We were killing off our last afternoon in Palm Springs and ended up at Palm Desert Mall. We didn’t even know the name of the mall except it was a Westfield one. At the entrance near where we parked was a storefront as big as a Forever 21 and all these candy colored accessories on display.
Why not walk around? NPY often thinks we go through a mall so quickly, neither of us ducking in shops.
It was like a candy store without the calories and all the girly accessory goodies were arranged by colour. Everything was disposable fashion and trendy and sparkly and pretty. I thought I would walk out empty handed, so overwhelming was the choice.
I did end up with one mixed materials bracelet that’s just up my alley of being sedately complicated.
When I went to pay, the cashier asked for my phone number but I declined because I don’t know my US number offhand and explained I was traveling from Canada. She asked me, so cheerfully, if I was from, “Victoria, Surrey, Brampton or Vaughan.” Are those the only Canadian cities she knows and how strange is that.
It turns out Charming Charlie is expanding outside of the US and already in those cities: in Guilford Town Centre in Surrey, Uptown Centre in Victoria, Bramalea City Centre in Brampton and Vaughan Mills in Vaughan. Brilliant! But I’m skeptical what the prices are like in Canada. It costs more than H&M/F21 but the selection is larger, the pieces better in quality and feel and the styles more mature.
Here are the price ranges I noted:
* Bracelets 10
* Necklaces 15
* Watches 20
* Flats 20-25
* Bags 25
* Dresses 35-45
I expressed to NPY how much I like the store the same way I do with David’s Tea: “I want to buy a franchise!” Which is funny if you know how little a head or balls I have for business. :P