The most surprising NON Fur city ??

[mailonfurs]

OK, as a mirror post, I am asking if you know any cities where they have one or more of these elements, and still a few furs, and extremely few or none fur stores :

 

1. maybe wealthy citizens

2. Definately cold weather

3. Fashion touch (not a village e.g. in the southest part of Texas - not that I have anything against Texas that I've never visitied)

4. Any other reasons that I cannot think of right now which indicate that fur should prevail but it doesn't...

 

Not that I am seriously thinking of opening a franchise store but it would be great to know where there are any open fur market opportunities

[Guest]

In Texas (especialy in Houston where Im at) we have a lot of fur weariers here durring late oct to jan,.

[FrBrGr]

I have to say that I am really surprised that Pittsburgh, in Pennsylvania, USA doesn't have any more fur than it does. The days of Pittsburgh being a "hard hat" city; i.e., a smokey, industrialized steel-producing area, have long since past. Pittsburgh has gotten to be more of a techno-city, with more and more professional transplants. Neighborhoods and shopping areas have gotten progressively upscale, but the number of fur salons and stores has diminished. We lost three major furriers in downtown Pittsburgh in the early-to-mid 90's, as well as a very large fur salon in the most prominent department store in the City. Birger Christensen has a presence here, but not a store, Maximillian is still at Saks Fifth Avenue, Canadian Fur Company is still in town, as is Carl Herrmann Furs, but that's it! Go figure! It's not that cold in Pittsburgh, but from late November through mid-March, it's certainly cold enough for people to enjoy their furs! IMHO, there is room for another furrier in Pittsburgh, especially one that would cater to the young professional.

[fur_babe]

I think there are a lot of towns or cities that could support a furrier. I think FrBrGr has touched the magic button. It is called 'caters'. Many of the outlets today are dominated by ex used car salepeope, whose only interest is what can I sell you right now and don't have the slightest idea of what they are trying to sell. Don't bother me if you want me to show you what we have available.

 

I don't like being this negative, but unfortunately I am seeing more and more of this attitude by the people involved in selling. It goes beyond selling furs and extends into many areas of sales. I have no data to supprt this and it is only my opinion.

[Patience]

You said it, Carol. The top tier retailers are snotty if they don't know you and the lower tier retailers are ignorant. The old saying "if you don't know furs, know your furrier" is worthless because the "furriers" don't know anything either.

 

Honestly, and it's very difficult to get good help around the house too. What is the world coming to?

 

Patience

[ArgentFox]

Interesting mirror thread. I haven't been there, ever, but I've read that Minneapolis/St. Paul is not a big fur city, despite its relative affluence and its climate. I'd be interested to hear from others who have actually been there.

[JGalanos]

I'd be interested to hear from others who have actually been there.

 

Resurrecting an ancient post ... Having just returned from the Twin Cities, I thought I'd chime in.

 

First ... It was freakin' cold!!! At noon Saturday it was -4 F and windy.

 

Things started off on a high note ... I arrived in town Friday night and hit Mall of America. As I was heading into Bloomingdale's an attractive middle aged woman was walking out wearing a full length golden island fox coat! But it was pretty much downhill from there. Over the course of the weekend I saw several "average" mink coats and jackets and one "superior" mink stroller (really, really beautiful). Given that the wind chill Saturday night was ~20 below zero, I was surprised there weren't more furs at the theater.

 

It was so cold Saturday it made my feet hurt ... But the rest of fur clad me was wonderfully warm. Personally, I set a new record -- Wearing three different furs to three different events in a single day (f/l coyote Saturday morning, f/l fisher Saturday afternoon, f/l crystal fox Saturday night).

 

I think there's another (recent) thread running encouraging guys to wear their furs. I heartily concur. You really have to wear your furs to truly appreciate them. Not only was I luxuriously warm Saturday ... But I had the pleasure of seeing myself in "action" in fur. When I exited the Nicollet Mall Macy's (downtown) at noon I walked by several full length mirrors and caught a glance of me in my coyote coat and that night when riding the (what looked like a three story!) down escalator at the incredible Guthrie Theater I caught my reflection (swathed in ankle length crystal fox) in a reflective panel. My immediate reaction both times was "Wow -- What a great coat!" and a second later "Oh, that's me!".

[Guest]

Bend, OR

 

Elevation 3,625 ft.

 

The wealthiest per capita income in America.

 

Very cold and dry in winter and snows frequently.

 

Fur???? Zero.

 

Furriers??? Zero

 

Not even a fur parka that I've seen.

 

 

OFF

[justfurme]

seattle washington

no fur salons,

a couple of retired furriers,

4.5 million people

very few furs seen

extremly wealthy city

2nd largest furexchange in the states

[paul2809]

its been cold enough here in waco, texas for me to wear my mahogony mink jacket............

[furcoatman]

first off, i wish i knew jgalanos was in my city. darn, a chance to meet a compatriate and explore the city in furs.

 

minneapolis is definitely the winner. i live there and it amazes me how i am one of a very few people who wears their furs every day i can. although it really has to be under 30 f all day for me to want to wear my fox jacket.

 

minnesotans are so mild mannered and ridiculously humble that they may buy the furs, but NEVER wear them. what a bummer. it is better in the suburbs, but downtown is just a disappointment.

 

when my g/f and i ride the bus, our seat is like the furry epicenter of the world! but it would be so much better to be lost in a crowd of fur lovers.

 

more on this subject later!

 

good luck with the outage and transfer!!

[WinnipegFur]

Its been in the minus 40s here with the windchill for the past 10 days or so, and besides me, all Ive seen is 2 coats.. 1 crude looking coyote jacket, nice fox hat though, and a beaver with large fox collar (couldn't see the rest of the coat as the woman was in the car beside me) but thats all Ive seen!! And Ive been lookin!!!

[JGalanos]

I was in Chicago last weekend and will be there again this weekend. I could not help but compare/contrast the fur scene in Minneapolis versus Chicago. When I was in Minneapolis the 3rd weekend of January it was windy and below O F all day Saturday and below 10 F all day Sunday -- Purt durn cold. And yet I only saw ~20 furs from the time I arrived Friday night until I left town late Sunday afternoon (and only one of them was truly memorable). In contrast, this past Saturday in Chicago the temperature was ~32 F and I saw dozens of furs. My favorites included a really nice men's chinchilla dyed rex rabbit lined leather jacket (worn fur side out) and an exquisite full length mahogany mink coat -- Plus the three ladies I saw exiting the rest room at Neiman Marcus (where I saw the mahogany mink), each of them carrying a different color full length mink coat.

 

It kinda blew my mind. While 30 F at lunch is cold ... -4 F at lunch is "My God, my God, Why hast thou forsaken me?" I was incredibly warm in my furs (except for the exposed extremities!) in subzero temps ... I can't imagine braving that wind in a cloth coat.

 

I'm going to be going to the theatre this weekend in Chicago. It will be interesting to compare the quantity and quality of furs there (temp ~+28 F) versus the (lack of) furs at the Guthrie Theatre two weeks ago (temp ~-10 F).

[White Fox]

Indeed, the theater is one of the best places that I have found to see furs. The other is if you know a work place with many secretaries, if you are there at end of work day, you see them as well in great numbers.

 

What great information!

 

W

[JGalanos]

The men and women of Chicago did not let me down this past weekend. Even though it was a relatively balmy (after the past few weeks) 34 F there were furs everywhere -- Beaver, sheared beaver, American raccoon, Asiatic raccoon, red fox, mahogany mink, ranch mink, demi-buff mink, otter, and shearling (plus me in fisher!). Favorite sitings included a gentleman in full length otter (with matching hat), a lady in an awesome floor length mahogany mink coat, and a lady in an unbelievably beautiful demi-buff mink coat with stunning scalloped trim. I'm not usually a fan of combination furs, but a lady at the theatre wore a beautiful ranch mink coat in a nice sculpted design with dyed to match fox collar and sleeves that I had difficulty taking my eyes off of. All in all, a very furry (and un-twin-cities-like) weekend.

[Joe]

Philly has surprised me with fewer fur sightings than I remember when I used to visit here five to ten years ago. I've only seen one full-length fox coat this season, no f/l sables as in New York, but believe it or not the most furs are on 20- and 30-somethings going to the clubs at night. WF's right, most of the furs in one place are at the Kimmel Center or the rest of the theaters on the Ave of the Arts...or after charity functions. Even then, though, mostly traditional dark minks or sheared furs are the norm. I wouldn't really feel comfortable wearing my over-the-top black fox hooded parka, or even my 7/8 coyote walking around my city. Big fur hats, however, and the ubiquitous trim pieces attached to everyone's winter coat this year are everywhere. Fur boots, especially after that rap song with the line "Apple Bottom jeans, boots with the furrrr"... are common (and slightly painful to see covered in dirty snow or mud).

 

My favorite fur cities and towns:

 

1. New York, New York

2. Chicago, Illinois

3. Rome, Italy

4. Milan, Italy

5. Florence, Italy

6. Venice, Italy

7. Geneva, Switzerland

8. Cape May, New Jersey

9. Banff, Alberta, Canada

10. Montreal, Quebec, Canada

 

 

 

 

ciaociao

[JGalanos]

Cape May, NJ? Surprising. I was in Atlantic City last month and I saw a few furs in the 30 degree weather, but nothing to write home about.

 

I concur re: the prevalence of fur trim. I saw some incredible coats and jackets Saturday -- It felt like I had entered a time machine and it was "Yesterday Once More" ...

Those were such furry times

And not so long ago

How I wondered where they’d gone

But they’re back again

Just like a long lost friend

All the furs I loved so well

 

There were HUGE face framing fur collars and fur cuffs adorning cloth coats and jackets -- Almost jaw dropping silver and black fox trims were fairly common sights.

 

Every furry thing-a-ling-a-ling

That they’re starting to wear’s

So fine

 

[Worker 11811]

My favorite fur cities and towns:

 

1. New York, New York

2. Chicago, Illinois

3. Rome, Italy

4. Milan, Italy

5. Florence, Italy

6. Venice, Italy

7. Geneva, Switzerland

8. Cape May, New Jersey

9. Banff, Alberta, Canada

10. Montreal, Quebec, Canada

 

I just like saying that over and over again!

 

Banff! Banff! Banff!

 

Simple pleasures...

[Joe]

Yeah, Cape May was a huge surprise. This year the furs were more sparse, but on the right weekend during the Christmas (now called "Holiday") festivities the furs come out. This year the central pedestrian area is under restoration and renovation, but next year it should be in top form.

 

Banff and the ski area of Lake Louise attract a lot of moneyed visitors from Japan as well as Canada...I wouldn't be surprised if the Russians start flying "east" when they tire of St. Moritz. I saw more furs in a week there than in Switzerland! There aren't really the sables and chinchillas and blatantly over-the-top furs like Europe, but it was still grand.

 

One place I want to get to is Cortina d'Ampezzo in Italy. It was featured in the 1981 Bond movie 'For Your Eyes Only'. I hear there was once a run on the furriers there when they ran out of mink... and I also hear the furs still abound.

 

Then there's Cheltenham races...

 

J.

[ReFur]

first off, i wish i knew jgalanos was in my city. darn, a chance to meet a compatriot and explore the city in furs.

 

JG,

 

Seek this man out!! He and Carol (FurBabe) have forgotten more about fur than most of us know!!

 

I am hoping to meet with Sableman, in Atlanta soon. So far I have only meet my dear friend White Fox in person several times and once met FurLoverinFL for lunch. What a wonderful experience this was. It is wonderful to be around others that understand the beauty and magic of furs.

 

Yes, you do need to have caution in meeting people from the Internet. But, that is true about stranger in a Mall!! Especially the Mall!!

 

Linda

[davethediplomat]

I know it's an old thread but how is Anchorage or just even Minnesota in general especially Duluth ?

[paul2809]

And there are alot of fur wearers here to in Kerrville Tx... 45minutes west of San Antonio, Tx..

Ive seen reall and faux fur coats to..

[Panther10]

I don't think our members seem to understand the point of this thread. We're supposed to be listing cities where fur is either uncommon or nonexistent. Kostas isn't looking for fur hot spots, he's looking for NON fur cities.