Last Night: Shop Miami 2009 at Moore Building

Under the weight of Miami's summer heat, Gen Art once again took over the Moore Building in Miami's Design District for Shop Miami. But like everything this year, it seems 2009's edition was only a shell of its former self. That's not to say we regret awarding the event "Best...

By Jose D. Duran

June 19, 2009

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Under the weight of Miami's summer heat, Gen Art once again took over the Moore Building in Miami's Design District for Shop Miami. But like everything this year, it seems 2009's edition was only a shell of its former self. That's not to say we regret awarding the event "Best Place to Meet Single Women" in this year's Best of Miami -- it still is -- but the economy must have hit Gen Art pretty hard. The usual fashion show was scrapped and attendance was noticeably lighter.

Still, Shop Miami knows what it does best. Three floors of sample sales from local designers including Art of Shade, Ecoist, KRELwear, and "Best Trend" winner Gold Saturn had women rummaging through racks of clothing. Riptide's only complaint once again was its menswear selection, which is virtually nonexistent except for a few booths.

As we stood by the bar ordering a Kiwi Libre, 42Below Vodka's take on a Cuba Libre made with its kiwi-flavored spirit (which gave the concoction more of a banana flavor if you asked us), our bartender blurted out "There are no hot women here!"

What?

"Yeah, what's up with that?"

Suppose you can add that to our list of disapointments. Let's hope 2010 is a better year for the event.

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Jose D. Duran is associate editor of Miami New Times where he primarily oversees the arts and culture and music beats. Jose joined the New Times staff in June 2008 but has been covering Miami culture since 2005. His work has also appeared in publications likeVice, Billboard, and Spin. He’s earned numerous accolades including placing first for Weekly Newspaper Contest: Business Reporting from the Florida Press Association in 2020; placing third for the Writing: Light Feature from the Florida Press Club in 2019; and placing third in Weekly Newspaper Contest: Best Obituary from the Florida Press Association in 2015. Jose holds a bachelor's degree in journalism from the University of Florida.

Contact: Jose D. Duran

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Twitter: @jose_d_duran