Alice in targetland

I bought December's Glamour issue because Selena Gomez is on the cover. About time she split from that Bieber kid. Now, date a Dave Navarro-type please! :)

Anyways, I noticed this bike with a Boo-internet-sensation-look-alike on the basket.
I'm all for mainstream media of bicycles, always have been. $500 dollars for single speed seems a little high, but that is the maturing adult in me talking.

Sure it's cute but there are plenty of bikes like Globe, Gary Fisher Simple Simple City or Public Etc. around the same price range. I just don't approve that people should be spending that much for a single/cruiser style bike, specially if they aren't very familiar with better parts or what a bike can be worth in the long run. Anyways..

Snapped a couple of quick shots with my phone of the bike which is available later in December, in Target+Neiman Marcus.

What do you think of the wallpaperesque-style frame, I do think is bubblegum-cute, but is it worth the price?
On similar wallpaper decoration note, this is hairy frame quite interesting. Looks like this bike frame has hit puberty: Sebastian Koseda | World naked bike ride.

I've known of Stacey Bendet +her line Alice+Olivia from reading about fashion +following what women designers do around the clothing, trending world. Earlier this month a retail store opened on Fillmore store but have not been in the store as it is outside my budget, but I do enjoy seeing their displays from time to time on my way to the Clay theatre [next door].


The first Target in San Francisco opened at the Metreon downtown recently +it seems to be a hit, people seem to love it.
The city is flooded with ads +many of them display bikes. It could be very possible that the quality of bikes sold remains parallel to the rather mediocre quality of bicycles sold at big-box stores, which is unfortunate for most people that are fresh to the idea and/or a 1st-time bike buyer.

/"Target is coming to the Metreon" taken from Market st.

While visiting stores, I tend to ask the staff directly whether or not they provide bicycle parking spaces, doesn't make much sense to cater to people who ride bikes but when does marketing make any sense?
Is there bike parking available in the Metreon area perhaps? I'm not sure about that.

If Target has ads that strongly display bikes, what does that mean to people that identify themselves with them?

[x] That they sell bikes?
[x] They cater to cyclists, people on bikes?
[x] Provide safe bike parking in their location? ← which would be very great.
[x] Bikes are the next boobs. They sell.

I do get a mixed message from an ad from Target with a bike +I tend to ignore ads, but I'm very visual. Red is just pretty hard to ignore. 90% of me thinks there is valet/indoor bike parking available, but that's my optimist wishful thinking. Curious I reported from the Westfield mall about their indoor basement parking [Greetings from the mall, 2010] but it turned out that it is only available for the mall staff, which at the time that was not specified to me. So that leaves very little safe bike parking options.

I find the safe parking concerns rather frustrating +a repeated issue with shoppers on bikes headed downtown.
Have you had similar feelings about the parking issue?
What/How do you come up with a solution or alternative, do your shopping elsewhere? Take Muni or train instead?

Last time I reported bike parking issues [ignored shoppers, 2009] as an open letter to the Mission's Best Buy –well, I sure hope somehow that was connected– resulted in new shiny red bike racks as reported by long-time reader Peter :) he even sent in some fotos [el big brother, 2010].

Recently Adrienne commented on Facebook about the lack of bike racks in a newly opened Whole Foods +things started rolling, asides doesn't hurt to know who to complain/formally contact here in town. Rock-star parketinas Calitexican +MaryKay always put the word out on which events/venues will have the SF Bike Coalition valet parking.


/Yeah, come all. But park where?

Old Navy is apparently doing a similar take on their advertising. I doubt they sell bikes or utilitarian accessories, I mean other than fleece items, scarves or hats which are nice to have. As far as I know there isn't public parking for either cars or bikes at their store, please do correct me if I'm wrong.
Again, that would be ideal/awesome for consumers.


/Photo by Richard Masoner | cyclelicio.us
The Gap located in the old Woolworth building at Powell+Market, did a collaboration with Public bikes or if they still do that from time to time but the bikes were available for purchase. Their headquarters are here in the city +they seem to do plenty of pop-ins/pop up stores throughout town.

And this just started with a Glamour magazine impulsive purchase from a long line at the grocery store, raising plenty of questions within my observer +a rather apathetic consumer eye.

/As my entire blog, this post is certainly not sponsored.
xxom