[current]

June 12

Urban Outfitters new Queen West store is now open.

 

[simply Dan]

Those metal vents next to the Urban Outfitters sign look terrible!

 

[khris]

So does that circular window. Ugh!

 

[rather_draconian]

I despise pretty much all of the new chain retailers that have set up on Queen St. between John and a bit west of Spadina. They are all encased in these generic metal and glass boxes that I find so commercial and wrong for the strip. Look at Mexx, Buffalo, H&M, Le Chateau...they are all interchangeable aside from the logos. I frankly think Queen St. is becoming an eyesore and I am not going to bother visiting as much now as I can find so many of the retailres there in a mall. Claire's, Payless and EB Games? Come on!

 

[JasonParis]

It's a Toronto "high street." It certainly doesn't offer me much either, but all cities have them and the cooler stuff is only steps from there so it's not a huge deal in my opinion.

 

[adma]

It's a Toronto "high street."

Good lemonade-out-of-a-lemon explanation. Almost like Queen Street returning to some vague kind of retail "roots", with today's answers to Woolworth's and Marks & Sparks predominating.

Hard to believe that Maher Shoes stood across from the present-day Duke's/Suspect site as little as a quarter century ago...

 

[khris]

I preferred the Queen W. of the 90's.
I miss Grafitti Alley!

 

[LowPolygon]

the high street model works, but it still would be nice to see development that relies on the involvement of an actual architect--rather than the same old design build bullshit.

there hasn't been a notable infill building constructed along Queen West in decades...

the old Caban store is the closest approximation of being ok, but even it is pretty boring.

i like Kohn Schnier's Umbra remodel, north of Queen though...

 

[rather_draconian]

I wouldn't even mind if the new retailers setting up on Queen St. were more high-end and unique. It just bugs me that they're everything that I can find in the Eaton Centre.

 

[Hipster Duck]

^That's true of all the "great" shopping streets of the world where rents have basically soared to the point that only multi-national chains can afford any space. Fifth Avenue, Oxford Street and the Champs Elysees are basically a few legendary holdouts amidst a world of H&Ms and GAPs.

 

[interchange42]

Fifth Avenue features the biggest H&M I've seen on this side of the pond: it's no hold-out!

42

 

[samsonyuen]

Even Oxford Street has two Gaps and four or so H&M, 2 Zara stores...

 

[adma]

And remember on Oxford, HMV and Virgin qualify just as much as "legendary holdouts"...

 

[samsonyuen]

Just an aside, all Virgin Megastores are now branded as Zavvi, as they were sold off by Branson.

 

[TKTKTK]

I loooooove parts of the interior of this store. The industrials forms used as walls on the Mezz, and the scary scaffolding staircase looks great. The plywood wall details are super doggy, but hopefully those'll be gone in a couple seasons.

It feels a bit easier to shop than the Yonge store, but it's also not full of inventory yet it seems.