La Moda

La Moda opened its doors in 1945 as a haberdashers and shop for new trends, and it continues today as both things. The boom in sewing as a hobby has replaced long-gone tailors and dressmakers, and at La Moda they're happy to sell zips and threads. In terms of the latest trends, there's no need to buy 'Vogue' to find out what to wear in the coming months – at La Moda they started selling patches for your jeans and pom-poms to hang on your handbags before these were the done thing. This is a paradise for anybody who doesn't want to dress like the rest of the herd. In the huge shop or on one of the floors of the warehouse, you'll find old buttons to customise a boring coat, and the last word in yarn so you can make a stylish bag to your own taste. Trends, however, come and go, as Sílvia Sureda and her daughter Anaïs explain; they're the second and third generations of the family that heads up this business. Three years ago they got fed up of selling so many metal studs, and nowadays you don't see them anywhere; but there's always a demand for good zips.