7. Urban Outfitters
www.urbanoutfitters.com

The Story:Urban was started in Philadelphia as the The Free People’s Store in 1970 by now-chairman Richard Hayne. It’s mostly known as a place for college kids to buy cute, kitschy clothes and housewares cheap. But the store’s true customer base spans far beyond students.

The Pros: Incredible in-house collection that are just directional enough; collaborations with Steven Alan, Corpus, Paul & Joe, and more.
The Cons: Too many designer knockoffs; diffusion collections available in Europe are not usually available in the US.