Max

Max is located on the 2nd floor of one of the up-and-coming super malls in town, City Center, Banjara Hills. It's owned by the same group that calls the Lifestyle chain of stores its own, the Landmark Management Group.

The first impression upon treading into the store for one who has been abroad, is one of bubbly elation - it's a desi version of H&M, as the ensemble and the ambience are so much akin to the world-renowned retailer. If H&M is known for its value prices, so is Max. For those wondering what H&M is, it's a Swedish value-clothing retailer that has its presence in 28 countries across USA, Canada and Europe.

Max is a one-stop shop for everything you need to be hip and happy, except narcotics and cars. The store gives you a happy-go-lucky feeling mutliplied by ten. There's clothing of all kinds and for all people, for men, women and kids. There's also a nice array of accessories and bling bling.

However, footwear is the one thing that sets this store apart from most also-rans. The footwear section of Max is one of the happy-go-lucky types. The women's section is sassy with a glib range from sandals to casual shoes to slingbacks and slides. The kids section is even better, with different kinds of kiddie sneakers, sandals, flip-flops, and the like. In both the ladies and kids sections, the prices are raucously reasonable, most below Rs. 1,000.

The men's section of footwear at Max is almost sinful in variety. And almost the entire vibrant range of casual shoes is priced below thousand bucks each, believe it or not. The dress shoes are near perfect, with both the loafers and lace-ups around the same price range as the casuals. And then there is the ever-so-fantabulous collection of sneakers and running shoes. Most of them are made locally by Max itself. At Rs. 500-1,200, I can't think of a better steal.

In summary, Max is a hip, one-of-a-kind clothing, apparel and footwear superstore that's honest and happy, and is not afraid to make its customers that, too. A revelling place for both the shop-happy nouveau riche and the penny-pinching penurious ones.