Find a Record Shop with Google Maps

Today's theme on Google Maps Mania is definitely a lament for the continuing demise of off-line shopping.

As a teenager I would always look forward to Saturday mornings, which would inevitably involve a pilgrimage to a record shop and the purchase of some magical black vinyl. Even as a jaded adult I still love browsing around record shops. The problem is that they are becoming increasingly thin on the ground.

Recordshops.org is a store locator that will help you find your nearest record shop. The store locator is very easy to use. Just enter your address and the nearest record shos to your location will be displayed on a Google Map.

London's Tech Scene on Google Maps

Tech City Map is a visually striking Google Map of the technology companies and startups in east London.

The map shows the locations of London's silicon roundabout area. The 'show networks' option on the map allows users to visualise the connections between the over 800 companies. If you click on an individual map marker there is also an option to view the latest Tweets from the selected tech company.

Hat-tip: Street View Funny

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Find Stores Worldwide with Google Maps

Store-Locator.com is a worldwide store locator which has mapped over half a million stores worldwide. The application allows users to find stores in a huge number of locations worldwide or to view all the stores for a specific store chain.

From the Store-Locator.com home page you can navigate to a dedicated Google Map showing stores in individual cities or for specific store chains. For example, if you select New York you can view the locations of stores in New York on a single map.

If you select a marker on a Store-Locator.com map and click on the 'store hours' link you are taken to the store's individual entry. Here you can view opening hours, the store's address, contact information, website address and view the brands, products and services provided.

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A Google Maps Store Locator

Hugo Boss Store Locator

I don't normally review store locators but this one from Hugo Boss is very nice. The store locator does what you would expect, allowing customers of Hugo Boss to find the nearest stores on Google Maps. It also looks fantastic.

The Google Map is used as both the background to the store locator and as its focal point. The Hugo Boss header is overlaid on top of the map so that the map seamlessly integrates with the overall design of the Hugo Boss website.

Hugo Boss has also saturated the colour of the Google Maps satellite imagery. When I first saw the map I thought that Hugo Boss had replaced the Google Maps satellite imagery with different satellite map tiles. However comparing the imagery with Google Maps shows that it is the same base layer, only the colours have somehow been filtered to make them appear much sharper than they normally do on Google Maps.

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A Great Google Maps Store Locator

The euroShell Card Truck Network

The euroShell Card Truck Network is a great example of how to do a store locator map extremely well.

Shell have used Google Maps to display the locations of their gas stations throughout Europe. Nothing new there. However Shell have allowed the user to filter the map by a number of options to ensure that the customer can always find the services that they require. The filters include shops, restaurants, showers and guarded parking.

The map also includes options to plan a route and to download the created maps or GPS files.

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How to Find An Open Starbucks

If, like me, you are in desperate need of coffee today you should use the Starbucks Finder which displays all the Starbucks, worldwide, that are currently open on a Google Map.



These three Google Maps based, smart phone friendly, store finders, all come from the same developer:

1. A Starbucks finder - that shows Starbucks that are currently open (Worldwide)
2. A Tim Hortons coffee finder - (Canada & US), and
3. A Skating Rink finder - (Canada Only)

All three apps feature click-to-call and auto-positioning based on your current location. The Starbucks app is also sensitive to the current time and time zone.

If you don't have a smart phone don't worry all three maps also work on your desktop computer.

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Find a Snowboard with Google Maps

Burton Snowboards - Dealer Locator

Burton Snowboards has used the Google Maps for Flash API to provide an impressive store locator.

Using the store locator you can find a Burton store near you by entering your address in the search box. The stores closest to your address are then listed in the map sidebar. If you click on one of the listed stores the map pans and rotates to show the chosen store.

The information window for each store includes the name and address of the store and a link to get directions to the store.

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Worldwide Store Locator for Google Maps

Store-Locator.com

Shopping just got a whole lot easier with Store-Locator.com. Using Store-Locator.com you can find and locate stores worldwide and view information about individual stores including store hours and opening times. Store-Locator.com has mapped nearly 150,000 stores worldwide and are adding around 50,000 stores to their growing database every month.

From the Store-Locator.com home page you can navigate to a dedicated Google Map showing stores in individual cites or for specific store chains. For example, if you select New York you can view the locations of stores in New York on a single map.

If you select a marker on a Store-Locator.com map and click on the 'store hours' link you are taken to the store's individual entry. Here you can view opening hours, the store's address, contact information, website address and view the brands, products and services provided.

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World Wide Store Locator on Google Maps

Vitra

The Swiss furniture manufacturer Vitra has a global dealer network so it is important that customers around the world can quickly find the dealer that is best for them. Vitra has therefore used Google Maps to create a store locator service to enable customers to find their local Vitra dealer.

It is possible to search the map for a Vitra dealer by entering a street, city or zip code. It is also possible to refine the results displayed on the map by type of Vitra dealer. If you click on a dealer's map marker you can get the dealer's full address, a breakdown of Vitra products offered and driving directions.

The Vitra Google Map was developed with the WEISSWO Pinpoint location finder.

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