Wednesday, July 21, 2010

HONG KONG'S LUXURY DESIGNER DISCOUNT OUTLETS

 

Hong Kong’s Best Mall for Luxury Outlet Stores
Today, there are a number of buildings in Hong Kong that group together famous brand outlet stores. Some of them are phenomenal, some of them are less so. Horizon Plaza, an old industrial building in Ap Lei Chau Aberdeen, falls in the first category. Over the past five years, it has become a magnet for Hong Kong’s luxury designer retail outlet stores, offering high quality fashion at a fraction of the original price.
 
Shopping at Horizon Plaza and all over Hong Kong is well covered in my book, 'Shop in Hong Kong'. Pick it up at all Hong Kong bookstores or at just buy it at my website at http://www.shop-in-hongkong.com/




 

What to Expect at Horizon Plaza 
These wonderful outlet stores follow the same principles:

  •  The fashion and accessories are discounted up to 90% of the original price.
  • They offer fashion of the season: Anytime after February 1st, most shops offer spring and summer fashion from the previous year, up to five years before. Anytime after August 1st, you’ll find fall and winter fashion, from the previous year, up to five years before. The more dated the fashion, the better the price.
  • Most fashion outlets carry shoes and boots. Lane Crawford, Max Mara, Blubell and Armani carry up to size 39-40.
  • The largest sizing can be found at Max Mara, Lane Crawford, Marijuana and Club Monaco/Juicy Couture
  • Fashion and accessories for men can be found in all but a few outlets.
  • In multi-brand stores, each brand dictates their own rate of discount.
  • Every shop is well laid out. There is little or no junk parading as designer fashion.
  • You can try clothes on
  • All open daily from 10am or 11:00am to 7pm.
  • All prices below are in HK dollars.
  • See parking and transportation information at the end.

Shopping Logistics
Horizon Plaza was originally an industrial building. Because the elevators are slow and located on each of the building’s four sides, it’s better to take the lift to the 27th floor and walk down a floor at a time instead of waiting for elevators to take you there. The best shops are between the 27th and 19th floors. One is on the 10th and another is on the 5th floor.


 Overall Rating of Each Store
I’ve rated each fashion outlet below on a scale of 1 to 5, with 5 being the best overall based on the size of the store, the range of its sizing and the broadness of its appeal. For specific information on each store, see below. All the outlets are grouped by floor, to make your shopping more efficient.

27th Floor
Max Mara, Rating of 5
Club Monaco and Juicy Couture, Rating of 4
Diesel, Rating of 3 Marni, Rating of 3
Marni, Rating of 3
AUN Fashion, Rating of 1
26th Floor
Amazing Inspiration Workshop, Rating of 1
25th Floor
Lane Crawford, Rating of 5
22nd Floor
Marijuana, Rating of 3
Armani, Rating of 3
Pompeei, Rating of 2
Moiselle, Rating of 1
21st Floor
Joyce, Rating of 4
19th Floor
 Fairton, Rating of 4
 Bluebell, Rating of 4
 Replay, Rating of 3
 Imaginex, Rating of 1
10th Floor
Ugg Boots (Inside Lavital Store), Rating of 1
 5th Floor
 IT Outlet, Rating of 3

  
Information On Each of the Outlets 

  
Outlets With A 5-Star Rating

 


 
Lane Crawford
25th floor
Tel: 2118 3403

 http://www.lanecrawford.com/brands (list of Lane Crawford’s brands)


 Lane Crawford is the best fashion outlet in Horizon Plaza. The designers’ names alone are enough to wow you and the discounts allow the average person to easily own some very impressive fashion. The store is large and carries a huge collection of fashion and accessories for women, men and children. Its shoe department is particularly interesting with a wide range of sizes.



Max Mara
27th floor, #2709
Tel: 2722 9608
Brands sold here are Max Mara, Marina Rinaldi, Penny Black, Marella and others. Women who wear large sizes will love Marina Rinaldi with its wide range of sizes: Italian sizing 9 to 27, with 27 being the equivalent of UK22/US18. Footwear up to size 40. Fashions in this store favor career-oriented women and a smart casual look with jackets, tops, shoes and accessories.

 Outlets with a 4-Star Rating


Club Monaco and Juicy Couture
 27th Floor, 2719

 Tel: 2118 2986



  A shop that actually sells in US sizes! A nicely laid-out store with fashion and accessories for men and women: Juicy Couture shows young, casual and sassy fashion in women’s sizes XS to Large an in men’s waist size 28 to 36.Club Monaco has smart, classic styling and carries women’s sizes 00 to 10 and men’s 28” to 38” (waist size). Prices start at $150+.




Joyce Warehouse
 21st floor, #2102

 Tel: 2814 8313

 No website available

Joyce’s Boutique and warehouse cater to an upwardly mobile crowd looking for cutting edge design. It has a large number of brands such as Galliano, Rei Kawakubo (Comme des Garcons) etc.. Because its clothes are so trendy, it may not appeal to all people. If you like to make a statement, you’ll be in heaven as Joyce Ma’s stores rank up there with the most defining fashion names in the world.




Fairton
19th Floor, 1919

Tel:2873 2230

This outlet carries a number of major brands, namely Costume National, Fratelli Rossetti, Galliano, GF Ferre, Jean-Paul Gaultier, Just Cavalli, Kookai and Lloyd. European sizing for men up to 2XL. Footwear up to size 39. To give you an idea of pricing, tees run between $300 and $400, jeans between $500 and $1000.



Bluebell
19th Floor, 1902-05  
Tel: 2580 1722

The Blubell outlet carries four major brands: Moschino, Paul Smith, Blumarine and Jimmy Choo. Discounts vary between 20% and 90%. Women’s sizes range from 38 to 44. Largest shoe sizes are 41 for women and 9UK (Paul Smith) for men.



Outlets With A 3-Star Rating


Marijuana
22nd Floor, 2216
 Tel:2580 0645

A small European woman’s fashion and accessories (jewellery) outlet with niche non-‘commercial’ European designers – Goti, Rare, Audigier, Collection Privee. It has larger sizes than most outlets in this mall: They carry up to European size 48. Discounts range between 50% to 80% off the original price. Prices start at $150.




Diesel
27th Floor, 2701
Tel: 2518 0775

Designer jeans and tees, some footwear and accessories. European sizing. Men up to 2XL, Women up to Medium. Maximum discount is 60%. Discounted jeans average HK$1000. Tees around HK$200-300. Footwear up to size 30 for women and 45 for men.




 I.T Outlet
5th floor, 5002-5004

Tel: 2553 8356

One of this company’s three outlets in the city. This multi-designer shop carries fashion from Europe and Asia, selecting up and coming or breakthrough designers. Their discount ranges from 50% to 90%. Their largest size is about size US6 or UK10. Very large store. Prices starting at HK$200-300.





Replay
19th Floor, 1918-1920

 Tel: 2311 0080


Italian designer jeans outlet with a range of casual wear for men and women. Stock is up to 5 years old. Women’s waist size up to 31” with up to XL size tee. Men’s tees up to 2XL. 50% reduction off all stock plus another 20% off that.




Armani
 23rd Floor, 2203

 Tel: 2552 9880

 Open: 11-7pm


This designer needs no introduction. The outlet store for men and women’s fashion and accessories is elegant and the products beautifully merchandised. Sizes run from 38 to 44 (some 46) for women and from 44 to 56 for men. Shoes for women up to size 39 and for men up to size 43 ½. Discounts up to 60%. Prices start at $2000.



 Marni
27thfloor, 2713
Tel 2553 5263

 Website:http://www.marni.com

Italian designer brand for women’s fashion and accessories with feminine and quirky designs. Up to Italian size 42, with the occasional size 44. Reductions range from 60% for previous year’s fashions to 75% for 3 year old fashion.


How To Get There
Drive and Park in the Building

 Take the Aberdeen Tunnel. At the exit, stay on Wong Chuk Hang Road (the main road) until you see a sign on your left for Ap Lei Chau. Turn left at this sign. You’ll be driving over a small bridge. Stay on this road (Ap Lei Chau Bridge Road) until you see a clear sign on your left for South Horizons. Turn left on this road (Lee Nam Road) and stay on it as it takes you by the waterfront. Once you reach the waterfront, look ahead and you’ll see a few industrial buildings. Horizon Plaza is the first and is clearly indicated.
  
The building has a car park but the entrance is a little tricky to find. Keep circling the building to get at it. If you buy something at Horizon Plaza, get the retailer to stamp your parking ticket. You’ll get a discount on your parking.

Take a Cab
It'll cost you HK$90 to get there.

Take a Bus
 There are a few buses from Central, Kowloon and the Airport that will take you directly to Horizon Plaza on the way to Ap Lei Chau Estate.

From the airport
 Bus A10
  
From Diamond Hill MTR Station in Kowloon
 Bus 671
  
From Exchange Square in Central
 Bus 90
  
From The Central Ferry Pier
 Bus 91
From Causeway Bay (Ask for directions to bus stop at MTR station)
 Bus 92


You’ll be hungry…

 
 Grab a bite and a cuppa at the following shops:
 Tree CafĂ© 28/F
 Sift 22/F
 Monde Chocolate et Cafe 10/F
Cafe Piatti 2/F