AA.COM/AMERICANWAY
DECEMBER 01, 2011
17
Treasure
&
Bond,
NewYork
{
}
Shoppingmakes us
feel good. But shopping that does good at the
same time? Genius. New York’s
TREASURE&BOND
does just that. This
curated gallery/shop/neighborhood hangout carries housewares; men’s,
women’s and children’s clothing; baubles; accessories and more from
150-plus brands. Prices range from $15 for message dolls to $4,000 for
one-of-a-kindpiecesof jewelry.And thebestpart?All theafter-costprofits
godirectly tobenefit local programs that help children inneed, up toeight
different charities ayear (twoeachquarter). The store is actuallyownedby
Nordstrom, but it’s operated completely independently, just like a neigh-
borhood store should be— and that’s exactly what makes it so creative,
scrappy, and lean andmean. Created as the result of aphone call between
Vogue
editrix AnnaWintour and Nordstrom president of merchandising
Pete Nordstrom, how can it not be, well, a treasure?
350WestBroadway,
(646)669-9049,www.treasureandbond.com
SHOPWE LOVE
{ HOL IDAY }
WhatWomenWant
{
}
A
sanymanwill tell
you,buyinggifts for
anywoman inhis life
—be ithiswife,mother,girl-
friend,daughterorsister—can
beatrickyproposition. “I’ve
hadtheproblemmanytimes
whereIwantedtobethought-
ful, spentthetime,butI just
wasn’tsureexactlywhattoget
her,”saysAnkurJain,a former
private-wealthmanager in
NewYorkwhosteppedupto
theplate forhis fellowmenthis
Augustwhenhe launched
Gift
SideStory
(
story.com).Usinganalgorithm
similartoPandora’s, thesite
actsasanautomatedconcierge
thatanalyzesvariousdetails
aboutyour lady’sstyle(glam
girlorbohemian?),home
decor(modernvs. traditional),
techpreferences(iPhone?
BlackBerry?)andpersonality
(blinged-outdivaorpantsuited
executive)tocullninegift
options—threespecificto
herandsixmorethatsimilar
women liked—sourcedby
directorofmerchandisingJe
Jones,a20-yearveteranof the
fashionwholesale industry.
Thesitecreatesaboutique
feelby featuringsmall-scale
artisansand indiedesigners.
Translation:handbag-like
laptopcases fromBrooklyn’s
Kempton&Darrowand jew-
elry fromLosAngeles–based
designerVanessaMooney.And
allproductsareaccessibleby
photoandvideo. “Womenwill
beawareof thesebrands,but
mostguyswon’t,”saysJain.
Ontheochancetherecipient
doesn’t likethegiftyouchoose
forher,youcanreturn it(free!)
within10days.Thesiteplans
toaddspecial-occasiongifts
aswellas implementa feature
thatwillpreventtwowomen in
thesamereferralnetwork from
receivingthesamegift.
“Whata lotofgiftingsites
do istrytobeeverythingto
everybody,”saysJain. “Our
callingcard ishelpingguysfind
gifts forwomen.We’retrying
tobethewingman forguys, so
theycancontinue looking like
ahero.”
AWReaderExclusive!
Receivea$20 credit towardaGift SideStorypurchasewhenyouenter
“AAmag” at checkout. Offer good throughMarch31, 2012.
