No surprise that big-brand name clothes at a very reasonable price can be found in Russian Market (Phsar Toul Tompoung). In this Phnom Penh market you can buy almost anything. What about Lee jeans for only $5? Perhaps this is what garment sector contributes to the whole nation.
I went on a shopping spree for clothes today. I bought all signature items – Gap, Lee, Tommy Hilfiger, Nike, Adidas, Anne Klein, etc.. Everything is original and brand new (not ukay-ukay). I bought five tops, two pairs of stretch jeans, and a pair of walking shorts. How much did I spend? The grand total is…. US$23! (And $0.25 for parking)…
What happens is that the garment factories sell their export overruns to merchants in the market, the most popular of which is the Phsar Toul Tompong or Russian Market where I went shopping (kuminsan siempre, ninanakaw din ang mga damit ng mga empleyado para ibenta sa palengke). They sell Gap shirts for $2 – $2.50, Lee jeans for $5 and so on. The prices get higher if the color of your skin is white and cheaper if you can speak Khmer. The clothes they sell in the Russian Market are all top quality. There is nothing wrong with most of them, except perhaps for the labelling of the sizes (the S, M, L are inter-changed).
