Image via Complex Original
We all go through it. Running from store to store. Sitting outside the changing room, just waiting to throw on that fake "Wow, that looks amazing" look. It's scientifically proven that shopping with our significant other can lead to significant brain damage*. Especially when there is nothing for us guys to actually get behind for ourselves. So, what do we do when we know our girl's gonna go H.A.M. as soon as she walks out of the house? "I gotta get some work done."
Or, "You know your (insert girlfriend) can help you out more than I can."
Or, "My grandma wanted to help me move some of her furniture around."
But here's the thing: The amount of dope stores your girl checks out on a regular basis that will also whet your sartorial whistle is staggering. The same shops you only pictures as the haute couture capital for your lady may have the luxe additions both you and your lady can appreciate. So next time bae wants to drop coin on some new duds, tell her your schedule magically cleared up so you can both make a visit to 10 Stores Your Girl Shops at That Also Carries Dope Men's Stuff.
*May or may not be true.
What you and your girl can walk out with: The most swag and possibly a second mortgage payment.
You and your girl are one hell of a fashionable power couple, obvs. Shopping at La Garçonne together just solidifies that y'all have swagu dripping off of your fire outfits. The fact that you can go to one place and cop Maison Martin Margiela, Acne Studios, Rick Owens, and other powerful co-gender lines together, means you send her off to look at Proenza Schouler while you check out the latest Junya Watanabe. Combine like Voltron out of that place to complete the best. Date. Trip. Ever.
What you and your girl can walk out with: Matching struggle versions of high-end couture and unabashed attitudes.
It's fine that your girl can't shop at the Barney's or Bergdorfs of the world because, let's face it, not many can on a regular basis. So, in the name of being realistic, going to Zara and snatching up some pieces that can serve questionable replacements for those high-end items is perfectly acceptable. Anyone who tells you different is just wrong. And guess what? They have the same swaggerjacked fire—albeit with questionable quality—as those designer men's pieces you aren't allowed to touch because you look like a piece of garbage. Zara won't turn you down, though.
What you and your girl can walk out with: Your fill of premium department store changing room waits while you empty your wallet on classic menswear.
Saks Fifth Avenue is one of those iconic shopping destinations every woman dreams of blowing money fast at. But those Christian Louoboutin red bottoms and Fendi purses are just an arm's length away from some menswear giants like Comme des Garçons, A.P.C., and ISAIA. Those days of sitting by the changing room for an hour while you catch up on your Instagram feed are over, son.
What you and your girl can walk out with: All black everything.
You and your girl visit FORWARD by Elyse Walker with enormous hangovers after a long ass night of drinking copious amounts of Düsse in L.A. Sunglasses and Advil offer a bit of relief as you step in the joint fully ready to drop stacks for your girls all black wardrobe choices, but this shop is super conducive to your deep, dark style too. Rick Owens, Kris Van Assche, and Public School completely cure your hangover and you are ready to get fucked up again but, like, with clothes instead of Molly water. And you always have the dope ass online shop if you and your girl “literally cannot even” today and don't want to leave the crib.
What you and your girl can walk out with: Ballin' on a budget and saving on pieces you both wanted six months ago.
YOOX is likely your gal's go-to spot for pieces she wanted last season, but couldn't justify the coin at that point. She basically put you on to this joint because every designer brand under the sun is available at your fingertips, too. Now, once you become savvy to the store's massive inventory, you can rock high-end names without having to live on Ramen and only allowing guests to go No. 1 in the potty due to plumbing issues too expensive to fix. The only thing about YOOX is that you have to wait until the gear is off-season to cop. But if you're truly about style and not hype, then your love for truly grail items won't diminish with a short amount of time.
What you and your girl can walk out with: Swag for your joint apartment, luxe attire for your next dinner date, and a sick leg workout.
Five Story NY is, well, five stories of great essentials located in the West Village of NYC. Your girl can shop for the latest Alexander Wang dress and Narcisco Rodriguez flats while you check out the Lanvin jackets and Valentino runners everyone is going ape shit over. You will also check out your calf muscles after you make the trip up and down the stairs during this shopping excursion because you'll be ripped and dipped in fine garb once your stair-heavy trip is over.
What you and your girl can walk out with: Some quality menswear you can pass down to the children you can't really afford anymore.
You have a really refined lifestyle. You enjoy caviar when it's free, but won't ever buy it. You've sat in tons of Eames chairs but you ask “what's so special about them?” when you learn their price. And your girl is bomb as fuck at dressing and just looking like a dimepiece all the time. She keeps it real with her stylebop.com account filled with luxurious items, but knows you have an appreciation for fine clothing as well. So she decides to let loose on her Black AmEx and buy you some Balmain and 3.1 Phillip Lim because she knows you enjoy fine things, you just won't pay for it.
What you and your girl can walk out with: Quite possibly the exact same unisex outfit.
You and your lady are pretty free-spirited. You've brought someone or something else into the bedroom because, whatever, it's just sex. And you both enjoy a nice blouse from time to time. But you still prefer to live a life with pants and a top that does not expose your stomach. So when bae decides to head to Opening Ceremony to take a look at the 232 inch wedges, the great selection of classic to quirky menswear satiates your need for alpha-ness. Or alphet-ness.
What you and your girl can walk out with: Anything that's hot at the moment and Carpal Tunnel Syndrome.
Many a night have been spent with Netflix aimlessly playing in the background as you and your boo thang e-shop 'til you e-drop online. You have your favorite online spots to visit, and she has hers. But guess what, idiot? You forgot your charger at home and your girl's shopping habits are getting in the way of you stealing her laptop and heading straight to Coptown. Lucky for you, her shopping on Farfetch, which grabs from some of the top independent women's and men's boutiques, means you can purchase to your heart's delight alongside her. It's the kind of e-commerce that can really ignite a man and a woman 'til death do you pants.
What you and your girl can walk out with: New luxe gear for you and bae on the go and an excuse not to look up when someone is talking to you.
It's tough as shit to try and online shop from your phone, yet you and your ol' ball and chain squint your eyes as you're walking down the street trying to cop on the move anyways. She's up on the latest apps like you are menu items at Shake Shack, so when she pops open the new mobile marketplace app Spring, which allows her to shop in an Instagram-like format, she's secretly trying to stunt on you. Don't let her do that. Return her stunt 100 yards and cop some new Public School or Everlane without even breaking your stride.
