Online T-shirt retailer Threadless has announced it will be opening its first brick-and-mortar retail store in its hometown of Chicago next month. The store will open its doors on Friday, September 14, and will celebrate the launch with two free concerts that night (one all ages, one over 18).
Threadless has been hailed for its innovative business model, which it calls an "ongoing T-shirt design competition." Creatively inclined fans can submit their own T-shirt design ideas, and winning selections can rake in $2,000 in cash for the designer. There are plenty of quirky features, too--if you submit a photo of yourself wearing a Threadless T-shirt, for example, you earn a discount on your next one.
Threadless' in-house artist works on the store's 'mashup window paintings.'
(Credit: Threadless)The company, which was started in 2000, has received more than 60,000 submissions and boasts more than 300,000 members.
"Sneak peeks" of the new Threadless store have been appearing on the company's news blog throughout the summer. They're clearly going for the same kind of tactics that made their Web site famous: in lieu of shopping bags, the store will use recycled cloth bags that can be returned to the store in exchange for a $5 discount; the store will also feature frequently changing artwork to match its current T-shirt designs.
"Nerds!"
--Ogre, Revenge of the Nerds
Since the dawn of time (or at least the 1980s), avid computer users have been ridiculed for lacking social skills and an ability to party.
But anyone who has seen the documentary Real Genius or seen the schools featured on this list of top college pranks knows otherwise.
Nerds do party. They just party efficiently. That's why these drink-deal locators exist: to help us find cheap drinks between here and the nearest library.
Nationwide sites
UnThirsty: This is a Google Maps mashup that lets you search for happy hours, food specials, and drink specials in real time. It also tells you which places have outdoor seating and Wi-Fi hot spots.
MappyHour: Here is another Google Maps mashup, which lists drink specials and happy hour info for bars across the United States.
Regional sites
DrinkDeal.com: A bar-special finder for New York City and Brooklyn. I tried searching for local specials in San Francisco, but it didn't work out so well.
DrinkGuru: Has a lot of information for Washington D.C. bars, and it appears to be expanding to include other big cities as well.
CheaperDrinker.com: Helping Minnesota's Minneapolis, St. Paul, Duluth, and St. Cloud areas stay warm through creative uses of Jagermeister specials.
Thrifty Hipster: Another fine resource for Minnesotans, especially in the Minneapolis-St. Paul area.
Canadian sites
The Ontario Beer Hunter: For our friends up north, a site that gives icon-based locations for all beer stores, wine retailers, and independent microbreweries throughout Ontario.
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