Not sure how long Dell has been running this program (I’m not a PC) but DellSwarm.com is probably one of the smartest online commerce ventures I’ve seen in a while.

By leveraging the power of bulk-savings and impulse buying, Dell offers the promise of lower prices based on how many committed buyers there are for a limited-time product special.

And of course they are using social media to help spread the work about new swarms and get people on board to help you lower the cost of your (and their) purchase.

Smart strategy with a great design.

I’ve been meaning to post about Theory since I came back from my trip to New York earlier this month. Established in New York in 1997, Theory set out to produce comfortable, minimal clothing for women. Their mens line launched in 1999 and their accessories line followed a few years later.

I was first drawn to Theory’s flagship store walking around NYC’s Meatpacking district. Pictured above, the understated building features a retail store on the first floor with corporate offices above. Other stores in London and Tokyo, below, also feature a minimal aesthetic with expansive glass windows and exposed concrete. (With a touch of wood and white paint, you might think you walked into an Apple store).

While the mens line at Theory didn’t immediately strike a chord with me, I soon realized that it wasn’t supposed to. A lot of brands strive to be the stand out piece in your wardrobe but Theory’s goal seems to be creating the comfortable, timeless piece you accessorize overtop of.

Their accessories and eyewear line are also understated but caught my eye because the sunglasses fit me perfectly. Most brands focused on slim-cut, smaller sizes don’t appropriately size their accessories but Theory seemed to pay attention to this detail. (At 5′ 9″, it’s not like I’m going to have a head that’ll fit into an 8″ New Era.) I regret not picking up the eyewear I tried on but I know I’ll be back to visit next time I’m down in New York.

Check out Theory yourself the next time you happen to visit London, Tokyo or NYC. If you do visit, get me these shades, please.

I recently went down New York City for the Labour Day long weekend. I had no reason to go other than to visit a friend who lives there and some visiting from California. I hadn’t been to New York for a vacation for a while so this was a good chance for me to get reacquainted with a city that I truly love to hang out in. This time around I remembered to keep my camera close at hand (with my iPhone as a backup) so I’d have something to share when I got back. 

My day started on Friday morning after taking a quick (1hr 15min) flight from Toronto Pearson to Laguardia the night before. Thanks to Reshma, a good friend from University and an amazing ambassador for Western civilization in general, I had a place to stay in NYC for a couple nights before crashing at the surprisingly inexpensive and uber-hip Pod Hotel for the remainder of the weekend.

The first stop, and probably the highlight of the weekend for me, was a chance to visit Yankee Stadium. Not being a huge baseball fan, I still understood this would be a special trip since, first, Yankee Stadium will be torn down at the end of this season to make way for the new Yankee Stadium and second, the Blue Jays were in town playing their last series there.

After my friends and I headed up on the wrong train (“D train as in deer, not B” said the attendant at the station we ended up in) we got to Yankee stadium just in time for the noon tour. The tour included a walk around the warning track, a visit to monument park in centerfield — where the franchise celebrates all-time heroes like Babe Ruth, Joe Dimaggio and Alex Rodrigues (ha, kidding) — and a visit to the press box for probably the most stunning view of the park. I managed to even sit in the dugout and steal some dirt from the warning track. Though aging and small, it’s still a great stadium and I could tell the throngs of Yankee fans who came out for the tour were getting sentimental about losing such a historic venue.

But me, I’m a Jays fan so in the evening I returned with my Jays retro cap snugly fit to watch the opening of the final series ever between the Jays and Yankees in that stadium. If the park looked amazing in the day it was just sublime when the sun set. Seeing the thousands of flashbulbs go off when Derek Jeter came to bat and watching old fans take tiny new fans out to see the Yankees really made me appreciate what baseball is really all about. Even though the Jays lost a nail-biter (2-1) it was a heck of a game and I have to hand it to Yankees fans for their class — I didn’t get heckled once!

I promised myself I’d get in some shopping so the next day started off with a visit to UNIQLO, a Japanese clothing retailer that’s starting to make noise in North America after success at home and in the UK. Although they have a flagship store right on Broadway south of Prince St. (amusingly right next door to their eerily similar competitor, H&M) they still have no North American online store, which speaks to how new they are. You may also remember hearing their name during the Cannes Lion awards this year when their UNIQLOCK concept won the top prize, a first for an interactive marketing campaign.

UNIQLO did not disappoint. The cutting edge fashion situated on four floors  of beautifully designed space made me realise I had underestimated exactly how long I would be spending there. I originally just stopped by to pick up new jeans  (which are tailored in store the same day for free) and a sweater but I knew as soon as I stepped I’d be leaving with more. 

After stopping at UNIQLO I visited a few other places with my friends Eric and Eunice, who were visiting from San Francisco; APC, Nike Sportswear at 21 Mercer and Jack Spade Greene St. come to mind. And though I don’t doubt the SOHO shopkeepers tell all their clients the same thing, everyone seemed really happy to meet our unique group of a couple West Coasters and one Torontonian. 

Stopping at Tarina Tarintino to pick up something nice for the lady, I had a great conversation with the owners who had their eye on Toronto as their next market. Like a true citizen, I convinced them that Toronto women were stylish enough to want to get their hands on everything they owned (including the custom Kid Robot Dunny they had in-store) and they agreed they’d have to move Toronto to their top of their expansion list. So in future, some women owe me some thanks when they see a TT boutique open up on Queen West one day.

And my trip wasn’t all shopping and baseball — it was about eating too. I found some great eats while in New York, including a savory Cubano Sandwich with a sidecar of amazing Chicken Liver Toast from the acclaimed gastro-pub, Spotted Pig in the West Village (West 11th and Greenwich St.) Out late with for drinks in the East Village I snacked on a Chicken Tikka wrap of some sort from Kati Roll one night and fries from Pomme Frites (123 2nd Ave) the next. Joe (multiple locations) had some great coffee to go with my cupcake from Magnolia Bakery nearby. Lastly, the entire crew enjoyed the tasting menu at Hakata Tonton back in the Village (61 Grove St.) which included Salmon Carpachio, a Hot Pot with Pork Belly strips, tofu, dumpling and greens, amazingly grilled pigs feet (yes pigs feet), Bibimbap and Sesame-Vanilla ice cream for the knockout blow.

By Sunday night I was stuffed, tired and ready to crash. However, my flight left early (5am!) Monday morning so I toughed it out, skipped my sleep, showered at my hotel and went straight the airport for the quick flight (1hr) home.

My latest trip to New York was definitely the best and that was the goal to begin with. I missed some spots that I didn’t get to, like Danny Meyer’s Shake Shack in Madison Square Park, but I’m sure I’ll find my way there next time. And when it comes to New York and me, there’ll be a next time for a long time to come.

Contestant No. 1: The Uber Guide
Target really covers all the bases here. If you really have to find that under-$25-for-a-six-year-old-girl-who-loves-Rihanna-and-has-a-best-friend-named-Megan gift, somewhere in this experience there is filter that will suffice. Seriously though, no knock against the design, this is the approach that is necessary when trying to showcase an entire catalogue in the context of a gift. It should also be noted that my initial reaction was “Wow. Red.”.  I’m assuming the design is keeping in the brand guidelines and the festive season but damn that’s a lot of red.  

Contestant No. 2: The Minimalist
 The Cool Hunting Gift Guide truly nails the minimal approach. I really like the price-on-rollover treatment for the product shots. Also a nice touch is the way they tuck away the filter options into a couple drop-down menus on the left . My only negative critique here is that it’s lacking big visuals that show off the products, which may be a good thing.

Contestant No. 3: The Editorial

 ”Your winner, in the green shorts….” Design Public takes the Saturday Morning Herald approach to their guideand it works well. Simple filter options, nice imagery and extended opinions on why the gifts are great really make this the complete experience. Kudos to the team at DP. 

The article covers off some personal faves including MoCCA and Czhehoski (where I celebrated my birthday last year) but fails to mention other great spots including Chippy’s (best fish and chips in town), San (original, well-priced Thai) and the Nutty Chocolatier (no need to explain here) to name a few. If you’re ever in Toronto on a Sunday, you’ll find me around this area pretty regularly.

The illustrations here are spot-on when you compare them to the originals.

I remember the first few weeks at the Eaton Centre store were akin to the Fifth Avenue Apple Store opening.