Shopping Expedition into the World of Teenagers

I was in Toronto for the weekend with three of my friends for our Girl's Weekend Away, celebrating friendship, sisterhood and 40th birthdays! We had many special moments, but I wanted to share about the above experience which opened my eyes to their world of raising teenagers in 2007! What parents , especially mothers, won't do for their children!! They had requests from their teenage girls to go to the Abercrombie and Fitch and Hollister stores in the Eaton's Centre and purchase something for them. As we entered the Ambercrombie and Fitch store, we were greeted by a half -naked male model - I guess it is their version of a "Walmart Greeter." I knew at that moment I was soon turning 40 because I was appalled at the exploitation! Yet, I realized it was clever marketing. I had a quick look around the crowded, cologne- infested (they spray cologne/perfume all over the store at regular intervals and the scent literally has you tasting it. For those of you that know I suffer from perfume allergies, I was not happy) store and quickly made my exit, satisfied I gained a bit more insight into why teenagers loved this store. While I waited a very long time for my friends to emerge, (they were standing in line for a very long time:)) I wanted to sneak a picture of this male model. As you see in the above photo, he was somewhat of a celebrity with the young girls! Finally, my friends emerged with their purchases knowing their girls would be ecstatic with their gifts. Ah, but our shopping expedition was not over -we had to venture over to the Hollister store, which looked very much like Abercrombie and Fitch store minus the live male model. I did venture into the store, but soon became claustrophobic and made a quick exit before I would hyperventilate from the strong scent!! About 45 minutes later, my friends emerged exasperated! What mothers won't do for their children! I am glad I was able to experience this shopping phenomenon with the "sista's" although I am still disturbed by the almost pornographic photos of women and men hanging in these stores geared for teenagers. What will be next?