There are several ways of gaging the comparative affluance of a neighbourhood. There´s the obvious – checking the cars parked on the streets or looking the inhabitants up in one of the frequently published wealthy lists. But with new economies and new media a few new methods have arisen:
One of them is to check on the number of fashion bloggers per capita. Arguably at the top of the concrete jungle food chain and followed by thousands, they are impossibly glamourous and fabulous. Living their lives through sponsored social media they are aspirational “normal” people who just happen to be a little less normal than most. O crap, am I starting to become a pseudoperson with my own feeble attempt att a blogg about shoes?
Another sure fire way of checking how well off people are is by looking into the wares at the local second hand shops. Östermalm in Stockholm is without doubt one of Swedens very richest areas and the second hand shops are chock-a-block with Chanel, Gucci and Prada. Even the occasional Hermes. Cross over to say Vasastan and the mix will be more high-street with an occasional luxury item (not always authentic) to liven the party. And heading over to other parts of town like Kungsholmen or Södermalm will change the scene completely.
Annas Second Hand on Lidingö helps confirm that while there is a socio-economic span on the island, a good chunk of our population is still pretty damn comfortably off. These black boots are not a fancy brand per sé but made of good italian leather and at 500 SEK in never-been-worn condition, were still a pretty good find.