Taipei 2014: Celebrity Shops

In recent years, I've been quite into Taiwanese shows and dramas and all that entertainment, which is not uncommon especially in Hong Kong. Now, I'm not a crazy fan of any one particular star, but I do follow them and *fingerscrossed* hope to "bump" into them on the streets.

Anyways, I'm sure a lot of people going to Taiwan would like to visit some of the boutiques opened by these celebrities. I wasn't planning on it when I planned my Taipei trip, but they so happen to be around the same areas, so I looked them up and voila! (I am in no way affiliated with any of the companies, I wish)

Name: StayReal

Founder: 阿信Ashin/五月天MayDay

Locations: DongQu (2 stores), Ximending. Click here for more.

Their style is very rock, specializing in graphic tees, but also sell other accessories and merchandise. They constantly collaborate with different companies to bring in different designs and limited edition products. Even if you're not a MayDay fan, it's worth a visit to see all the variety, as it is one of the most successful celebrity shops, evident in their number of branches.

Name: Carry Me
Founder: 蕭亞軒 Elva Hsiao
Location: DongQu (next to Cosi O Cosi restaurant) See their Facebook page.
Contrary to other celebrity brands, Carry Me does not only sell the brand logo. I don't like it when shops produce t-shirts or clothing items with just their logo, the very "in your face" kinds that just tell people that "look at me, I'm cool because I'm wearing this brand" (which can happen to many celebrity brands). Elva's brand has very nice and stylish shoes and bags which is a girl's heaven. I bought a pair of heels for my friend upon her request and she had good reviews from them. I won't mind spending time and looking around Carry Me.

Name: Stage
Founder: 羅志祥 Show Luo
Locations: DongQu & Ximending. List of all stores here.
I cannot deny that I like Show's acting and dancing, and he is probably my favorite Taiwanese celebrity at the moment. There, I said it. You can make fun of me. However, despite being the "fashion king" that people call him, I'm slightly disappointed in the produces. They are the "look at me I'm wearing stage logo tshirt" kind of produces, and rarely do they come out with something that can be deemed "fashionable" and not "logo-y".

Name: Phantaci
Founder: 周杰倫 Jay Chou
Location: DongQu & Ximending. See here.
Another male artist that is famous for being fashionable. When I walked in, I felt very out of place because they sell mostly male clothing. I didn't see women clothing when I looked around so walked out because the shopkeepers were looking at me weird. Some of the stuff is the "in your face logo" kind, but you can also find others that are not so much like that. If you're a guy, you like nike/jordans or any of their current collaboration partners, it's worth a peek.

In general, celebrity brands are a hit or miss, depending on what you're looking for. I'd say go to DongQu, I prefer it over Ximending, and shopping at the boutiques instead of looking for brand names. Boutiques sell way cheaper products and you find more local fashion and style in them.

xoxo