location: 54 St.Viateur
phone number:514.271.2129
hours:Mon closed; Tues & Weds noon-6pm; Thurs & Fri noon-8pm; Sat & Sun 11am-6pm
payment methods:cash, interac, Visa
directions: get of at Place-des-Art metro, then take the 80 bus (535 during rush hour) north on Parc, get off at St.Viateur and walk east for a couple blocks, its on the corner of Clark. You can also walk from Laurier Metro, go west until you come to St. Laurent, turn north, then west again on St. Viateur.

In the heart of Mile-End and not far away for its sister store, Local 23, General 54 is one third quality vintage and two thirds new clothing. Featured designers include Glasgow, Dfly, Fairyesque, Viola Blanca, Anastasia Lomonova, Roadkill, and men’s clothing designer Paul Graham. Aside from clothing (that ranges from sizes two to sixteen), you will also find jewellery, hats, shoes, necktie accessories, pins, bags, coats, boots, and much more.

Prices range from $4 to about a hundred (the vintage clothes being much more affordable). Handmade clothing is often more expensive - and rightfully so - which makes $89 for a skirt seem like a pretty good deal. So, here’s a tip: buy the designed $89 skirt that you really like and match it with less expensive vintage clothes and accessories.

Oh! And don’t worry about your boyfriend waiting for hours while you’re in the dressing room, because General 54 is now an art gallery as well, offering their walls to new local artists every month.

profile by Magali Ould
photography by Heather Utah