I was a bit disappointed with the big-name luxury shopping on my first trip to HK - I had heard from some HK friends how everything was comparatively cheap there, but they were using other Asian countries as a comparison while I was thinking NA. By way of example, on my first day there I made a beeline to Marc Jacobs only to find that the merchandise was about 5-10% more than I'd pay in NA, and they were carrying some bags that had long since disappeared from NA shelves.

There were some pleasant surprises though. 1) The range of designers available in HK is quite diverse, so I was able to find a few pieces by designers whose wares are hard to come by here in YVR. 2) IT was my favourite find - it offers younger contemporary designers (e.g. Alexander McQueen) from around the world, at great prices. They have a few outlets around town, and there's a full store in Pacific Place. 3) If you don't mind buying a used handbag, you can pick up cast-offs at a chain of stores that are called Milan Station, London Station, Paris Station, etc.. They're everywhere (in Causeway Bay I found two within about 50m of each other) and most of the bags are in pristine condition. You have to hit many of the stores to find some of the rarer bags, but if you want LV, Hermes, or Fendi, they're practically piled to the rafters.