Avirate is a Sri Lankan fashion chain that's the first to move into what we call Dutch Hospital 2, the refurbished set of buildings behind the now iconic Dutch Hospital. If you walk back past the
Barefoot and
O! Bar you'll cross Hospital Road and see the Avirate store.
Avirate stocks women's fashion ranging from cocktail dresses to tops to underwear. The clothes tend to be of a silky polyester look and feel. You'll be hunting around for a while if looking for anything light, loose or cotton. Their clothes seem to work around a flashy Colombo clubwear aesthetic - stretchy rayon body cons, diamantes studded cocktail dresses, pointy stilettos and bright blingy handbags... If you ever flick through Kama's Facebook albums, that's what an Avirate wardrobe looks like.
Price wise, none of these clothes are cheap. Cocktail dresses can go up to Rs. 5000, shoes to Rs. 3000, and so on. These are international prices for mediocre synthetic fabrics and generally undiscriminating designs. That being said, it's a matter of taste. Price wise, however, really not worth it.
TIP
A lot of the jungies are currently 50% off.
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Anuk
But they have price offs where most of these clothes go real cheap.
LM
hmmm… so how is a dude now the authority on a women's clothing store?
LdeSilva
I do concur Indi, about the "…These are international prices for mediocre synthetic fabrics and generally undiscriminating designs". I seriously fail to understand what women see and why they do buy these clothes @ these exhorbitant prices - I myself am of the feminine species and do believe you're spot on here!
jam09
I dont like their fabric for a plc like colombo it cannot be worn for long hrs unless you are in A/C .
bonos
LMAO Jungies hehe
Madzy
It seems I may be in the minority here, though I have had some luck shopping for nicer, cocktail dress type clothing at Avirate. For one thing, I believe Avirate is, dare I say it, first branded clothing store in Sri Lanka where clothes are mass produced according to standardized sizes and cuts,similar to branded stores overseas. For one thing, for almost any item of clothing in the store, you are likely to find the same in your size. If it doesn't fit quite right, Avirate offers to alter the clothes free-of-charge for a better fit. This alone sets Avirate apart from all other clothing stores in Sri Lanka, where (a) usually only a few pieces of an individual clothing is available, (b) clothes for sale are factory knock-offs so will never be an exact fit, (c) alterations, if available, are done only for an extra fee. Further more, as someone already said, Avirate boasts end-of-season sales where most clothes can be purchased at half-off rates -- another feature that most clothing stores do not have, but can be found internationally. While I agree that most clothing items are not made of cotton or linen which would be more favourable for Lankan climate, I think it is quite clear that their clothes are not necessarily for summer dresses, or lounge wear, or casual clothing. They provide more dressy outfits which you'd wear for a formal meeting, a non-sari wearing wedding, a cocktail party, etc… where you'd dress for a few hours, and most likely be in air-conditioning.
So, for those of us who can not afford the annual shopping trips to Dubai/Bangkok/London… Avirate offers a nice collection of dressy clothing, with standardized sizing, and at fairly affordable (but definitely not cheap) rates.
And again --- it's also a matter of taste.
Nadz
well… prices are high… but Avirate has been a savior to me because they have dress sizes that goes up to size 18 and looks nice… whereas most of the other shops in CMB makes us destined to wear either maxi dresses or sacks :)