City of Paris blocks opening of Champs-Elysees H&M.

[Bergdorf Goodwill]

http://www.economist.com/debate/free..._my_underw.cfm

 

[GreyFlannelMan]

I think it's great! And it's a European company they've rejected too. The Champs-Elysees is pretty far-gone already, IMO. It's like a prettier Times Square. It might be too little too late.

 

[Tomasso]

Originally Posted by GreyFlannelMan

I think it's great! And it's a European company they've rejected too. The Champs-Elysees is pretty far-gone already, IMO. It's like a prettier Times Square. It might be too little too late.
I concur on all points.

 

[The Grapist]

I've always likened the Champs-Elysees to 5th Avenue. Many of the stores are the same, and they both end at an arch. Although 5th Avenue now has two H&M's :-/

 

[gj555]

So much for free enterprise.

 

[Jovan]

Why they haven't done this with Abercrombie & Fitch on Savile Row is beyond me.

 

[GreyFlannelMan]

Originally Posted by Jovan

Why they haven't done this with Abercrombie & Fitch on Savile Row is beyond me.

Because the Brits are free marketeers! The French, only partially so...

 

[Jovan]

Yeah, but this is a matter of dignity, and letting some douchey brand that goes against all that Savile Row stands for move in is not dignified to say the least.

 

[LabelKing]

I think this is great.

 

[Britalian]

Didn't the City also ban LV's flagship shop from opening on Sundays? LV argued, I believe, that the building was a historic site or something and thus entitled to open seven days. To be applauded.

 

[DeSica]

Originally Posted by Jovan

Yeah, but this is a matter of dignity, and letting some douchey brand that goes against all that Savile Row stands for move in is not dignified to say the least.

Maybe Cyndi Lauper was right..."money changes everything." (had the pleasure of meeting her...very sweet woman) I know exactly what you mean. Somebody mentioned to me that Starbucks has yet to open in Italy. I haven't been there in years, but recent relatives have claimed never to have heard of it when visiting (and hate it when they taste it). It would just be too sad if that sub-par second rate excuse for a coffee house opened up there, not to mention how my father would spin in his grave. Sooner or later, these giant companies are probably going to be able to buy there way onto whatever avenue they like, no matter how undignified it may seem to some...and the living will envy the dead.

 

[Britalian]

Originally Posted by DeSica

Maybe Cyndi Lauper was right..."money changes everything." (had the pleasure of meeting her...very sweet woman)


I know exactly what you mean. Somebody mentioned to me that Starbucks has yet to open in Italy. I haven't been there in years, but recent relatives have claimed never to have heard of it when visiting (and hate it when they taste it). It would just be too sad if that sub-par second rate excuse for a coffee house opened up there, not to mention how my father would spin in his grave.

Sooner or later, these giant companies are probably going to be able to buy there way onto whatever avenue they like, no matter how undignified it may seem to some...and we will envy the dead.

Yes, it will be a sad day when that behemoth of blandness and uniformity opens up in Rome or Milan or Venice (if they haven't already). I use the 'will' form here as I see it as only a matter of time; the youth seeking a half-way house between the traditional cafes where the boring old people go and somewhere hipper and more atuned to their sensibilities and consumerist breeding. In this respect I believe a little protectionism at what ever level it takes is necessary. Try finding Hellmans mayonaise in any supermarket here. It's mostly Kraft. Not that I'm bothered by this one way or the other.
I was quite depressed when I saw a Starbucks branch yards from the Pompideau in Paris. Bastards.

 

[GreyFlannelMan]

There was some discussion about how Starbucks would be received when it opened in Vienna, where coffeehouses play an importnat role in everyday life and the culture. Now, a few years later, there are no fewer than 11 outposts, so somebody has to be patronizing the chain...

 

[edmorel]

Originally Posted by gj555

So much for free enterprise.

Word.

 

[drizzt3117]

Originally Posted by GreyFlannelMan

There was some discussion about how Starbucks would be received when it opened in Vienna, where coffeehouses play an importnat role in everyday life and the culture. Now, a few years later, there are no fewer than 11 outposts, so somebody has to be patronizing the chain...

Actually the Starbucks are very well intergrated into Vienna I think. They serve some local drinks and are very well located within the city. They certainly hasn't stopped people from frequenting the traditional cafes, either, which are wonderful.