NOOOO! It's $89 here in the US.

Oh, Suz. I am sorry. It makes me angry.

*VERY BIG SIGH*

What?!! I laugh at that price. Kinda goes back to my expensive-ordinary thing. Not for a turtleneck, no matter how cool.

Exactly, Rachy. I'll be hoping that Zara comes through with something similar. I am sorry to rely on fast fashion so often, but, you know....a girl's gotta do what she's gotta do.

Thanks, Angie. Big sighs all round.

What?! That price is insane! Makes no sense to me.

Re cancellation.......Did they give a reason, Suz? I flipped through the rack of Vince sale items on Saturday but I hadn't read this thread yet so wasn't looking for anything specific. So, can't say if they had it or not.

That's a barbaric price! And yes, it goes back to the "expensive ordinary" thread. That's where I would pay enough $ to get something soft, not scratchy, and well fitted; but no more.

I've had a few items cancelled too. Good gawd, that price.

No reason, Marilyn, but at that price, I don't care! Just glad not to have it appear on my bill.

The SA I was dealing with had told me first that this t-neck was not in the Ottawa store, and then suddenly they processed the order anyway, and then cancelled.

I still haven't heard anything about those items supposedly coming from Vancouver or Calgary. So I don't even know if they have been requested. C'est la vie.

You will find a wonderful tneck! Maybe Aritizia or EF once they bring in their stock. A blessing it was cancelled at that insane price.

Fyi: All the Vince merchandise is priced outlandishly high in-store.
I wonder if it is imported directly from China which would incur higher duties than if it were imported from the US.

I agree with Smittie that the Vince merch. is priced is very high. I usually flip through it, think about winning 649, then move on.

I would imagine it's harder to order from Canadian stores over the phone. Things get lost in translation. When actually in a store it's super easy. Anyway, I agree that it's a relief not to have that ridiculous charge on your credit card.

Yes. I also ordered by text directly to the SA I was dealing with, so she has it in writing. I expect I'll learn something about those other items today as she told me the orders from other stores might take a few days to begin processing. Assuming they can actually fulfill them in the first place.

Dealing with the SA was a breeze, really -- she was really nice, gave me her phone number, and we texted back and forth after our phone conversation. I would definitely try this again, but I think it works much better if the items are in store.

I've found the SA's in the Ottawa store to be wonderful. I've spent a lot of time in lingerie lately....due to this new bra size episode.....and several of them know me when I wander in. Leann, the manager, actually remembers what I've bought already and when I went in on Saturday she knew exactly the bra I was looking for before I even spoke. She was like, "you're here for the ****. I was impressed!

That's wonderful! This is why they have such loyal customers, I think. It's really great to hear. I will have to come up and meet them in person one day.

I talk to my friend who owns and buys for my favourite boutique (and this is no coincidence - lol) about Vince (and other lines like this) quite often. As she explains, Vince doesn't have agency representation and distribution in Canada and needs to be imported by each store buyer from the US. The store buyers have to incur all of the import costs, and factor in the exchange, shipping charges etc before setting their retail prices. The prices are really, really high now. Shoes are especially bad because of where they are made -and are now running at close to $600 . Rag and Bone is the same. Rag & Bone Newburys are now $600 a pair! That vest that everyone is going nuts for : my friend didn't even bring it in because in Cdn dollars it's too expensive and she didn't feel it would sell well enough here. It's crazy. Some of the other lines like Rebecca Minkoff , Rebecca Taylor, Bailey 44 etc do have agency representation in Canada and benefit from the agencies' ability to import at lower costs, thus keeping Cdn retail prices a little lower. Again, we Canadians do not have easy access to these bridge level designer brands because of the costs to us. It always amazes me how many American women can afford to buy these labels (everyone I see while travelling in the US is shopping at Walmart but carrying a Coach bag - lol) but then I remind myself that your retail environment is so completely different than ours. Standards of living are completely different too - we don't live in 3000 sq foot custom built homes and drive $40000 cars as a standard here. Some people do, but not the majority . Our mortgages are not tax deductible, nor are they given to us for 30 years. Despite being close in proximity , our countries are very, very different.

Phew, sorry.

Yup. You said it, Lisa. We live in two different countries.

Interesting what you said about Minkoff, because the bag price shocked me a little -- until I realized it was only 33% off. I will have to see if I like it enough to spend that on it.

It's very possible that every single designer piece I ordered will go back (if it ever arrives, LOL.) I can't justify the cost unless it is a real workhorse item that I could not find an equivalent for.

That's a very interesting point. It's especially interesting in the context of this forum and how stylish our Canadian contingent is here. I think this is a good reminder that stylishness isn't about being rich or having easy access to all the name brands, it comes out of something more nuanced than that.

Thanks for shedding some light, Lisa!

I am following this with great interest. Suz you are certainly defining the concept of "perseverance" in your NAS shopping! I hope the results are worth all your effort.

And Lisa P your comments about the diff between US and CA are very interesting. I don't believe the average US person lives in a 3000 Sq foot house or has a $40K car, but in certain locations you do find more of that, and Nordstrom for example locates itself near those areas.

The differences in clothing retail prices for some of the brands you are discussing are really astounding, how awful for you Canadian ladies!

I do know what you mean about the coach bags being everywhere, even on people that are otherwise wearing really inexpensive stuff, although I myself see a LOT of knockoffs.

I suspect a lot of the differences between US and CA in terms of the retail environment have to do with the hugely different population numbers. The land mass sizes are somewhat close for the two countries but the populations numbers are wildly different. It's easier to carry a lot of different brands when you have a much higher number of customers to sell to.

Overall you are clearly right that we are two different countries in so many ways even though on the surface it might not seem that way.

I should clarify - my comments about the 3000 sq ft houses etc: were based on how many average-income Americans were given massive mortgages in the sub-prime era, and how many average-income earners were also buying huge expensive cars and a lot of those kinds of things. There was a culture of spending and accumulating and keeping-up-with-the-Joneses that wasn't as prevalent here. Those big homes also don't cost as much in the US as they do here, either. In the middle of the country, where I live , in a fairly big urban city, even a 2500 sq ft custom home sells for $750k. My very average 1400 sq ft home in a desirable neighbourhood (and the house is 60 years old ) would sell for $375k right now. (and there are no granite countertops and glass-walled showers etc in this house, I'll tell you). Anyways, Chris, yes, I was perhaps making a blanket statement in order to make a point - and that was unfair. However - there still are massive cultural and economic differences between us.

Sorry for your disappointment, Suz, but, yikes, that price for modal jersey T-neck was nuts. And, thanks for the information about those bridge fashion brands, Lisa. I've often wondered why two similar fashion brands can end up at such different pricepoints in Canada.

For me, NAS is an important reminder that, for all its universality, YLF is a US fashion website. Angie's recommendations reflect her in-depth knowledge of what is available to a US shopper. The Canadian market is a different entity. It's hard to not want to take advantage of her advice because she has no counterpart for those of us who live and shop in Canada.

But, before the US YLFers feel too sorry for those of us who live north of the 49th parallel, I'd add that we still do have some amazing shopping opportunities: Aritzia, Fluevog, Pink Tartan, Mackage, Smythe, Comrags, Simons, M0851-- I could go on, but you get my drift. We can't rely on Angie, though, to do our sorting which makes it more challenging, but not impossible.

I'd feel so much more confident in sorting it all myself if I lived in a metropolitan centre and had access to good shopping. But at the price of a Vince turtleneck, I could spend the night in Toronto in a B&B and shop there!!

I suspect that may be the result of all of this!

We do have some super designers here. Prices are high, of course. Fewer "bridge" brands, as Lisa calls them. It's either box store OR designer.

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