Dare

I went through a phase in my first year of Brisbane when I couldn’t stop buying shoes. I think it was the shock of being freed from a coastal town with limited stock and released into a city where shopping possibilities were endless.
When I’d blown all of my money at Joanne Mercer and Wittners, Dare provided a more inexpensive alternative for shoes that were still trendy, but a lot cheaper. (Although the shoes are of a good quality, don’t expect them to last years.)
There’s a huge selection of flats, heels, pumps, wedges, and sandals here. It’s a tiny store and you’ll often see hoards of women packed in there at once, as well as flocks of people browsing the racks inside, but it’s worth pushing your way through to have a browse. If you’re a fan of I Heart Billy footwear, you’ll be pleased to find Dare stocks this brand by the shelf-​full.

It’s easy to see why this place is pretty much always packed. Even when I was of school age, I used to think that the price of shoes in here was a massive steal, and that’s saying something for a poor 17 year old.
When I was about 18, I got a pair of shoes from Dare that I kept for far too long; long after they had passed their expiration date and started looking worn and frayed. They were a pair of black heels with white polka dots and a big white bow on front. I loved them. They may not have been the greatest quality but they were the first pair of heels I truly loved and cherished. Thus, an obsession was born.
Whether it’s sale time or not, Dare is always massively packed and so many people are trying to squeeze their way around the shop trying on this pair of heels or that pair of wedges or those flats. The point is, you can get some pretty decent and sometimes awesome shoes in here (heels especially) without paying the high price tag that comes with other brands. If you have to stick a no-​name brand on your feet, so be it; at least you’re getting some pretty fantastic shoes, and no one ever knows the difference. Usually you can peruse some of their styles without setting foot in the store. Their rack of shoes is on show for everyone and provides a tantalising view of what’s in store should you wander inside.
Dare is a tiny little shop, but packs a lot of punch and boasts a lot of popularity in the city. I’ve become a bit of a snob and actually prefer to shop in other shoe retailers but my heartfelt love for this place will always live on.

I hate going shoe shopping, for no other reason than I can’t ever find shoes that I like. I have spent literal hours trawling through a multiplicity of shoe stores to come out with nothing. There’s something to be said for fashion trends, sure, but it seems that a lot of shoe stores are selling almost identical footwear.
Luckily, I found Dare. Finally! Some shoes with personality! Most of the footwear here is highly decorated. It’s not the place to come to if you want a modest shoe. They have ballet flats, heels, pumps, lace ups, sandles, but all the shoes are finished off with some unique detail that sets them apart from everything else. I particularly love the pearl, rounded flats with a big diamanté bow on the toe. (They sound revolting, but you’d be surprised at how sweet they are in real life). They stock a kooky range, but it all goes together well, and if you’re like me, and are unlucky in love with shoes, I do recommend you try Dare.
On any given day, the shoes will cost anywhere from $ 30– $ 200. The prices are good though, and they always have a bargain bin out the front, and there are quite often sales on. Almost two years now, I brought a pair of dusted blue grey lace up boots there for $ 60, and I wear them almost every day. Score!

Once upon a time, there was a beautiful shoe label called Mollini. It was cool, cutting edge, and sometimes prohibitively expensive. But it was the only decent shoe shop in all of Brisneyland for a very long time. It lived happily in a lovely shop on the top floor of the Queens Plaza, until one day it fell into a very, very deep sleep. (i.e. it closed down for a couple of years).
I searched high and low for the beautiful shoe label, and began to fear that I’d never find it again.
But, hurrah, it’s been rescued! Not by a handsome prince on a stallion, but by something far more useful — a shoe company called Dare. Which also stocks other fab brands like Tony Bianco, RMK and JLO by Jennifer Lopez (I had no idea she had branched out into footwear — but hey, she clearly needs to add to her billions).
And, although the Mollini brand doesn’t seem as edgy as it used to be, I was still beside myself with happiness that I’d found it again.
And I have no idea how I didn’t leave with the beauties on the $ 60 rack (namely the quirky polkadot-​with-​stripes block heeled ones). Clearly some Wicked Witch has cast some kind of «sensible» spell on me. Which I clearly have to find a way to undo…
The End.