Something to Choo on
2007 It’s been a big year for hot designers to set up shop in Chicago: Boutiques from Tory Burch (pictured, right), Nanette Lepore and Jimmy Choo were each welcomed in the city with open arms.

2008 We’ve been talking about Marc Jacobs for a year, and after a couple of false starts, he’s finally (fingers crossed!) going to open his Bucktown boutique in January. We also hear Paul Smith has been scouting the area for a retail spot. His reps tell us nothing is set in stone, but we wouldn’t be surprised if a shop pops up eventually. And although we haven’t heard any reports that it will happen, we think it’s about time for Manolo Blahnik to follow Choo’s lead and set up a location here.

Sticker shock
2007 It’s been a year full of affordable couture collaborations, with Proenza Schouler for Target, Roberto Cavalli for H&M and Milla Jovovich’s Jovovich-Hawk for Mango (pictured, left), to name a few. And lucky for us penny-pinchers, these designer-meets-discount pairings show no signs of slowing down.

2008 According to Women’s Wear Daily, Finnish textiles company Marimekko has an H&M collection of vintage prints in the works for spring. We also hear Jovovich is working on another collab, this time with Target, but if we could have our pick, we’d send hotshot designer Zac Posen straight to the bull’s-eye.

The show must go on (here)
2007 We saw a lot of innovative runway shows this year, including impressive events from the ever-growing Fashion Focus Chicago. But the Burberry Prorsum womenswear show held in Millennium Park blew us away. The event marked the first time that particular collection was shown outside of Milan, and Burberry creative director Christopher Bailey even made an appearance.

2008 We’ve been hearing talk among a few local designers that some big shows could be in the works for spring. And since Cynthia Rowley has just opened her second boutique in the city (this time in Bucktown), it would be nice to see the Art Institute alum preview one of her collections (pictured, right) with a big Chicago-based show.

Chain reaction
2007 The arrival of Ugg, Intermix and Free People (pictured, far left) boutiques put a smile on many shoppers’ faces as they toted their bags of fuzzy boots and spendy and folksy fashions across town. State Street also finally welcomed a few suburban transplants: Charlotte Russe and Loehmann’s, both offering fashion-forward clothes at great prices.

2008 Superstylish Spanish chain Zara is expected to make an appearance on Michigan Avenue before the end of the year. Brooklyn Industries will open shop in Bucktown sometime in April, which marks its ninth store and first location outside of the Big Apple. And maybe we’re getting ahead of ourselves, but we’re predicting the Japanese big boxes Uniqlo (pictured, left) and Muji, which previously landed in New York, will get the Midwestern bug. We’d be equally keen on seeing British treasure trove Topshop settle into some prime Chicago real estate. Now if only we could figure out the where, when and how…