The Summer Solstice at Mode Off

The Summer Solstice marked the start of a change of clothes (and things) on display at Mode Off. It also marked a change in the store manager's cold attitude towards me, I think - more about this later.


When I went down this afternoon on a hot, sunny and humid day, it surprised me that many things had changed. On the outside, well, there was a bright red awning extended over the sale carts:

Since it wasn't likely to rain, I assume it was meant for the customer's comfort. The minute I stepped inside the shop, I could also feel the cool breeze of the air-conditioning - quite a relief from the overwhelming heat and humidity. The inside of the shop looked completely different from when I last visited! Not only were the mannequins' clothing changed (which is normal), the racks now boasted "new" sleeveless tops such as tank tops and shorts, and even the entire contents of the display cabinet had transformed! I didn't think I would be this shocked encountering this sort of seasonal change in a store, but it was quite a big surprise for me. 

Another thing that caught me by surprise was the manager's attitude towards me today. He wasn't suddenly friendly and warm but he was at least cordial and willing to speak to me. I suspect it has to do with the fact that business that day was on the quiet side, at least according to me, or maybe with the change in season and people get all happy and sunny, or perhaps it was because I was looking like a familiar face at the shop already. Anyhow, since it also caught me by surprise, I remarked that the displays have changed for the summer season and casually asked how business was. He revealed that actually they only totally changed the right side of the store just yesterday, and that the left side was virtually untouched. Also, the "new" contents in the display cabinet were reshuffled with the ones in the display cabinet on the second floor, so the "new" contents now comprised of lots and lots of sunglasses, wallets and other accessories. The other thing I also noticed was that one section was specially arranged for the men. This was not so prominent in the previous display which focused more on the ladies' items like branded handbags. Perhaps they realized or noticed an increase in the number of men and teenage boys who not just patronize the store, but also take a peak at the first floor display cabinet. In fact, I have seen this happen quite often myself, but did not think it out of place. On hindsight, it might have been a pretty significant thing for the men to linger on the right side of the store where all the items on the racks there are for women. 

The manager also revealed that business has been slow in recent days because they had a sale and it just ended a few days ago. If you were wondering, these are pictures of the sale during that period:

I think they were trying to get rid of the "old" spring stock as much as possible before they bring in the summer clothing. As it is rather impossible to sell off all the spring clothing, it is logical to assume that they left the left side of the store i.e. spring stuff virtually untouched because they want to continue selling them since the spring and summer items look rather similar. It is also not easy to change all the displays at once overnight, so the strategy might be to change them bit by bit so that it becomes noticeable that there are "new" items arriving at the store every day. This not only acts as a form of promotion for customers, but it also makes the regulars feel happy in knowing that some part of the store has been changed for their sakes. 


I guess that makes me feel like a regular, even though I am really one in disguise, but this could explain the initial shock I experienced at first. I wanted to record these emotions before I leap into comparing Mode Off with other stores such as Green House, the recycle shop near my house, and other online high fashion stores - I am currently stalking Forever21 and Uniqlo. I promise the comparisons will be in the next post! To end off, here's the picture of the sushi place near Mode Off which I missed in the last post: