Straight from the Manufacturer:
the Chabanel Area

by Sandra Phillips

Montreal has the heart of the Canadian garment industry north of the downtown core. The area, named after its main street is known as "Chabanel" and encompasses buildings chock full of manufacturers, importers, agents, buyers and deals.

The district is very much open to the public on Saturday mornings from around 9 am to 1 pm, though there are a few floors in a few buildings that are open during the week.

In terms of price and style fashion, a loose rule of thumb is that the higher the address number of the building, the more expensive the garment and the more of a fashion statement. For those of you who do not enjoy perusing warehouses and racks, head for 555 Chabanel and enjoy a beautiful mall-like mezzanine concourse.

Eleven Simple Tips to Guide You

1. Bring cash and expect no returns.

2. Dress for ease of try-ons. The dressing room may be a bathroom, behind a curtain, communal or in an office.

3. Look for the flyers handed out by the teenagers in the lobbies or posted on the doors and walls. These give you an indication of some of the businesses that are open that day. Don't be shy about asking if any others are open: often one spot will recommend another, or people in elevators will offer suggestions.

4. Take the elevator to the top floor and work your way down by the staircases, since the elevators can get mighty busy mid-morning.

5. Prices may not be posted or may be indicated by handwritten signs. Be prepared to bargain, especially if you are buying more than one item in a place. If you are not comfortable doing this, don't worry Ð the prices are good enough or all these people would not be going out of their way to shop up here.

6.Check out the entire showroom before zooming in on one rack, as often parts of a set may be separated. Make sure tops and bottoms are of the same dye lot.

7. Go by eye where size is concerned. Sizes may be inconsistently marked, especially if it is a sample (sometimes cut a bit larger) or a second. Try it on to be sure.

8. Don't be put off by a ripped seam, since the repair is often much less than the money you are saving. Do, however, check carefully for snaps that snap, cuffs that are the right side around, centred collars, working zippers, holes in knits, an even wale in corduroys, etc. With a practised eye, you should be able to run over a garment in 20 seconds.

9. Be prepared to buy immediately if something strikes you. Successful shopping is partly luck. Pounce on a find before someone else does. The item probably will not be there if you go back for it.

10. Nothing much is open in January and July.

11. It may seem like everyone knows where they're going except you, but it's just that they've been up there before and know the lay of the land. Relax, ask questions, and have fun in this secret club.