They have a big range of Vans and Nikes. They had 11 styles of Structures which left me very impressed. I've never seen so many Structure colourways in one store. Needless to say I resisted temptation and did not buy any. Here's their Structure role...
I knew Opium was nearby by, but when I found it I was disappointed - it was closed. Oh whoops - the stupid Australian tourist forgot it was Monday which means sneaker shops are generally closed. I'll try Wall Kicks. It's closed for renovations. Shit. I'll look for Royal Cheese. Great I've wandered into a dodgy red light district that's more Japanese than Tokyo because there's a sushi joint every 2 shops.
Found Royal Cheese, but they didn't even have any sneaks. Maybe they have them in their other stores Blue Cheese and Royal Cheese Deluxe. Found RZO but it's closed on Mondays. Found WESC but they only stock SB. Blah.
Found my way back to Étienne Marcel station and decided to start again. Explored the area around the station, and found about 6 sneaker shops, most don't have names on the stores (great). They all seem to have pretty cool ranges, but no small sizes. Boo.
Then I stumbled across Shinzo.
ShinzoWebsite: http://www.shinzoparis.com/
Address: 39, Rue Etienne Marcel 75001 Paris
Phone: 01 42 36 40 57
Metro: Étienne Marcel
Google map
Shinzo has an interesting range - they stock mostly Puma and Nike. Heaps of Jordans and Puma Clydes (they had all the Bode releases in there) and quite a few variation of Air Max including Lights, Am1s and Structures. I thought I had hit the jackpot because they have Infrared Structures IN STOCK - just not in sizes smaller than a US9. Damn you girlie feet.
They also had this colourway. I've never seen so many Structures in my life.
After that, I happened to walked back past Opium and I was in luck - it was open.
OpiumWebsite: http://www.oqiumstore.com/
Address: 9, Rue du Cygne 75001 Paris
Phone: 01 42 33 55 83
Metro: Étienne Marcel
Google map
Opium was really bare of stock. I wondered if they were moving or even closing down. They did have some interesting stock. Pretty much all Nike, a lot of Jordans, and quite a few Air Max styles. The pair that caught my eye straight away were these 180s. I'm still toying with the idea of going back to get them... On the other hand, the are very white and Jerry Seinfield. Not sure I can rock them.
I have kind of been saving (what I thought to be) best until last. Colette.
ColetteWebsite: http://www.colette.fr/
Address: 213, rue Saint-Honoré 75001 Paris
Phone: 01 55 35 33 90
Metro: Tulleries
Google map
Colette - some might consider it the coolest shop on earth and definitely a huge influence on trends. And it is. Sort of. The store is beautiful - 3 levels of fashion, food, art and homewares. And it was wall-to-wall packed with people. But I was actually kind of disappointed. The stock just wasn't edgy enough. I mean, Billionaire Boys Club and Ice Cream leave a lot to be desired. The perfume range was average at best - given they do have their own Le Labo set up, but I was expecting a lot more. The best stock they had was probably Kaws (in particular, the bear toys).
By far the most exciting thing in the store was the Todd James (REAS INTERNATIONAL) show that was in the mezzanine. Shame people weren't really looking at his work (perhaps it's his prices - I don't generally carry 13,500EUR on me). Read more about Todd James here.
Last but not least, I stumbled across the Adidas store.
AdidasAddress: 150, Rue Rivoli, Paris
Phone: 09 61 33 63 19
Metro: Louvre Rivoli
Google map
Worst Adidas store I've been to yet. Maybe the French aren't into German shoes? I figured that if any Adidas store in the whole of Europe would definitely have the Jeremy Scott collection, it would be Paris. But no. They do have a seperate Adidas SLVR store, but if you've looked at the line you'd be as bothered as I am about going to check it out.
All in all it was a good day - and I didn't even buy any kicks! So many Structures. There are a few pairs on my mind which I might grab on Wednesday when I go back to check out RZO and Wall Kicks (renovations are meant to be finished tomorrow).
No comments:
Post a Comment