What's in store louis vuitton online uk in tokyo It was not long after tokugawa ieyasu established the modern shogunate, the old military regime in the 17th century, that some samurai realized it was time to put their swords aside louis vuitton uk cheap and become shopkeepers.Some of the grand department stores in japan trace their lineages back to those days, but they were thoroughly modernized when japan was opened to the surrounding world and later inspired by the emerging american department stores.The experiment in shopping has proven surprisingly resilient, lasting up until this day. Department stores in japan are the only places where you can find basement grocers stacked with senbei rice crackers, o hagi sweets and bento lunch boxes;Fashion departments that rival paris or milan;Home furnishings departments that sell handmade ceramics, fine cotton imabari towels, and japanese knives, along with international brands like wedgewood or royal copenhagen;And gourmet restaurant floors where lines at lunchtime extend around the stores.

Top that with stellar japanese customer service, and you will want to include a department store visit on your trip to tokyo.Three department stores are staples of japanese shopping:Mitsukoshi, isetan, and takashimaya. The grand old dame of the japanese department stores is mitsukoshi, a chain with roots going back to 1683, when the owners got the idea that instead of going from door to door they would open a store where they could show and sell goods.The mitsukoshi department store in the nihonbashi district, north of ginza, was in the center of the commercial district when it was opened, and has remained in the same location ever since.It is one of the few department stores in the world that has a subway station named after it.Today, mitsukoshi has stores in several of the shopping capitals of the world, but it is still the japanese presence that is the mainstay of the chain.Gift givers who want to show off their status buy presents at mitsukoshi. The history and the name is what puts mitsukoshi apart from other japanese department stores, which have turned into very similar shopping centers over the decades' long japanese recession.

During the"Bubble years"They could sell anything, but customers keep a tighter grip about their wallets now, and department stores have to use international brands to attract customers. The feel of the main mitsukoshi store has not changed since its opening after the war.Here, there are still elevator girls, dressed in cute uniforms, pressing the buttons.Store clerks bow as you enter the different departments, and greet you with a sincere"Irrashaimase. " But do not expect much help from them if you do not speak japanese.They are likely to call the information desk, where international shoppers still can get help in a number of foreign languages.As the influx of chinese shoppers, who were expected to lift cheap louis vuitton uk the japanese economy, has drained to a trickle in the wake of territorial disputes over the senkaku islands, which both japan and china claim their own, other international shoppers have again become more than welcome.The two top floors, selling kitchen goods and japanese furnishings, is the best for traditional japanese goods.Do not expect any bargains from mitsukoshi. Ginza may be the home of international brands and upscale stores, but the main isetan store is in shinjuku, and has been in the same location since the firm was founded in the 1880s.Isetan and mitsukoshi went through a shotgun wedding with their merger in 2007, but not many of the stores of either chain have closed, and isetan remains a palace for brand lovers.Like mitsukoshi, you'll find the international brands, a makeup department on the first floor, small store in stores selling handbags and women's clothing, and the same upscale in store boutiques from armani, boss, and others.

But isetan is spread out over several interconnected buildings(There is a separate building for men's fashion), and was recently renovated.The new design not only makes the store in stores more accessible, it added an place for events. Like all japanese department stores, the basement of isetan is dedicated to food, but apart from international delicacies and one of the best vegetable louis vuitton uk store departments anywhere in tokyo, the basement looks more like a market than a department store.Small store stalls sell traditional japanese as well as western sweets, including chocolate from france and switzerland.The wine department has both international wines and wines produced in japan, not widely known as a wine country unfairly. Apart from the international foods and sweets, there are several sections dedicated to bento, the japanese lunch boxes.Here, you'll find everything from high quality sushi to indian curry and italian pasta.During rush hour, the hungry visitor can make a meal from the samples offered by the smiling store clerks, but the stores lately have become more discerning as to whom they offer samples.In the 1980s, it may have been possible to feed yourself in the basement of the department stores of tokyo, but not today.If you are hungry, you have to go to the top floor of isetan, dedicated to restaurants, like most department stores in japan.

The restaurant floor is even better in the third major chain, takashimaya.Where both mitsukoshi and isetan are building on their history, takashimaya founded in 1829 opened a completely new flagship store south of shinjuku railway station.This has made takashimaya both more spacious and modern than its competitors' flagship stores.But it is no less upscale.The department store boasts brands such louis vuitton which remains incredibly popular in japan hermes and coach, with the dark wooden furnishings adding to the somber, luxurious feel.Different from other department stores in japan, takashimaya also does not have attendants everywhere, and the information desk is smaller, with limited english service.But the top floor of the store, selling kitchen goods and japanese furniture and clothes, is where you can occasionally find bargains.It is better than the kitchen department of the famous diy store tokyu hands, with which it shares the building.But takashimaya has a smaller museum and event space something all japanese department stores have, often at the top floor.

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