Harwin Drive

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Harwin Drive (Hao Yun Da Dao Haoyun Dadao) ChinatownGreaterSharpStreet.jpg
Harwin Drive (好运大道 Hǎoyùn Dàdào)

Harwin Drive is a road in Houston, Texas. The Greater Houston Convention and Visitors Bureau identifies the section between U.S. Route 59 (Southwest Freeway) and Beltway 8 as being a shopping district. [1]

Houston City in Texas, United States

Houston is the most populous city in the U.S. state of Texas and the fourth most populous city in the United States, with a census-estimated population of 2.312 million in 2017. It is the most populous city in the Southern United States and on the Gulf Coast of the United States. Located in Southeast Texas near Galveston Bay and the Gulf of Mexico, it is the seat of Harris County and the principal city of the Greater Houston metropolitan area, which is the fifth most populous metropolitan statistical area (MSA) in the United States and the second most populous in Texas after the Dallas-Fort Worth MSA. With a total area of 627 square miles (1,620 km2), Houston is the eighth most expansive city in the United States. It is the largest city in the United States by total area, whose government is similarly not consolidated with that of a county or borough. Though primarily in Harris County, small portions of the city extend into Fort Bend and Montgomery counties.

Texas State of the United States of America

Texas is the second largest state in the United States by both area and population. Geographically located in the South Central region of the country, Texas shares borders with the U.S. states of Louisiana to the east, Arkansas to the northeast, Oklahoma to the north, New Mexico to the west, and the Mexican states of Chihuahua, Coahuila, Nuevo León, and Tamaulipas to the southwest, while the Gulf of Mexico is to the southeast.

U.S. Route 59 highway in the United States

U.S. Route 59 is a north–south United States highway. A latecomer to the U.S. numbered route system, US 59 is now a border-to-border route, part of NAFTA Corridor Highway System. It parallels U.S. Route 75 for nearly its entire route, never much more than 100 miles (160 km) away, until it veers southwest in Houston, Texas. Its number is out of place since US 59 is either concurrent with or entirely west of U.S. Route 71.

Contents

Harwin has many strip malls with discount shops and wholesale warehouses. [2] [3] Allison Wollam said that the street has a "bargain mile" image among Houstonians (Houston citizens). [2] The Houston Press stated that Harwin was "Houston's shadiest and quirkiest shopping hot spot." [3]

<i>Houston Press</i> newspaper in Houston founded in 1989

The Houston Press is an online newspaper published in Houston, Texas, United States. It is headquartered in the Midtown area. It was also a weekly print newspaper until November 2017.

Jenalia Moreno of the Houston Chronicle said that Harwin was "a strip known by local fashionistas as ground zero for affordable purses, clothing, shoes and jewelry." [4] Moreno also said "If you want name-brand purses, designer sunglasses or other accessories at dirt cheap prices, Houstonians know to hit shops lining Harwin Drive. Consumers buy the goods thinking they're getting a sweet deal — or just give a wink and a nod knowing the products could be fake." [5]

<i>Houston Chronicle</i> newspaper in Houston, Texas, USA

The Houston Chronicle is the largest daily newspaper in Houston, Texas, United States. As of April 2016, it is the third-largest newspaper by Sunday circulation in the United States, behind only the New York Times and Los Angeles Times. With its 1995 buy-out of long-time rival the Houston Post, the Chronicle became Houston's newspaper of record.

History

In 2005 the Houston Press ranked Harwin Drive as the "Best Mall Alternative" in its 2005 Best of Houston awards. [3] In 2010 Coach, Inc. filed lawsuits against six businesses on Harwin, accusing them of selling fake merchandise. [5]

Stores and merchandise

Businesses on Harwin Drive HarwinareaHouston.JPG
Businesses on Harwin Drive

Most of the stores on Harwin Drive are clustered together. The Houston Chronicle stated "There are no places to relax on Harwin -- no food courts, dressing rooms or restrooms. Just a string of shops owned by people from all around the world who don't mind a bit of haggling." [6] The Houston Press stated that most of the stores are operated by "often-cranky" Chinese women. [3]

Chinese Americans Ethnic group

Chinese Americans are Americans who are descendants of Chinese ancestry, which also includes American-born Chinese persons. Chinese Americans constitute one group of overseas Chinese and also a subgroup of East Asian Americans, which is a further subgroup of Asian Americans. Many Chinese Americans are immigrants along with their descendants from mainland China, Hong Kong, Macau, Taiwan, as well as from other regions that include large populations of the Chinese diaspora, especially Southeast Asia and some Western countries like Canada, the United Kingdom, Australia, New Zealand and France.

As of 2005 stores on Harwin sell fake purses that typically retailed for $30. They also sold genuine perfume that sold for half of the prices found in department stores. As of that year stores that sell East or South Asian clothing typically are closed on Tuesdays. The Chronicle said "Locals know the Harwin fake situation for bags and luggage, but ask a store employee, and they may act clueless. Designers don't appreciate the copying of their high-price items. Stores selling these bags know this and will gauge your interest before showing the goods." [6]

Department store Retail establishment; building which offers a wide range of consumer goods

A department store is a retail establishment offering a wide range of consumer goods in different product categories known as "departments". In modern major cities, the department store made a dramatic appearance in the middle of the 19th century, and permanently reshaped shopping habits, and the definition of service and luxury. Similar developments were under way in London, in Paris and in New York.

As of 2010 a Coach Inc. handbag, which may or may not be fake, would sell for $35 on Harwin, while it would sell for $150 in a department store. A fake Harwin keychain would cost $5 while a conventional keychain would cost $35. [5]

See also

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References

  1. ↑ "Harwin Drive Shopping District." Greater Houston Convention and Visitors Bureau. Retrieved on November 20, 2011.
  2. 1 2 Wollam, Allison. "Upscale retail centers charge into Harwin shopping arena." Houston Business Journal . Sunday October 17, 2004. Retrieved on November 19, 2011.
  3. 1 2 3 4 "Best Mall Alternative - 2005 Harwin Drive." Houston Press . Retrieved on November 19, 2011.
  4. ↑ Moreno, Jenalia. "SMALL BUSINESS / FASHION RETAILING / A stylish business plan / Charming Charlie's family members search world markets to find affordable accessories." Houston Chronicle . Sunday December 11, 2005. Business 5. Retrieved on November 19, 2011.
  5. 1 2 3 Moreno, Jenalia. "Purse maker cracks down on cheap imitations." Houston Chronicle . Saturday February 13, 2010. Retrieved on November 19, 2011.
  6. 1 2 "HARWIN DRIVE." Houston Chronicle . Retrieved on November 19, 2011.

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