OK, so I made up the word designerfication. Anyway, this trip I noticed so many more grossly overpriced, designer-name stores than a year ago--the whole new wing at Ala Moana mall, more tenets at Royal Hawaiian Shopping Center, and even the DSF Galleria is undergoing remodeling for more designer stores. What gives? Why are all these designer names in demand here? Maybe because I don't shop these stores at home, I don't get it.

Two words: Japanese tourists...

(And more generally, tourists from Asian countries)

The decline in the US dollar gave these products an instant discount, where they would otherwise not be on sale. Imagine being able to buy everything 10%-20% off without having to shop around.

But prices in Honolulu are anyway 10-20% higher than in Mainland anyway, isn't it?

One example I can give is that prices for designer goods in Japan and some other parts of Asia for Louis Vuitton products are higher than in Hawaii. Louis Vuitton products never go on sale, when they are discontinued, the left overs are destroyed. Keeping their prices inflated. I find the prices in Honolulu for LV to be the same as on the mainland.

So Hawaii has cheaper prices than in Asia, plus a 20% discount (due to low USD compared to other world currencies) on a $450 wallet, $2,000 rolling luggage, or $4,000 handbag, that adds up fast.

Sales of high end stores like Nordstrom are tanking on the mainland. Everyone is over extended, upside down on their mortgages, or hurting from the high gas prices, etc. This is in comparison to tourist heavy areas, where foreign money pours in due to the instant discount, like HNL or NYC. The people shopping on 5th avenue are not locals, but more likely than not, european or asian tourists.

I was talking to my mother who lives in Park Ridge, IL (suburb of Chicago). She was complaining that all the designer stores around there are closing, especially after Macys took over Marshall Fields. Marshall Fields on Michigan Ave. use to carry many "store within a store" boutiques of designer brands, but they have been disappearing.

Only the dollar is currently stronger than the yen. So with respect to Japanese tourists, it would seem that the savings aren't that substantial based on the currency exchange alone. But my designer brand infatuated SO ( )--okay, she just wants them, doesn't have them--tells me that our Japanese tourists save almost 20% because American-designer brands are marked up 20% in Japan. That seemed to be the case when she showed me a Coach bag in Kyoto that was nearly 20% of the price of the Ala Moana store. Made sense to me.

In addition to the Japanese (constant) and Australian (recent) shoppers, a good number of mainland shoppers will also desire purchasing designer/luxury items in Hawaii due to the lower sales tax (4.5% Honolulu, 4.0% elsewhere I believe).

For instance, a vacationing Californian who really wants a certain pair of Prada shoes or LV purse, would pay less in Waikiki (4.5%) rather than in Beverly Hills, Newport Beach or San Francisco (7.25% to 8.75% - ave 8.25%). Maybe not much, but you know how some shoppers will try to rationalize purchases

And I've never noticed any discernible difference in luxury good pricing between designer stores in Waikiki/Ala Moana vs Beverly Hills/San Fran. It's the exact same price for the exact same item.

But with that logic, it'd be cheaper to go to Oregon, no?

That makes sense. Chicago has a 10% sales tax rate.

Yes, but perhaps one can still get away with ordering LV from eluxury.com and "pay no sales tax" while they are offering free shipping. Of course, this doesn't really help those in California.

Just adding.... I noticed it too at Ala Moana mall... very very high end (though we really enjoyed the Apple store... we live in a small town and things like that are exciting to us... )

What's with the designerfication of Honolulu?

W? Is that you?

I just noticed that they had more merchandise in the stores than the ones in the Atlanta area. I also noticed more selection of nice clothing for a 60+ female there.
And at I think it was Macy's, you could get a nice lunch.

When I saw this thread title I thought it was about signs or traffic signals. Now I get it.

Take a look at these visitor count figures. Choose Spreadsheet and the Glance tab. http://hawaii.gov/dbedt/info/visitor-stats/tourism/

Japanese visitor counts are down but their daily spending is up. Also, what's up with the big percentage increase in Canadian visitors? Must be some new airline routes.

Me too. I thought it was going to be about the urban redevelopments that just took place (Beach Walk/Lewers St, Royal Hawaiian center) or may in the future (International Marketplace). Although those do tie in with the greater amount of designer stores.

Now can someone explain to me the draw of the slick photo galleries popping up. I mean the large, framed, photoshopped photos of say Peter Lik are beautiful, but it's still a duplicated photo?!?!