SHOPPING
SHOP TALK
The hottest news from the region’s stores with Deputy Editor Helen Spearman
Social shopping While we love trawling the mall followed by a coffee with pals as much as the next credit cardaddicted shopaholic, sometimes our feet hurt and we can’t be bothered to leave the flat. While you can’t buy online at fashlink.com, you can connect with friends through Facebook, put looks together on the site using pieces from the high street and give feedback on other surfers’ styling. There’s also an app for fashion on the go.
fashlink.com
For the diary… Super Sundays Head to Lamcy Plaza on Sundays where there are now loads of discounts every week. Spend Dhs300 at Giordana and you’ll get a free wallet, enjoy 25 per cent off at Bhs, Leader Sport and Kids Stop, take advantage of three-for-two deals at Colors Makeup and be treated to free gifts at Springfield and the Face Shop with every purchase.
lamcyplaza.com
Glambox A cool new concept that sends you sample-sized beauty products each month is starting in the UAE. Sign up for three, six or 12 months and you'll be sent goodies from the likes of Lancome, Kiehl's and Elizabeth Arden.
NEW FOR 2012
Our pick of the latest stores to open their doors
I Love Fashion
Your 2D viewing pleasure is set to become a 3D shopping experience, with the opening of Fashion TV’s first store in the region. The collection features suitably glam pieces, with the shop packed with smart technology, including a LED catwalk, 40 mannequins on a suspended conveyer belt, TVs screening the latest fashion footage from the catwalk and staff using iPads to access the stockroom. Clever stuff. The Dubai Mall, Dubai. Tel: (04) 3253258. ftv.com
ValleyDez
At the new Sunset Mall on Beach Road, ValleyDez stocks the likes of Betsey Johnson, Sass & Bide and Nicole Ritchie’s label House of Harlow, attracting Dubai’s edgy fash-pack. The new store is full of pieces to transform your look, with both international and regional designers represented. Sunset Mall, Beach Road, Dubai. Tel: (04) 3242883. valleydez.com
Hamac
The place to head if you’re planning a beach trip, Hamac sells classic and customised Havaianas, swimwear from Vilebrequin and Cia Maritima, Ecua Andino panama hats and all manner of sand-friendly accessories. Ibn Battuta Mall, Sheikh Zayed Road, Dubai. Tel: (04) 2329661. hamacdubai.com
NEW YEAR, NEW PANTS
Start 2012 with some new undercrackers. Taking inspiration from DC Comic superheroes (and villains), Diesel’s new collection lets you choose from Batman boxers, Joker jockeys and more. Aquaman and Mr Freeze are strangely absent from the line-up. Diesel, Mall Of The Emirates, Dubai, Dhs190. Tel: (04) 3411395. diesel.com
glambox.me
48 WHAT’S ON JANUARY 2012
The online vintage designer shop
NEWS FLASH
Flavours has launched, and our wallets are quivering in fear. The latest UAE-based online store, it sells preowned and vintage designer goodies – that are 100 per cent authenticated by experts – so you can track down discontinued lines and hunt for bargains.
flavoursonline.com
Festival fever
Dubai Shopping Festival is here again, with late-night store openings, huge prizes to be won, crazy sales and all sorts of entertainment happening across the city. We’ll be there, with pointy elbows at the ready. Jan 5 to Feb 5. dubaishoppingfestival.com