want a biscuit?

Sara Forsyth

“Saturated colour is a big trend,” says Wendy Friedman sitting in her tiny office at the back of Biscuit General Store. A small curtained window is behind her, overlooking swirling racks of flirty shirts and sleek empire waists.

“Kelly green… yellow. People always said, ‘Stay away from yellow! It’s a really hard sell.’ But yellow has been so big this season.”

As if on cue, Friedman’s assistant lifts a lemon dress off one of the racks and shows it to a customer who practically runs with it to the fitting room.

Friedman opened Biscuit 11 years ago with $2,000 largely because she was tired of constantly looking for things only to find they weren’t available in Halifax – her new home.

Today it is the go-to boutique for quirky flats or an impressively hip birthday card. And Friedman feels Biscuit is finally becoming the place she always wanted it to be: a modern day department store.

“They’ve really become outdated in North America,” she says. “There isn’t a version of the department store that speaks to my generation and people younger than me. (We’re looking for) a place where you can get a t-shirt and a great cocktail dress, and makeup, and a fun gift for your friend.”

One of Biscuit’s tenets is to offer “great gifts for $20 or less.” You’ll find tableware with nuclear ‘50s references, a copy of Little Miss Bossy and a straw fedora. Never again will Haligonians be forced to buy what Friedman calls “fallback gifts,” like wine or a fruit basket.

Everything sold at Biscuit is carefully selected, and Friedman has no qualms about sending an item - whether it’s a piece by Valerie Dumaine or a pack ghetto flash cards - back if they are not up to snuff,.

“My rule of thumb is: If it’s trendy it should be inexpensive,” she says. “If you’re going to invest in something then it should be really well made and classically based.”

Clothing at Biscuit runs from $30 tees to $300 embellished evening dresses. The diverse products lend themselves to a diverse clientele (from school girls to frat boys to theatre-going grandmas), and the result is exactly what Friedman always wanted – a store where everyone can walk in and have fun.

Biscuit General Store: 1661 Argyle St., Halifax. Open Monday - Saturday 10 a.m. – 8 p.m. and Sunday 12 p.m. – 5 p.m. (902-425-5436)