una pregunta

raggedyanne · 12-10-2006, 11:17 PM

Why is it that people think that as soon as they become "goth" Hottopic isn't cool anymore? Personally I think it has some nice stuff, specially sense most towns are not exactly "gothlands" as my friend calls it. & this is sorta kinda maybe fashion related and not really whining (hopefully)

Minyaliel · 12-11-2006, 12:54 AM

I'd say it's fashion- related whining. Ah well. I have never been into a Hot Topic shop, mainly because there are none here in Norway, so I'm not really qualified to speak about it, I guess. But personally, I'd rather buy something second- hand and then do some DIY magic with it than buying something that's been mass- produced. There's something about self- made things that you're sure that no one else has that I find quite satisfying.

chelseagirl · 12-11-2006, 06:47 AM

It's true, Hot Topic does have some good stuff occasionally, but it also overly commercializes it, thus, in a way, ends up making a mockery out of it, IMO.

c130 · 12-11-2006, 07:40 AM

We don't have Hot Topic here... or if we do, I've never seen one. We do have some shops that I'd imagine are very similar to HT though, where you can go in and buy ready-to-wear gothy clothes. They do have some nice clothes sometimes, but a lot of it is cheap, commercial crap. I don't really mind the shop itself, just the pseudo-goth clothing it sells. They're handy for getting hoodies and trousers from tho; there's one in Glasgow that has a whole basement dedicated to hoodies and black trousers, where they've got over a hundred different things on sale.

Godslayer Jillian · 12-11-2006, 04:06 PM

We have addressed this question before. It's not that we hate Hot Topic in itself and that's why we don't shop there. Not shopping at Hot Topic for not being goth is like not being able to buy Calvin Klein becase he's not goth.
The problem with Hot Topic is its general market range that gets a high on its ego for shopping at such a "cool" store.
There's absolutely nothing wrong with shopping at Hot Topic. Draconysius, Badteccy, and I are witnesses that there are some awesome stuff in there.

But when a kid begins to show off his new baggy tripp pants, claiming to be gothic because even his underwear came from Hot Topic... NOW we have a problem.

Pyre · 12-11-2006, 04:13 PM

I generally dislike the store because of the lack in sense of fashion it tends to have, but sometimes they have some decent stuff in there. It's also not so much the store I dislike, but a large number of the customers there.

Mick Ignis · 12-11-2006, 04:35 PM

My local Hot Topics carry crap. For the girls, there are a lot of different goth choices (I envy the fact that girls have such a great selection). But for guys, everything is emo, hardcore, or metal. Hoodies, t-shirts with some idiotic things on the front, band shirts from bands i've never heard of, pants that are made of cheap material and have too much going on. They just don't have anything that fits my tastes. Every once in a while i'll find something cool, but it's a rarity. I guess real goths hate Hot Topic because it's a stereotype. I can't tell you how many times i've been to the mall and somebody asked me if I was on my way to that store.

They're "Hot Topic" and goth isn't really the hot topic right now.

badteccy · 12-12-2006, 06:24 AM

I love Hot Topic and I'm not ashamed to say it. Hell, I got my Siouxsie shirt thuur.

Jayden · 12-13-2006, 11:24 AM

My answer: A lot of people don't like it because they're trying to be original and believe that Hottopic is pre-packaging the style, which is supposed to be DIY. Personally I'm split on that issue. I have a separate beef with Hottopic, which is that it's owned by Gap or is otherwise a large corporate entity using us.

So, I can't say I really spend much money at Hottopic, but my girlfriend likes to go there once in a while (though she's a bigger DIY'er than me), and I have no problem stealing from it because of the reasons I stated above.

I'm not saying it's evil and bad, there's things I like about it too. Firstly, it scares the conservative right, and I endorse scaring the conservative right. Secondly, the people who work there are usually pretty cool. The third reason is probably just that, while sure, it might suck, it sucks a whole lot less than most of the other store in the mall, in my opinion.

Oh yeah, that's the last reason. A lot of the elder goths resent the "MallGoth" culture which is closely relative to Hot topic. My take on it is that, okay, yeah these are 13 year old impressionable kids walking around getting into this culture, but honestly, I think that's a lot better than some of the other cultures out there.

Elliot · 12-13-2006, 03:23 PM

I don't have anything against the store itself, but I prefer to own band t-shirts that require actually leaving your basment and going to concerts to get.

Plus, I don't dress goth in the least. But I always get comments like "Whoa, nice shirt. Did you get that at Hot Topic?".

I reply by saying that I refuse to shop there.

I don't care if other people do, though. I mean, what, are you going to label someone a poser because they shop at a store you don't like?

SKot · 12-13-2006, 05:24 PM

I occasionally buy things at Hot Topic when I find something I like. Doesn't happen often, but I usually look if I'm near one. I think the last thing I bought at Hot Topic was the latest issue of Drop Dead magazine. And a fine purchase it was, too. I've been into this goth thing since the 80s... so if buying stuff at Hot Topic makes me a poser, then Goth help us all.

That said, I've never found any clothing worth buying there apart from the odd t-shirt every once in a blue moon. Everything they have is either too tacky, too cheaply made, too expensive, or all of the above.

Luckily we happen to have a collective of shops here called The Black Market, owned and run by members of the local goth/industrial community. The clothing store there, Scarlet Garden, has a fantastic selection of goth clothing and accessories. Robot Piercing has all the acoutrements you might want for that. And I do most of my music shopping at Corrosion Records there as well. Basically, if I can buy it through them then I always will, because they need and deserve the support. The Black Market is like what Hot Topic wishes it could be when it grows up... it's the Real Deal. And the money spent there goes into the hands of local goth/industrial people that I know, not some corporate pocketbook.

--SKot

Denkzweimal · 01-19-2007, 04:16 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by c130

We don't have Hot Topic here... or if we do, I've never seen one. We do have some shops that I'd imagine are very similar to HT though, where you can go in and buy ready-to-wear gothy clothes. They do have some nice clothes sometimes, but a lot of it is cheap, commercial crap. I don't really mind the shop itself, just the pseudo-goth clothing it sells. They're handy for getting hoodies and trousers from tho; there's one in Glasgow that has a whole basement dedicated to hoodies and black trousers, where they've got over a hundred different things on sale.

Here in Portugal we don't have HT either (as far as I know) but there're also some shops that are similar.. "ready-to-wear gothy clothes"... a lot of it is expensive commercial crap... then I guess you're lucky though xD
Most of my clothes are bought here and there, in different ordinary shops, and I get great combinations that most of "self-titled-goth-girls" around here can't (as they only shop at those HT type stores, and sadly look all equal)

Still, once a girl was selling a pair of HT shoes and I thought they were great (pretty different from the shoes we can get here in portugal.. don't have much variety).. I was really surprised with the true image of HT when I read 7 or 8 posts about it..

BlackButterfly · 01-19-2007, 07:50 PM

My only problems with that store are that:

They frequently overcharge for crap that falls apart on you much too soon,

and the ones I shop at NEVER have my size in the boots I really want, so then I have to decide whether I want to go all the way to the Hot Topic on the far west side of Hell somewhere to get it, or see I can find it online.

Temptation · 01-19-2007, 09:41 PM

HT is ok, my descion goes both ways with it. I dislike it because the clothing falls apart way too easy because of so much is produced they don't bother to check it for quality. It's also very expensive, I found a jacket I liked in their and it was $70.
The reason I sort of like it because its a convenient place to buy metal merchandise, hoodies mainly. Plus, it's the only place that really sells anything moderatly good in this state. The only other store I found was called Lady Hawk's Treasures and now they only allow online orders.

Hmmm, that gives me an idea for a thread.

DarkHeartedDemoness · 01-20-2007, 07:55 AM

I can never get good, durable clothes there. I wanna be able to wear my clothes for a long time before they tear irreparably. I get the whole "pre-packaged" argument, but I can modify a shirt from there as easily as I can modify one from Target-- and chances are I can't get a Siouxsie shirt at Target. I just don't shop there because I'm not rich enough to buy expensive clothes that fall apart quickly.

BlackDahlia · 01-20-2007, 11:18 AM

I like the squishy bloody eyeball thingies they sell. ^_^

Eh, I really don't have an objection to Hot Topic...it's like a gothy Walgreens. Sometimes they have good stuff, other times it's crap.
On the other hand, I've been to Helsinki and they have a LOT of neat little shops there that HT couldn't hold a candle to.

thedoll · 01-20-2007, 09:20 PM

i love the fact that they get cheapened lip service clothes, so i dont have to worry about shipping and handling, or if it fits or not.

BlackButterfly · 01-20-2007, 11:07 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by BlackDahlia

I like the squishy bloody eyeball thingies they sell. ^_^

Those things are SO MUCH FUN!! I almost walked out of the store with one due to absentminded squishing (caught myself at the verylastmoment)...

The not-so-gross ones they sell at Walgreens are fun too (heh, I like squishin' stuff...), but they don't have that great "eeewwww" element to them.