By Paige

Dear Winners,
We at Torontoist have always been a fan, simply because we can’t avoid your selection. The constantly-changing flow of merchandise is every shopaholic’s dream: Will this be the day that we find our size in half-off Earnest Sewn jeans? Or will you finally have that pair of Steven shoes we saw at Brown’s? Everyone loves a Winners—because everyone loves the cheapy prices on coveted brand name items from other stores in Toronto.
This summer, however, we started to notice a trend in your accessories section. Amongst your usual selection of pleather purses were a few B-list designer handbags. Dooney and Burke leatherwear was spotted at a few different locations, but with their $199.99-299.99 price tags (a pittance of a discount!) they didn’t exactly fly off the shelves.

We know, Winners, that you’re trying to establish yourself as more up-market discount than outlet, so we gave you the benefit of the doubt.
However, after this season’s aptly-named “Designer Event” we have had enough! Forget the pushy crowds and bad renditions of Holt Renfrew attitudes at your College Park store—we’re really just annoyed at the not-so-discounted selection of haut couture.
Yes, it’s fun to browse through handbags that normally are locked away or hidden in display counters. We enjoyed the soft touch of Jimmy Choo’s pebble grain leather. We got a kick out of finding a Gucci bag hidden behind something cheap, plastic, and ugly from XOXO. We toted a Lindsay Lohan-worthy Tod’s handbag around the store as we shopped. But do these items really belong in Winners?
Simple answer: Not. At. All.
Sorry, but if we had $1699.99 to spend on a purse (the price Winner’s tagged on the Jimmy Choo) we would not be searching for it in an impulse-buy bin next to the check-out line. We would be sipping complimentary champagne and having a cute salesperson in tailored clothing bring us a selection of options. Torontoist wonders if there are any regular Winners shoppers out there who have the luxury of spending over a thousand dollars on one item—we think they shop elsewhere.
Winners we love you, but the designer mayhem has got to go! We are not interested in spending more than a month’s rent on a manhandled designer handbag at a store, no less, which also sells blatant knock-offs. You either have to find a better presentation for your A-list items, or drop the prices to what your customers expect.