nacho

I think feel that way could be because of the sentence she wrote before talking about sizing problem with (big) boobs.

Also I think it's wrong to say that there is only Chanel or crap to buy in Hong Kong - there are tons of shops selling something in between. Maybe the clothes you looked at doesn't suit your taste but a lot of people like it.

Ace71

Brits (Pre Brexit), Europeans & probably Australians buy or use to buy many items of clothes as well as electrical products due to the favorable exchange rate. I bought an iPad in HK 2015 which was cheaper by £35 compared to the UK.

For me Hong Kong mainly caters for the residents and western tourists up until 2010, agree more recently mainlanders, I don't know why you would alienate western tourists who probably help make HK the shopping capital of Asia for the last 30 years?

Hong Kong is no different than Paris, London or New York regarding rent, things that a "jacked up" are in places like Ladies Market or Temple Night Market as they know the tourist like to bargain and will not pay the original quoted price, just like in Morocco, Turkey, etc.

I do find HK & Chinese brands are one size smaller than quoted Large is a Medium but US or European brands no, I purchased clothes from Ralph Lauren, Armani, Timberland, Nike, Northface, a Medium is a Medium, a size 7.5 footwear is 7.5

Pickles

Why? I guess you don't know Hong Kong very well. Hong Kong doesn't dwell in the past, and always follows the money.

:D!

It's nothing to do with exchange rates. HKD is basically USD. If GBP/euro/AUD is doing well against USD then goods in HK will seem cheaper. If the USD is doing well then they will seem more expensive.

Pre-Brexit vote (Brexit has not happened), GBPUSD has fluctuated from 1.4 to 2 during the period that USDHKD has been pegged at 7.8, so the perceived value of goods sold in HK will have varied by the same amount to Brits.

The main reason your iPad was cheaper is that HK has no sales taxes, so if you are used to paying 20% VAT then goods subject to VAT will seem to be on average 17% cheaper in HK.

christep

Well, as a counter example, UnderArmour has a completely different sizing for Asian markets. The XXL they sell here is about the same size as L sold in North America.

(And, bizarrely, they use exactly the same item code (UPC) for both, which caused me a lot of hassle when I ordered from their online shopping in Asia (which they force you to use - they won't ship to Asia from the US site))

Amelorn

Forgive me for bumping, but I am of a mind to weigh in on this topic.

After over a year on the road, the strain of Asian laundry shops on my limited portable wardrobe, and a certain "I am tired of looking at this decrepit t-shirt," I decided to rehabilitate my closet (i.e. my suitcase).

Having visited the city repeatedly since 2012, finding good deals is getting harder. This is on top of the aggravation of sizing/cuts.

I'm a (physically) stunningly average Western man. I wear an M in most North American, Australian/NZ, and EU brands. Usually need slimmer cuts for US labels. For an aggressively "Starving teenage heroin addict"-slim-cut continental label's shirt, I may go to a large. Uniqlo is a border between M and L. Trousers are a 32 (casual) or 34 (tailored). My shoe size is annoying large for my (1.79/5'10") height - a US 11.5/12 or EU 45/46.

While I won't go as extreme as Annalisa's "Chanel or crap," I do find that I am paying either $80 for a passable "emergency" purchase at Uniqlo or being hit by a $700+ sticker on a Western label I'd trust. To give a concrete example, I have been looking for spring/summer-weight sport shirts, a silk-on-leather "summer" belt, a pair of chino shorts, dress socks, some "nicer" t-shirts for happy hour, and some less-nice t-shirts/tanks for running. I have also been open to a pair of chinos and loafers or boat shoes.

Back in the states, I tend to source my stuff from Polo, Brooks Brothers (love their less-branded Red Fleece stuff), and carefully selected items from better branches of Nordstrom Rack and Saks Off Fifth, with a ceremonial annual visit to mainline Nordies for the anniversary. In short, I don't need to shop often, as I try to buy "quality for "crap prices." I enjoyed my BB, Polo, Ted Baker, Paul Smith etc gear. I could also get Polo undershirts and CK boxers at Marshalls/TJ for pretty cheap, to boot.

I'm an aggressive outlet/end-of-season shopper/sale shopper, and i consider myself relatively informed. That is, I like to know the going price "back home" (incl the brand's own website). A number of men's clothing forums are extremely helpful in furnishing info about a given retailer's various sales as well as the byzantine world of outlets. [Given that outlets are more profitable than mainline, in many cases, much of the inventory has never seen the inside of a full-price shop] Helpfully, labels for brand-specific outlets can give clues. Brooks Brothers and J Crew use different labels, for example. BB made-for-outlet used to use "346." Now they use BROOKS BROTHERS 1818 in block capitals versus "Brooks Brothers Est 1818" in cursive.

Back in the Day (tm), acceptable deals seemed more abundant. City Gate outlet did sell stuff from my preferred brands (Christopher Bailey era Burberry had some good stuff, chavs-in-knockoffs aside) at what I considered decent prices. At the time, I was living in Australia when A$1 = US $1.05. Buying in Australia was a double-screw, so HK was a breath of fresh air.

These days, it's insane. Yesterday, I wandered into the Polo RL outlet. A plain white small-pony t-shirt was $300. A standard striped or solid oxford button (classic - i.e. potato sack fit) was $950, knocked down from $1200+. While I don't expect to pay the TJ maxx price of US$39.99+tax, could ya meet me somewhere around the US$65 mark?! Yes, HK outlet shopping working on the "buy more, get bigger discount", but even buying 6 items for the max 20% additional discount isn't worth it. One, I don't want that many new pieces from RL, and two, the plain OCBD shirt still isn't worth it for $760. For that price, I will just go to a tailor to have my stuff custom-made. The more interesting/"edgy prep" stuff starts at $1,100. To even find it though, I had to sift through all sorts of excessively overbranded "LOOK AT ME! I CAN AFFORD FREAKIN POLO" stuff. Pass

Rinse and repeat at Hugo Boss - No, $1085 for a pair of shorts is not a good deal, both considering international pricing and the nightmares I will put them through. Sadly, rinse and repeat at the Ted Baker outlet. Their prices were somewhat more reasonable, but again, $700+ for a shirt from Paul Smith's poor relation is...

Tung Chung rant over.

My "market research" in IFC and Times Square (TS) was similarly frustrating. I paid a call to Brooks mainline in both malls to check them out. Looking at some nice Red Fleece t-shirts @ TS, they had what I call the "customary Hong Kong 20% off" discount applied. At $312, that's still a few dollars more than US full retail @ $34.95. I still bought it. You win this one, 346 Madison Ave. I went across the corridor to check out J Crew - to look, rather than buy. I got burned by enough of their poorly made stuff in college to avoid ever actually buying anything there, aside from some $5 socks at an outlet in Florida.

They wanted $715 for a pair of shorts. Mother-bloody-J Crew wants the better part of a Benjamin for shorts. This sort of poor price-to-quality ratio has played out over and over in my HK adventures recently.

The only good deals I found?

Lane Crawford Warehouse @ Horizon Plaza (South Horizon MTR, 800m walk) is actually exclusively for Lane Crawford overstock. The streetwear section would be heaven for Japanese apparel enthusiasts. Being way over my sartorial head, I wandered to the chino and sport shirt section. I found a bonanza of ultra-discounted Paul Smith and Scotch and Soda stuff. I picked up a pair of perfectly-fitting Paul Smith summer weight chinos for $720 marked from $2400. Given that I'd happily pay $130-150 for Paul Smith jeans/trousers on sale, this was actually a bargain.

A lonesome rack shoved in the back of the Tung Chung Citygate Brooks Brothers had summer time mainline overstock at 70%. I found the perfect shirt for $370.

In both cases, naturally, sizing in my area was limited. Great for XS and S sizes as well as XL. Limited in L. Hen's tooth rarity in M.

Thank you for enduring this rant. Next port of call: Stanley market for some t-shirts.

christep

Have you considered this thing called the internet? I'm way too big to find much in the way of clothes in HK in any case, but at the prices you are talking about you could order off Amazon and even if you immediately sent 50% to the charity shop because you didn't like it or it didn't fit you would still be better off.

Amelorn

Have you considered dishing out a little less attitude?

/sigh

I have been on the road for over a year living in short-ish term accommodation for anywhere from 5 days to a month at a time. I rarely feel comfortable shipping internationally - with the exception of staying with very close friends in Australia and NZ.

moondog

Perhaps his post could have been a little kinder, but speaking as someone who doesn't demand designer undergarments, but feels HM/Zara/Uniqlo fall short of even Walmart in terms of product quality, the internet is the best way to approach shopping for this sort of stuff in HK. In Shanghai, there are several fake/overrun markets that are up to my price/quality standards, but I can't really say the same for HK. With respect to shipping, any half decent hotel is capable of receiving stuff that you order online.

Amelorn

1) Completely agree on fast fashion brands.

2) I don't doubt that hotels will receive items. BUT.... When something important gives out (esp running stuff), I don't want to wait 2 weeks. Further, if something is too early, I need to hope that the staff will see that I have an upcoming booking in X days. If something is too late, will the hotel arrange international shipping? Given how many front-of-house staff seem to be underpaid 20-somethings, I have concerns. Were I settled in my own apartment, however...