online with shipping costs and parcelcunt taxes. I'd only ever do it if I could go halfsies with a loli friend.

>>8519466
>going halfsies with a loli friend on a mini loli vacation to shop and maybe sight-see

fuck, that sounds like fun

>sage for OT

>>8519466
lolita is a luxury hobby. if you can't afford it, don't do it.

>>8519469
I know, right? It's why I'm so thirsty for a loli friend, I just sit imagining all the loli fun we could have.
>>8519471
Did you not read my post? I can afford it, its just not worth going abroad to buy lolita when I can order it from the comfort of my own home when the costs is the same price in the end.

>>8517907
Resale shops NORMALLY buy for 25-30% of what they want to sell it in store for. Honestly it's more of a last-resort/just get rid of it way to sell your unwanted shit.

>>8519454
I was wondering about them too.

I have been once and had a pleasant experience but that was in the year it opened. How is the stock at Baby?

I remember the two shop girls were gossiping about another lolita when I was there.

>>8517907
kek i was at FtB like a month before they closed and they were selling a random 2ndhand taobao otome dress for $65
went home and found it on taobao for $15

>>8519489
>I remember the two shop girls were gossiping about another lolita when I was there.
kek, what were they saying?

>>8519486
So if she sold a $45 item for $200, that's shitty business practice. That's a lower percentage than any other sort of resale shop.

>>8519492

> mortar store sells items at a higher price than chinese sellers

no shit.

>>8519527
it was 2nd hand. meaning that someone gave/sold the dress to them. they didn't have to get it straight from taobao.

>>8519489
Imo the stock at Baby is pretty good. They usually have recent releases in stock with a lot of accessories from both recent and past releases.
It's certainly got more choices than AP.

I wish FtB was still open just cause if you were part/know you well/etc. they would let you do layaways with dresses. It helps a lot if you found your dream dress there and don't have the money right then or there.

I also wish that they had more stock since it was pretty empty usually after some time especially during mid-2014. Also I would pay a bit of a mark up to get taobao items since newbies don't know how to use taobao well enough or they could of done group orders and put in a slight commision fee to use her services.

>>8519043
austin pls
all the texas comms would come by, plenty of itas and weebs and also plenty of hippies with money

>>8517615
Are you me anon? I just wrote a paper with exactly these recommendations for subcultural fashion brick and Mortar stores.

>>8518901
If this ever happens anons, I'm completing my fashion degree next year and am moving into my own label catering to Otome, lolita and 'casual cute' and other J-fash dotted through the ranges. The goal is to cater to lolitas and their associated sister fashions while using the casual cute and Otome as a draw card for the normie's with taste to increase traffic. There might be some scope for retailing the unique product in your hypothetical store in the future.

I just want to add, as a gyaru fan, anywhere Western that caters to gals would be amazing.

>>8519466
Hang on.. Is AP Paris back open?

>>8521017
There's a pop-up shop right now.

>>8519466
>>8519480
If it's really about the same price I'd definitely go to the physical store. You're gonna get a nice Paris vacation on top and you can actually try the clothing on to see what flatters you or just see what the materials are like beforehand.
I've been thinking about flying to Japan for a while now because the amount of shipping and customs I pay is probably already worth the flight.

>>8520986
This sounds so cute but so many people have these sorts of dreams with creative degrees and then ending up working in coffee shops because they aren't business minded enough.
I'm rooting for you though anon, please do it for us.

>>8521072
Hahaha I laugh in the face of these anons. I feel like they are silly to be honest as they don't really understand anything about business or the hard work that goes into being a designer/ business person.

Don't worry anon, I've been working at this for 5 years now, I understand the work, have the business acumen, the design and pattern making knowledge, have a strong love for our community, a passion for our fashion. I'm going to do it, and I'm gonna get it done right for once!

No longer will lolitas have to trawl through crap at Forever 21 to find a decent loliable cardigan!

If all goes to plan anyway.

>>8521061
Do you know how long the Pop-Up store is open for?

>>8521098
Apparently it closed at the start of this month. But I'm sure they'll do another.

http://www.angelicpretty.com/en/2015paris.htm

>>8519466
It can't be helped since they have to pay for a store in Paris which isn't cheap, the seller and manager pays and the taxes whenever they import dresses there.

>>8520996
This is true, but we still have clothes that cater to the "urban youth"

>>8521536
And when they approach a lolita, he/she will come her wearing "old-school plantation white girl swag."

It's no surprise to me ftb closed. the store was pretty empty and little stock most days. even with events, it was hardly promoted and there wasn't anything to bring repeat customers who actually bought things.

The website hardly had anything nor was updated sometimes.

It's interesting the comments about the owner not caring. I remember when she started and would post about not coming and the shop being closed. I would think, "are you running a business or what? ??"

For the most part little Tokyo is a Foodie town. not so much shopping. There's not much draw for people who spend $$$ on an item. Even the sanrio store there is sad compared to others.
All the really rich money is in sg valley and Irvine area at the moment because of the influx of rich Chinese

>>8523185
I'd say Irvine is more rich Koreans nowadays but yeah I'm not surprised ftb closed either.
same problems. store is empty, very little stock, almost no promotion. Also they're in a very secluded part of the mall where almost no one goes to.
I don't think a standalone lolita shop would do well outside of Japan. Most people are looking for cheap, trendy clothes, not a $300 dress that (to normies at least) look like a costume and isn't suitable for everyday wear.

>>8520996
There's MaruQ in SF. They have a ton of Liz Lisa.

>>8523227
>Most people are looking for cheap, trendy clothes
even though everyone shared the Colbert and John Oliver clips, and even though The True Cost documentary is one of Netflix's most-watched and highest-rated movies right now... Americans will continue to be obsessed with fast fashion and cheap, impulse-buy shit. i am wondering if the fast fashion takeover helped kill subcultures. there was a lot more interest in alt fashion 20, even 10 years ago. now, not so much.

which is why it would be smartest for, as others have mentioned, lolita to be sold in stores that have a wider scope within alternative fashion.

FtB had the potential to become something but the owner never tool the chance. She could of brought indie brands from Taobao, she could of done a better job to work with big brands like AP, Btssb, AaTP, etc. but never worked for it. And honestly, she was at a great place since its right across Anime Jungle which attracts the weebs/anime fans who are willing to drop money on jfashion stuff like accessories, maybe a cute shirt or two but they just sold purely lolita and nothing else. They needed to branch out and add in fairy kei, decora, etc, to bring in those weeb customers to spend there.

Also the lack of stock made ppl not want to go in cause why go into an empty store. The owner should of also promoted her store more but hardly ever did.

Like I said, FtB was a great store and had a gteat idea but the owner never took opportunity to make it how many ppl wanted it to be.

>>8523250
The store was stocking new AP releases. And because they were getting AP stuff, I doubt they would be able to get BtssB or AatP.

>>8523250
I'm actually sad because I saw AP x Disney collab jewelry there and Kira Imai print posters for 20$ (maybe 25$ I don't remember) and I sorely regret not buying either on my trip because I don't think I'll get that chance ever again.

>>8523250
I went to FtB and Anime Jungle last December and despite that Anime Jungle was so packed that people could barely move, FtB and the cosplay store across from it were completely empty.
People in AJ were saying that FtB and the cosplay shop were too expensive, so I do think that if FtB carried cheaper items like cute shirts from Taobao or more general jfash that costs less than lolita like fairy kei or cheap seifukus. The cosplay store did carry Taobao cosplays and seifukus but the markup was so huge that a seifuku was like $120.

>>8524012
AP SF has Kira Imai posters for $20. I can check which ones they have on Monday if you want.

>>8524012
>>8524746

iirc they have some putumayo posters, crystal dream carnival, that pink bird cage print (symphonia?), and maybe 1 other.

>>8517590
Before I started wearing lolita, but after I started researching it, I rode past Fairytale, begging my parents to stop the car. So many regrets.

>>8518931
Maybe DC? High income, fairly cosmopolitan, a ton of tourists, and a large population of weebs and koreaboos in the surrounding suburbs.

>>8524746
Yes please. I really want some of her art and it feels like people will sell postcards for the same price a poster costs. :/

>>8525044
Shoot me an email (pineberry.pop@gmail.com) please. The ones I remember from when I was there last week are CDC, Romantic Rose Letter, and Symphonia of Birds.

One of the other the problems with Ftb was Hayley. She had such a nasty attitude she drove people away. Not to mention her crazy mother that she liked to yell at in front of people. Ooooof what a store manager

Honestly the fashions are so specialized that it'd only work in a major city, and located in a busy shopping area (maybe a high tourist area), and if they don't charge out the ass for what they import.

>>8525698
Hayley was super nice to me and my friend all the time but I always had more problems with Sami. She never had an interest to be inside the FtB from the way she looked and acted inside, I would wait until some else would take over for her so I can go in cause she always gave out weird vibes that were none too friendly.

I do think there is a market for jfashion/lolita stores. It's difficult, not impossible. It depends on what the stores is selling, prices, how they act towards their customers, marketing and promotion.

We used to have two physical stores in my country. These store were very different, especially how they are running their business. One local store has their own brand, a few Japanese/Chinese brands, amuse plushies, vintage and second hand clothes. They sell clothes, accessories and kawaii stuff in different prices categories. The stock changes every few months. The shop owner is a nice person. She wants her costumers to be happy with their purchases. They organise special shop days and tea parties. I feel very welcome there. It's also nice that they listen to what their customers want.

The other store closed down this year. They said it was because of the financial crisis. Not many people believed that. Nearly everyone knew the shop was in trouble. They used to have all the well known brands in their shop. So, yes, I'm still a little bit sad. There were so many opportunities for them. When the lolita market changed and most of the lolitas were able to buy brand directly from Japan, they never changed their business plan. They were only selling lolita. Most of the time it was a lot cheaper to buy the same clothes in Japan, shipping and customs included. Local lolitas stopped buying from there, except for new lolitas and foreigners/tourists. After that the shop was only open at appointment. I've heard you had to make a call and wait for someone to open the store. Soon they started losing their brand dealerships after another.The shop owner did not have a good reputation in the community, too. Because of these reasons many lolitas didn't feel like going there any more.

I'm always a little curious because though Tokyo Rebel always pops up in these threads once or twice, it's little discussed.

How do you guys think they stay open, besides the fact that they carry other jfash in addition to lolita? Despite that fact when you go in there, it's still at least 70% lolita content if not more, and I think there's only been one occasion where I went in and there were other customers there, on a weekend. I myself usually only end up making smaller purchases there either because the few items I was interested that they had sold out already, or because I ended up not liking or fitting an item once I saw it in person. The shopgirls seem nice- I like that they don't hover over you but I've never had a problem with them ignoring me when I had a question.

For others that go to TR regularly/semi-regularly, what have your impressions and experiences been like?

>>8519030
that's a bad place for jewellery. it should be a against a wall with a average-height mirror, so people can hold up necklaces and hairclips to themselves to decide in slightly more privacy
nobody wants to haul a necklace to a full length mirror then go back and forth

that's a cute horse though.

>>8518823
how about cosplayers/steampunk people, will you cater to them also and host their meetups? or the youthful homesew crowd? i mean look at this board, they have a lot in common

>>8526384
It's hard to cater to cosplayers because we'd end up being a craft store. But I would like to sell prop replicas and offer a cosplay bulletin board to promote people taking or looking for commissions, advertising local cons and meet ups, etc. I could see doing release parties for popular things, maybe hosting theme events for cosplayers/fans with contests like normie-friendly "Star Wars" Day" or "magical girl anime day". A Steampunk theme day would fit in nicely with that.

Hosting small "how to" classes and workshops would be a good idea, could including everything from cosplay tutorials to J-fashion accessory-making. Some could be walk-in events (a free workshop on basic wig styling) but some would have a fee and required RSVP (a workshop on making a rosette badge with supplies included). Small sewing classes could be offered too.

>>8526598
with the interest in steampunk, i wonder how easy it would be to be an h. Naoto retailer. they have such a wide range of looks, their products would appeal to lolitas, steampunks, goths, and more. just carrying their new releases would make a diverse selection in and of itself.

>>8526620
h. Naoto didn't seem to sell very well back when they had a shop in New People

>>8526620

>>8526624
i am not familiar with that. was that before or after their Steam line was introduced?

>>8526598
i suppose a lot of the stuff around selling books etc would depend on whether or not there's a comics/manga store near where your shop would be that would fill that niche.

>mfw the first english edition lolita bible has a candy violet ad in it

you could stock vintage-inspired stuff, swing is sort of back and i know 50s fashion has crept into normie radar for a while(see modcloth.com)


i remember of a story of when one of those promo things went wrong, though
it was a local comic store's anniversary. they said it would be a party via email, and you could bring in cake? and if you got there early enough there would be free shit.

i get in and i'm next to the cash register. there are people dressed up outside. it's not a party. not even close. it's some balloons taped up and a busy store. everything was 10% off, which is good, but calling it a party isn't accurate. i see a young woman, clearly having had the same expectations as me walk in, and say hi, and say 'i baked some muffins for the party' or something like that to store lady. lady takes the muffins. there's nowhere for her to go. there is mutual awkward. cake lady makes her excuses and leaves the store. she is my age. perhaps i am her in another timeline. i don't know if she ever went back for the container, or what happened to the muffins.
i still think of it and wince, sometimes.

>>8526363
Despite everyone's pessimistic attitude towards brick-and-mortar stores, I think Tokyo Rebel/Baby NYC is doing extremely well. Even when their markups were insanely high (before they figured out the current yen conversion), they were still selling a bunch. It seems like each of the brands sends a shipment of stuff to TR once a month, and towards the end of that period, practically everything will be sold out. I went into the store the other day and there was only one Atelier Pierrot and three Innocent World dresses still on the rack. Everything else had sold.

NY is kind of unique compared to a lot of other places because there is a really affluent population here that can just drop a ton of money on clothes on impulse. A few times I've been to TR, I've seen a mom with her high school/college daughter in the store, and the mom will just put down $600+ to buy her kid a whole coord.

Another anon mentioned that they just get leftover unpopular stock from Japan, and while this was kind of true when the store opened, they've regularly been getting rare or sold out stuff, too. I remember last year they got a shipment of Lotta dresses long after they had sold out in Japan. They've also gotten some NY-exclusive items, like a special Usakumya and an anniversary tshirt designed by Yoh.

>>8527165
One of the things I really want to carry would be shoes, because they're something people are usually hesitant to buy online and if we can offer unique styles that are usually only web-only, we can make bank. Plus I can see even the more Lolita/J-fashion specific shoes being popular with normies, especially any glitter heels a la AP/ETC.

>>8527247
thanks for the info! when did they figure out the current yen conversion?

>>8527293
I would love for a lolita/jfashion store to carry shoes. Especially BL shoes since they are decent quality and also DreamV are good too.

It's hard to shop online for shoes, especially heels since sometimes you risk having a too small of a shoe or too big and once you bought them, you're stuck with them.

>>8527327
Tokyo Rebel has shoes. a limited selection but i plan to pick a pair next time i gom

>>8527316
I'm not sure since I only have time to drop by the store once a month, but I think the prices started getting reasonable sometime last spring? I remember that when the store first opened, items were systematically priced $50 to $75 higher than what you could find online, but now they're on par with Japanese prices, or maybe $10 to $20 more expensive than Japanese items (so it evens out if you take shipping into account, plus the convenience of being able to have the item right away). They can also special order stuff from the webshops of any brand they carry without charging overseas shipping fees, which is pretty nice.

>>8527334
that is nice! getting psyched to go by again.

i wish they would have a booth at a con sometime, but maybe they can't spare the stock on a weekend.

>>8527330
The shoes at Tokyo Rebel always sell out super fast, especially the lolita ones. Watch out for when they announce a restock and run to get them.

>>8527338
If you're close enough to the city to plan an impromptu weekend trip, I would suggest waiting until there's a restock announcement, then getting to the store on the closest weekend after the announcement. Tokyo Rebel is like Christmas after a restock. Tons of merchandise to look at, and lots of random lolitas shopping in the store you can meet. Stuff sells out pretty fast, too, so it'll be your best bet for finding nice stuff or good deals. They also have sales from time to time, and that's also a good time to go by.

>>8526634
I think before. It closed I think about 2 years ago now and Steam has only been around the past year or less, right?.