We The People

For someone who plays out a decent portion of my life in the digital world (Instagram or it didn’t happen yo) I’m a pretty tactile kind of girl. I stroke the fabric of jumper I’m into. Inspect the pastries I’m eyeing up at close range. Give the haul of plants I’m about to bring home a gentle pat to check they are in good health.

Don’t get me wrong – I’m a definitely a click-of-a-button kid. After all, where would anyone of us be without Uber, Airbnb or ahem, Deliveroo. But there’s no denying that ultimately there’s nothing better (or more real) than straight up bricks and mortar and genuine face to face time.

I recently went back to Melbourne, a city I will forever love – if only for it’s extreme levels of caffeine related snobbery – to check out their newest shopping destination, Eastland. And like all things Australian, they are well ahead of the game. A collection of stores for sure, but somehow they have managed to side-step all the usual shopping-related expectations and bring together what essentially feels like a little (or to be fair – somewhat large) village.

The coffee was strong. Our lunch spot brewed their own pale ale on site. I perused (read: bought) some of the coolest new Australian designers, like this excessively-sleeved blouse from Acler. We bought pastries which may or may not rival my local boulangerie back in Paris. There was plenty of foliage and a whole lot of natural light. To cut to the chase, Eastland has managed to re-invent the wheel. Or at least the shopping destination. Ten out of ten Melbourne, I salute you.

Created in collaboration with Eastland