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Where to buy when in Australia?

BigSleep

One of the Regulars
Messages
295
Location
La Mesa CA
Okay so I'm taking a trip dan unda in June.
Will be in Melbourne and Brisbane.
Want to buy an Akubra while there.
Best place to get it?
Any help would be appreciated.
Thanks.
 

DarthBish

Familiar Face
Messages
54
Location
I come from a land Down Under
In Melbourne: City Hatters, cnr Flinders and Russell St..(under Flinders St railway station)

(Although...if you're 'down here'...You can't do any better than Jen, Deb and everyone at The Hattery in Katoomba)...(It's a bit of a drive from Melbourne or Brisbane though)
 

Shangas

I'll Lock Up
Messages
6,116
Location
Melbourne, Australia
Hey Sleepy.

As Darth says, City Hatters, Cnr. Flinders and SWANSTON STREET (Darth you're going to have this poor chap wandering around the CBD for hours!) is probably your best bet.

FlindersStreetStation1946.jpg


Flinders Street Station (1946). Don't see it in the photo, but the building is actually a bright biege colour. Just to the right of that main entrance (under the big dome) is City Hatters, and has been, since before that photo was taken!

store-hero.jpg


City Hatters, under the Station, cnr. Flinders & Swanston.

Haven't ever been there, but I would like to visit one day.
 

The Good

Call Me a Cab
Messages
2,361
Location
California, USA
I have never been to Australia before, but I'll try to make it a point to at least attempt to get an Akubra while I'm there, if that day may come. Great quality hats for sure, and you can't beat many of their prices for good fur felts. They also have a pretty large variety, what's not to like about Akubra?
 

Shangas

I'll Lock Up
Messages
6,116
Location
Melbourne, Australia
On my way into the CBD today to pick up something else, I stopped in at City Hatters.

Hmmm. Interesting place.

Reach the corner of Swanston & Flinders, head through a small, wrought-iron gate at the corner of Flinders Street Station, directly to the right of the main staircase and station-entrance, and down a steep flight of steps guaranteed to send you to hospital if you don't hold onto the handrail, and you enter a small shop at the bottom of the steps, directly under the station.

City Hatters.

This place is small. I had been prepared for small, but not quite this small. It's two or three small rooms with a three small windows and shelves and shelves and shelves of hats of all kinds, stacked up all over the place. Flat-caps, top-hats, trilbys, fedoras, bowlers, homburgs. They're stacked up on the shelves and arranged by style and colour. There are all kinds of size-charts around so that you can figure out how big your noggin is and...while I was there, at least...Al Jolson was having a holler over the sound-system.

There's also a few racks here and there, also filled with hats, and with walking-sticks with handles of silver, brass and wood clustered at their bases with a few umbrellas thrown in, to keep the sticks company.

All in all, a small, library-type atmosphere with friendly staff and what looks like a pretty wide selection of hats. Heading back upstairs to street level, I was rudely reminded that it was in fact midday (1:00pm, to be precise). It's so dark down there with only three tiny windows, that, without the electric lights, you'd be fumbling around in the dark. Again, be careful on the stairs on the way up.
 

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