| If-Only UK.If-Only UK

Part 2 of the If-Only guide to NYC…

Part 2 continues on from where Part 1 left off, looking at some of the more niche street wear stores around New York, as well as some of the quintessential tourist destinations. Enjoy…

The Hundreds:

Los Angeles-based brand The Hundreds has grown into one of the most prominent street wear brands in the world recently, and it has become a firm favourite for many in the UK. The New York store can be found in the Soho district of Manhattan, but it is quite difficult to spot and admittedly, it took me a few walks round the block before I managed to find it. The selection inside the store as far as tees go is quite comprehensive, with plenty of the bright and colourful designs that The Hundreds designers have been renowned for. Their collaboration with Diamond Supply Co. (which took up most of the rear wall of the store) had a few interesting pieces too. The one area that was disappointing was their selection of snapbacks, which have been one of the most popular aspects of their brand recently. They were lacking in variety and there was nothing particularly new or interesting on show (I am pretty sure all the head wear on show is available in the UK off the likes of urbanindustry.co.uk) and to be honest, the hoodies were equally uninspiring. Most of these featured various colour-ways of the ‘Adam Bomb’ logo that has become so synonymous with the brand, as well as a few with ‘The Hundreds’ in text emblazoned across the chest. The staff were helpful enough and gave me a couple of free skate magazines for my troubles when they got my purchase wrong and I had to return to the store to exchange the item. Overall though, this is a really nicely furnished store and if you find yourself in the Soho district of Manhattan, it is worth checking out.

Stock: 6 (strong in some areas, lacking in others)

Staff (helpfulness/friendliness): 7

Presentation/Décor: 9

Location: 9

Value: 7

aNYthing:

The aNYthing store was arguably the best and the most disappointing destination on my tour of the street wear stores in Manhattan. The positives I took from my visit however were pretty much only subjective to me, because of a third-off sale at the time, I managed to cop myself two aNYthing 5-panels for well under the price it would have cost me to get one on this side of the pond. So apart from a great deal, as well as being able to choose from their entire stock, I can only think of negatives. Yes the stock was strong in terms of variety, with the head wear standing out in particular (if you haven’t already, and you like your snapbacks and 5-panels, go check out the aNYthing gear) as well as a few crewnecks and some extremely expensive jackets. One area that I was disappointed by was the T-shirt selection which was particularly weak, lacking any real originality or imagination whatsoever. On top of this, the store was extremely poorly furnished and the staff were not particularly helpful. However, because of the strength of their threads in certain departments, I would still recommend it remains on your list of destinations.

Stock: 7

Staff (helpfulness/friendliness): 6

Presentation/Décor: 5

Location: 8

Value: 9

Memes:

Memes was my favourite destination on my tour of the New York street wear stores, particularly due to their stock which has real variety, including a number of top brands (Only NY, Crooks & Castles, Diamond Supply Co. etc.). Because these brands are often quite difficult to find, or particularly expensive in the UK, it’s quite nice to find a store over the pond that stocks several desirable brands under one roof. The stock was pretty strong in all areas, with a good selection of head wear (ranging from beanies to snapbacks and 5-panels), tees, crew-neck sweats and outerwear and they also had a good selection of skate and lifestyle magazines on a shelf on one side of the store. In summary, two aspects of the Memes store stood out to me; firstly, the staff were particularly friendly (always a bonus with this kind of store), and secondly, despite having a much smaller unit than many of the other stores I visited, they took advantage of all the space available filling the whole place with quality threads.

Stock: 8

Staff (helpfulness/friendliness): 8

Presentation/Décor: 7.5

Location: 9

Value: 8

Ground Zero Memorial:

MoMA (Museum of Modern Art):

Undoubtedly one of the most famous art galleries in the world, you would not be surprised to discover that the collection at MoMA contains countless world-renowned works of fine art (including the likes of Picasso’s ‘Three Musicians’ and Van Gogh’s ‘The Starry Night’). The extensive main collection continues from here with separate rooms encapsulating different periods and movements that have made their mark on the world of modern art, ranging from Impressionism to Post-Impressionism, Cubism, Surrealism, Futurism and Pop-Art (featuring work from artists like Boccioni, Kandinski, Dali, Severini, Rivera, Warhol and Lichtenstein). MoMA is not restricted to just fine art though, with departments focused on architecture and design, photography, film, prints and illustrated books and media and performance art, so there is plenty to keep you busy and you definitely get value for the cost of your entry.

Giorgio Morandi’s ‘Still Life’