Do the names Lewis Cho, Walter and Rachel Leigh make your knees weak? Good news is that high quality NYC sample sales are now year round (where once they were seasonal). We can thank a difficult economy for this. These and other “scores” can be had THIS week on our Garment Center “Insider” shopping tours. http://www.shopgotham.com/daily-new-york-shopping-tours.php

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New York City will always be our first love, but here are some stores across America that have knocked us off our Jimmy Choos…

1.  Pangea (Nashville, TN; www.pangeanashville.com)  Located alongside the Vanderbilt University campus, this eclectic shop is a feast for the eye as well as the pocketbook.  Shoppers will find temptation around every corner, from indie-label rompers to kitsch folk art to a variety of naughty cards and buttons.  Expect a sniff or two from one of the store owner’s adorable dogs while killing time in the best way possible.

2.  Candy Baron (Laguna Beach, CA; www.thecandybaron.com)  This sunny beach town is home to a candy store that brings out the kid in all of us.  Check your self-control at the door and indulge in barrel after barrel of classic penny candies that remind you of summer days at camp.    Their selection includes sugar-free, international and hard-to-find concoctions meant to satisfy your sweet tooth for days to come.

3.  Hey Daisy (Appleton, WI; www.heydaisy.com)  This unexpected gem of a boutique breathes life onto East College Avenue in Appleton.  The shopper who ducks into Hey Daisy will find a well-edited selection of jeans, tee shirts and dresses at terrific prices.  The last-minute “impulse” buys located next to the cash register are particularly tempting.

4.  American Rag (Newport Beach, CA; amrag.com) American Rag’s “classidelic” look has a loyal following on the West Coast.   Their vintage-inspired men and womenswear manages to be both timeless and boundary-pushing all at the same time.  Make time for lunch, as their in-store café offers the best salad selection west of Paris.  Then walk out with bags full of head-turning and envy-inspiring fashion.  You won’t regret it.

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Our Wholesale Showroooms are happy to sell their winter season items even below wholesale. Hurry in! February marks the end of the fine deals! ww.shopgotham.com

Still craving winter duds? Shop Gotham’s Soho & Nolita shopping tour will take you to the VERY BEST sales! Add in exclusive discounts, and this makes for a very satisfying shopping excursion. Saturdays at 11:00 am, January and February. (FRI, SAT & SUN, rest of the year)

www.shopgotham.com

If  are you coming to NYC in January or February 2010, you may want to take advantage of Shop Gotham’s low season discount on Garment Center “insider” shopping tours.

Save 15% and then score big at private Wholesale designer showrooms. Fabulous coats, cashmere sweaters, hats, cool scarves, boots,  handbags etc.

Wednesdays and Fridays at 10:00am

www.shopgotham.com

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A shoppers delight (domestic visitor): Rating: 5 stars

“Myself [ 54 ] , daughter [ 24 ] and daughter-in-law took the shopping tour in the garment district. After spending 4 days shopping, we were’nt very excited to go on a shopping tour! But what a successful trip it was! Our guide was awesome and had loads of information, including suggesting some places to go after in other areas. We went to six very different designer showrooms.which had a varied selection of products and each of us found lots of things. I would reccomend it!.” www.shopgotham.com

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Bernadette Peters. still beautiful with that  luminous skin,  was spotted at the West 77th Street flea market last Sunday buying earrings large enough to show beyond those wonderful red curls.

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Do your student groups crave fashion industry knowledge and access? Shop Gotham has the programs for them, as only to be found in NYC. For information on NYC Student programs, email info@shopgotham.com 

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Alas in the last year, there has been so much store turn-over on Mulberry and Elizabeth Sts, that we who troll the streets can’t even keep up.  NYC is exciting in its constant evolution, but there is also something to be said for being able to count on something too. And to witnessing the success of able & imaginative independent. Will Nolita no longer be accessible for them?  We share this with our readers. Comments welcome 

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