At ten o’clock in the morning the flood of shoppers, many of them who look like they could be addicted to the pastime, are on the march in search of a bargain. So we form part of the hoards as we’re on a mission in these credit crunch times: to prove that street market and fashion can go together and that the often heard ‘bueno, bonito, barato’ (good, beautiful and cheap) is not just a figment of the trader’s imagination.

The location of our excursion is Puerto Banús street market (next to the bullring) which is considered one of the ‘chicest’ on the Costa del Sol, something which at the end of the day is reflected in the prices which are a bit higher than those of the average market’.

Stalls

Puerto Banús market is a hotch-potch of stalls beside which traders tell the foreigners, national tourists and locals alike what they’ve got and for how much, from bikinis for three euros to those whistle things that sound like birds for next to nothing.

It’s not the ideal place for agoraphobics, and if you haven’t got that condition you could well develop it here, but we’re in the experienced hands of Desireé Morales and Noelia Álvarez, who are partners in Miscelaneus, a personal and corporate image company. So it’s with a deep breath that we enter the throngs.

The two personal shoppers have taken on our challenge with enthusiasm. “Going to the street market isn’t something routine in our profession although we’ve got some clients who go regularly to buy every day things such as hats and beach dresses,” they explain.

Challenge

There are two separate objectives to our challenge: we want to find a party outfit and summer day outfit but without having to apply for a personal loan to pay for them. Basically what we’re looking for is quality, taste and bargains.

It doesn’t take long for the girls to get going. Suddenly both are staring at the same dress. “Gorgeous,” says Desireé and Noelia agrees. That’s it – the first bit of the party outfit: a ruffled cotton dress in grey, black and beige with a flower appliqué round the neckline. “It’s quite original and can be matched easily. It’s not the usual classic style.” Even better, it’s affordable. 20 euros. “If I bargained would you reduce the price?” I ask the stallholder. “For sure,” I’m told.

In the bag

With the dress in the bag we have to get some accessories. Next stop is a bag stall awash with every type of bag imaginable. “What about this?” one of our personal shoppers asks the other. “Yes, it goes with everything,” was the reply. So in a matter of a few minutes more we’ve got a fake crocodile skin iridescent beige clutch bag for 15 euros. Now we need the shoes but this task takes a bit longer cause they must be perfect to match the dress and the bag. And as well as that they have to be comfortable, elegant and stylish. A tall order and it’s getting hotter and busier. But eventually they are found: beige with gold detailing. Just the ticket and for 20 euros what more can a girl ask for?

Okay, up until now we’ve spent 55 euros and we’ve got an outfit suitable for a wedding a cocktail party or any other soiree. The personal shoppers’ final piece of advice for the look is: “the best jewellery would be some bracelets because a necklace would be too much with the flower neckline.”

Onwards and upwards and at an accessory and hat stall we ask the holder if she would mind if we took some pictures for this newspaper. With a bit of persuasion and despite her doubts about her designs being copied she succumbs. “This is 35 euros because the feathers are expensive,” the stall holder tells us about one of her hat designs. And a passer by confirms that it’s going for a song. “In any shopping centre that would cost 200 euros,” she says.

Devotees

Time is marching on. It’s 12 noon and half of the shopping is done. “The most important thing is knowing how to wear what you buy. How to put things together. A bag from the market can look great with a designer dress because it doesn’t have a logo saying where it was bought,” says Desireé while keeping an eagle eye out for possible elements for something that would do for the beach or for sipping a mojito.

Day wear

She is quickly drawn to a stall with a five euro sign above a rack and there it is: a colourful chiffon kaftan that isn’t at all garish and has a subtle row of sequins around the neckline. “Really ‘now’” exclaim the girls. “It can be worn as a cover up over a bikini or for going for lunch,” they say. And while we’re on the subject of bikinis, opposite there’s a stall full of them going at just three euros each. But Noelia and Desireé are looking for that ideal beach bag to go with the kaftan. “Look there they are,” Noelia shouts almost throwing herself on top of a pile of straw bags on the ground. The purchase of the basket brings the cost of the beach outfit up to a staggeringly ridiculous ten euros but we’ll be going barefoot if we don’t find some sandals soon. “Because there are so many colours in the kaftan, the ideal sandals would be white and plain,” apparently. The ideal pair is spotted on a stall at five euros but luckily it didn’t escape our attention that a neighbour was selling them for three. That’s competition for you! We’ve got the day outfit for 13 euros (or 16 if you want to throw in one of those three euro bikinis).

Completion

So we’re 68 euros down (which could have been less with a bit of hard bargaining) but we’ve got six versatile items and it’s time to take our tired feet and hungry bodies for some refreshment which is well deserved after completing the mission.

“People think that personal shoppers are going to make them spend a lot of money but that’s not the case. The first thing we do is look at the wardrobe the client already has,” the girls tell us as we’re leaving the market.

The proof was in the pudding - with the help of Noelia and Desireé we found out that it is possible to sport the latest looks at rock bottom prices.