Since the Great Recession the boutiques that line Madison Avenue have become a lot more diverse. Now more than ever you can find stores with $3000 cashmere sweaters kissing distance from boutiques with $70 cashmere slacks.
Most New Yorkers didn’t know what to expect when Schutz, the Brazilian footwear emporium, opened their first state-side store. The boutique, which is across from Barneys and next door to the anticipated Brian Atwood store, is stocked with fashion forward shoe styles that are all priced very attractively.
Most shoes in the new boutique are spiked and studded and priced between $125 and $300. Many savvy shoppers compared Schutz’s shoe assortment to Zara’s off-the-runway look-for-less assortment. There has even been some debate if a particular Schutz shoe style too closely resembles the Louboutin Startatata and if they created a too closely related version of the Celine Luggage tote.
In addition to shoes, the new boutique also has handbags, a small assortment of sweaters and some great looking metallic leather jackets for $700. Interestingly enough, we are told that every two weeks the store is stocked with new styles. This also means that some styles are quickly “retired.”
We can see Schutz quickly becoming an earnest part of the uptown shopping culture as consumers look to pick up an inexpensive novelty shoe to match a particular outfit. After all, fast fashion can turn out better than other fashion!
