Store Adore
www.storeadore.com
Launches Chicago with the Chicago Shopping Awards

August 11, 2008 - New York City, NY—Store Adore (www.storeadore.com), a personalized web-based guide to the best boutique shopping around the country and online, expands shopping coverage to include Chicago.

Fashionably eclectic, Chicago is home to a venerable vintage scene, a multitude of one-stop ensemble shops, accessory havens, neighborhood favorites and sleek, sophisticated spaces with the designer duds to match. Some call it the Second City, but one look at the bustling boutique scene and it’s clear that Chicago takes the gold in any shopping event. Indeed, this Mid-western city dishes up unique shops as easily it does world famous cuisine. How could Chicago not be one of Store Adore’s featured cities? – Meredith Barnett, Co-founder of Store Adore

Store Adore was founded by Meredith Barnett, a former editor at Lucky magazine, and Cristina Miller, a former management consultant. The founders have been best friends since childhood and are both Harvard MBAs.

The site launched in February 2008 with coverage of boutiques and specialty stores in fashion, beauty, accessories and home in New York and Brooklyn; Boston; Los Angeles; Washington, DC and several hundred e-boutiques. With the addition of Chicago as well as The Hamptons, Philadelphia, and several new online stores in the summer of 2008, the site now boasts 2600+ boutiques, with new stores added every day. Store Adore is often described as a Zagat meets Citysearch meets Facebook—for boutique shopping.

Passionate shoppers log on to StoreAdore.com and search the site’s extensive database of thousands of editorially profiled boutiques and specialty stores around the country (including over 200 in Chicago) and online. Users can also create and download custom shopping maps of popular shopping neighborhoods like Wicker Park, Bucktown, Gold Coast, Southport Corridor, and Lincoln Park, and take advantage of exclusive discounts from dozens of stores.

“We believe in the power of the combined knowledge of passionate shoppers, so we encourage Store Adore shoppers to contribute to the site with their own store reviews” says Cristina Miller, Co-founder of Store Adore.

Store Adore has compiled a list of our go-to shops for all occasions.

Store Adore Shops Chicago

Best for Dresses: SHE

1024 West Armitage Ave., Lincoln Park

A former model and Hollywood casting agent launched this A-list boutique with the goal of infusing Chicago with some West Coast style—and its perfect-for-the-party-circuit dresses and cutting-edge separates are just begging to be snapped up by starlets and trailed by paparazzi.

Best for Bags: Bess & Loie

1015 West Lake St., West Loop

Homey details like family photos and antique furniture make Bess & Loie feel as warm and welcoming as a visit to Grandma’s, but the stylish accessories give the space a decidedly modern feel. Splashed across the antique dressers and desks are bags ranging from tiny clutches to large weekenders, many from edgy designers who have not yet gone mainstream.

Best for a Head-to-Toe Look: Gray

1361 North Wells St., Old Town

With bright modern lights, exquisite chandeliers and walls painted—you guessed it—charcoal gray, this shop is as sophisticated and classy as its namesake shade. Gray caters to trendy urban denizens, chic suburbanites, young professionals and established socialites, effortlessly appealing to all with pieces that are of-the-moment yet never stuck inside of it.

Best for Emerging Designers: Habit

1951 West Division St.,Wicker Park

As many style-philes know, to truly be at the front of the fashion pack, you have to know the up-and-comers before they actually come up. That’s why Chicago’s seriously fashion-forward shop at Habit, for local designers who have what it takes to go global.

Best for Lingerie: G boutique

2131 North Damen Ave., Bucktown

Bras and corsets and handcuffs, oh my! At this ultra-girlie boutique, you can find items that suit nearly all arousal palates, with undergarments and toys that range from frilly to fun to far-out to fantastical.

Best for Jeans: The Denim Lounge

43 East Oak St., Roscoe Village

Thanks to this designer denim shop’s innovative “Butt Cam,” a small camera near the fitting rooms that projects onto a wide screen TV, shoppers can judge for themselves when pondering “Does my butt look good in these jeans?”

Best Staff: p.45

1643 North Damen Ave., Bucktown

For the fashion-obsessed, it’s nice to have a place where everybody knows your name (as well as your size and favorite designers). That’s where super-friendly p.45 comes in.

Most Fashion Forward: Ikram

873 North Rush St., Gold Coast

The designers available at this bar-setting boutique are a perfect mix of established runway labels and up-and-coming talent. Shopping here sets Chicagoans apart from the crowd, as Ikram’s designers aren’t just talented—they’re innovators.

Best Deals: Beta Boutique

2016 West Concord Pl., Bucktown

Imagine walking into a store that is perpetually on sale. Sounds like a dream, right? That dream became reality for Chicago shoppers when the sporadic and much-anticipated Beta Boutique sample sale turned into a full-fledged store featuring markdowns from popular brands from 40 to 90 percent off.

Most Eco-Friendly: Pivot

1101 West Fulton Market, West Loop

Push all thoughts of hemp bracelets and potato-like fabrics out of your mind: With its stash of eco-friendly clothing and accessories, Pivot proves that you can stay at the top of the style heap while paying homage to Mother Earth.

Store Adore Chicago Launches August 1, 2008

Printable Chicago Shopping Guides (maps) are available on www.storeadore.com.

Store Adore Featured Cities:

New York, Los Angeles, Boston, Washington D.C., Philadelphia, Chicago, The Hamptons