The 50 best shops in London

Best for: rare vinyl and in-store gigs

It’s one of the youngest stores in the Rough Trade stable, but Rough Trade East has become the company’s definitive London outpost. Located in the bustling Old Truman Brewery, it boasts an expertly curated collection of vinyl, CDs and books, as well as a café and a stage for the ever-popular in-store gigs. The sets are generally shorter than regular gigs, but we’re certainly not complaining.

Old Truman Brewery, 91 Brick Ln, London E1 6QL

Best for: all things caffeine-related

A Soho institution, this shoebox-sized shop on Old Compton Street has been trading since 1887, long before coffee got cool. Buzz seekers can choose from more than 80 blends which are all available as beans or ground. Those into their coffee gadgets can marvel at electronic grinders, thermometers, tampers, milk frothers, while those living the decaf life will be impressed by the selection of caffeine-free blends. Despite the name, ACS also stocks a vast array of quality teas for all over the world.

52 Old Compton Street, W1V 6PB

Best for: covetable stationery

Youll find all the stationery you could ever need – plus more that you’ll convince yourself you do – in the small but perfectly formed Present & Correct. With leather pencil cases and lovely notebooks galore, their collections blend the latest designs from Japan and Scandinavia. 

23 Arlington Way, EC1R 1UY

Best for: the stylish buys around

A trip to Liberty is like exploring a stylish, whimsical stately home. From its iconic Tudor façade to its cosy, interconnecting rooms, Liberty combines heritage with modern flair, stocking everything from star-loved fashion and cutting-edge menswear to rare homeware and beauty treasures. Don’t miss the men’s floor for emerging designers or Maria Tash’s celeb-favourite piercing parlour. Whether you’re hunting antiques, interior inspiration, or just soaking up the atmosphere, Liberty is one of London’s most enchanting shopping destinations.

Regent St, W1B 5AH 

Best for: coffee table books galore

Artwords has its finger firmly on the pulse when it comes to contemporary visual arts publications. Stock relating to fine art dominates, but there are also plenty of architecture, photography, graphic design, fashion, advertising, music and film titles, plus an excellent range of industry and creative magazines.

20-22 Broadway Market, E8 4QJ

Best for: a vast array of page-turners

One of London’s most charming bookshops, Daunt’s Marylebone flagship is pretty as a picture. The Edwardian building is literally packed to the rafters with books. From the vaulted ceiling to the William Morris accent walls and stained-glass windows, the store’s fixtures and fittings are delightfully old-fashioned. Particularly worthy of a browse is the vast travel section: ordered by country, it’s enough to induce wanderlust in the most homely of homebodies.

83 Marylebone High St, W1U 4QW.

Best for: streetwear with a sense of humour

After outgrowing its former base on Curtain Road, game-changing concept shop The Goodhood Store moved into an enormous new space by Spitalfields Market in 2024. It now boasts 5,500 square feet of retail space stocking a deftly curated edit of high-end streetwar, accessories, beauty and grooming products, plus homeware, audio equipment and fancy camping gear, all shot through with a real sense of humour and a few easy, low-cost buys.

You’ll also find soap bars, matcha whisks and quality basics from Goodhood’s own brand, Goodhood Lifestore, designed in collaboration with Brain Dead co-founder Ed Davis, plus books and magazines curated by Broadway Market’s Artwords, vintage pieces from Unified Goods and records from Hackney store Stranger Than Paradise. 

It’s enough to make any East End trendy swoon.

15 Hanbury Street, E1 6QR

Best for: stunning scents

The minuscule London outpost of the famed Florentine pharmacy, founded by Dominican friars, sells beautifully packaged lotions, perfumes, eaux de colognes, exfoliating powders, pot pourri, scented paper and soaps. The shop can’t compete with the Italian version, located in a 13th-century frescoed chapel, but the products from one of the world’s oldest herbal pharmacies (the company was officially founded in 1612, though its origins date back as far as 1221) are the same.

107 Walton Street, SW3 2HP

Best for: Stylish, high-quality furniture

Heal’s combines heritage and modern style with expertly sourced furniture, lighting, and home accessories. The 2023 refurbishment created a bright, open-plan showroom while preserving classic architectural details. Highlights include vintage Danish furniture, a standout lighting department, and plenty of gift-worthy finds.

196, Tottenham Court Road, W1T 7LQ

Best for: satisfying takoyaki cravings 

Japan doesn’t feel quite so far away when you’re surrounded by miso in this subterranean supermarket. Grab some takoyaki with dancing bonito flakes to fuel your shopping from the upstairs café, before browsing more noodles, very sharp knives and Kewpie mayo than you can shake a Pocky stick at. It’s the closest you can get to Japan without the 12-hour flight.  

35b Panton St, SW1Y 4EA

Best for: stocking the larder

When it opened in 1965, Loon Fung was one of the UK’s first Chinese supermarkets. It’s since become a Chinatown institution where home cooks and professional chefs alike flock for the best Chinese ingredients, tableware and cooking tools. Now a mini-chain, you’ll also find Loon Fung stores in Alperton, Colindale, Stratford and Tottenham.

42-44 Gerrard Street, W1D 5QG

Best for: beaut houseplants

One visit to Conservatory Archives’ urban jungle and you’ll be lusting after its hanging greenery and climbing vines. The shop on Hackney Road is one lavish indoor garden, a stark space with peeling plaster walls and big windows, stuffed full of weird, wacky and wild vegetation. Prepare to fall hard for the green stuff.

3-7 Lower Clapton Rd

Best for: beautiful things you don’t need, but absolutely must have

Laughing in the face of rainbow rubbers and giant pencils, the Tate Modern’s gift shop is full of lovely things that you would actually want: David Shrigley dominoes, Guerrilla Girls tea towels, Yinka Shinobare crockery, Hockney tote bags, Grayson Perry’s silk scarves. Artfully positioned at the museum’s entrance you don’t even need to pretend to be interested in the art to shop there.

Bankside, SE1 9TG

Best for: natty wines with all the trimmings

This lovely Highbury deli is the place to go for natural wines and accompanying meats and cheeses. Whether you’re a wine buff or don’t know your Pinot from your Riesling, the friendly staff will help you find a top tipple. If you’d rather make an evening of it, head to neighbouring Top Cuvée for glasses and small plates. 

189 Blackstock Road, N5 2LL

Best for: avant-garde international fashion

One for the real fashionistas, Dover Street Market is more atune to an art gallery than a store, with impressive pieces by flaming hot designers standing out against in-store installations and white walls. Carrying a truly comprehensive stock, it has fashion dons like Gucci and Valentino, the Commes labels, as well as streetwear heros and up-and-comers like Chopova Lowena. A true fashion mecca, it houses collections from some of the capital’s brightest stars.

18-22 Haymarket, SW1Y 4DG

Best for: bargain good quality furniture

Now located in Bow after several years in neighbouring Bethnal Green, this East End furniture warehouse specialises in liquidation stock, cancelled orders and samples. This means it’s the place to go for quality household names (John Lewis, Made.com, etc.) at prices you’d never get anywhere else. If you’ve a new flat to fill, Lofty's should definitely be on your radar.

Unit D, 429-431 Wick Lane, E3 2JG

Best for: bagels and other essentials

This much-loved Jewish deli has been doing roaring buisiness in St John’s Wood since 1944. It’s had something of a glow-up in recent years, and as well as stocking a vast array of global goods, fancy grocery bits, kosher essentials and their own pies, soups and baked goods (AKA some of the best bagels in town) – there’s also a coffee bar. Hit up the outdoor terrace too for a slap-up breakfast featuring their famous smoked salmon with a toasted bagel, cream cheese and pickles. A London landmark.

13-19 Circus Rd, NW8 6PB 

Best for: top quality cheese

Neal’s Yard Dairy began championing small cheesemakers when the shop opened in 1979 and has been central to creating a huge community of high-quality cheesemakers in Britain and Ireland. Like Monmouth Coffee, NYD has larger branches in Borough and Bermondsey, but this tiny, fragrant nook wins hands-down on character. When they offer taste after taste, don’t say no!

17 Shorts Gardens, WC2H 9AT

Best for: independent magazines

Print lovers, rejoice! Here’s a shop dedicated to perfectly-bound paper and it’s absolutely brilliant. Located on the Islington end of St John Street, magCulture stocks hundreds of independent magazines from all over the world. Whatever your niche, you’ll find a publication to interest you – from art and football magazine ‘OOF’ to ‘DOG’, a magazine about, erm, dogs. Even if you aren't going to read them, go bag a few mags to brighten up your coffee table.

270, St John Street, EC1V 4PE

Best for: very aesthetic odds and ends

Utilitarian chic is the name of the game at this stylish shop located in an emerald-tiled former pub on Shoreditch’s Redchurch Street, which sells functional, durable and aesthetic domestic goods that one might imagine everyone having in their kitchen or pantry 60 years ago. There is also a small range of classic vintage clothing (work jackets, aprons) and some old-fashioned gifts for children – think pinhole cameras and wooden den-building kits –  plus a range of notebooks and stationery that wouldn’t look out of place in a 1950s classroom. Be warned: you may end up dropping £42 on a ‘tube wringer’. 

85 Redchurch St, E2 7DJ

Best for: all-out Gatsby glamour

Since 1998, this New Cross costume hire store has been supplying exquisite handmade garments and accessories to performers and partygoers alike. Because each item is hired out as many times as it’s asked for – as you can imagine, Gatsby and Game of Thrones-style outfits have historically been very popular – it’s a business model rooted in sustainability. And they supply corresponding props, too. 

141 Lewisham Way, SE14 6QP

Best for: quality art supplies

Whether you’re a keen novice, a seasoned professional or just easily pleased by shelf upon shelf stationery, you’ll find plenty to suit at the flagship branch of one of London’s major suppliers of art and graphics materials. Arty books and magazines, lightboxes, modelling clays and spray paint are clearly and thoughtfully arranged, along with a reliably good selection of arty gifts – think wind-up tin toys and tiny notebooks adorned with cartoon Warhols and Dalis.

16-18 Shelton St, WC2H 9JL

Best for: cinematic shopping

Walls looking a bit bare? Here you’ll find an awesome selection of posters and frames to brighten up them the hell up. Reelstore specialises in old movie posters and film prints – you’ll be just as likely to find some obscure indie cinema advert as you would a 1960s Jungle Book flyer. If you’re a film buff, it’s worth popping in to browse their cinema-related books and other memorabilia.

148 Hoe St, E17 4QR

Best for: hot furniture and home accessories

Housed in an impressive Victorian concert hall, Aria is one of London’s best design destinations. The painstakingly restored original features contrast beautifully with the contemporary homewares. As well as kitchenware, clocks and lighting from big names like Alessi, you’ll find glorious prints by Oliver Taylor, plus plenty of quirky treasures. There’s also a tempting selection of posh toiletries, including old-style apothecary and Scandi skincare brands.

Barnsbury Hall, Barnsbury St, N1 1PN

Best for: supernatural page-turners

A boutique bookshop and suitably atmospheric cultural centre for those with an interest in witchcraft, magic, spirituality, culture, religion, divination and more. Treadwell's have both secondhand and new books on offer, and rare and unusual editions too. They also host a regular lecture series and workshops for people interested in various aspects of magical thinking and esoteric arts. On top of all that, you can swing by for a tarot reading with one of their six tarot consultants.

33 Store St, WC1E 7BS

Best for: a surprisingly brilliant variety of condiments and produce

The most pimped grocery shop youll ever step into, the Homerton branch of Eat17 (and Spar) is housed in an art deco picture house and has a dedicated organic and craft beer section, sushi bar and a boutique florist. Total foodie heaven, youll go in for a pint of milk and a loaf of sourdough bread (this is Hackney, now) and you’ll leave with beetroot hummus, homemade salted caramel brownies, a jar of bacon jam and rainbow trout from the fresh fish counter. Of course, that’s why we love it.

64-66 Brooksbys Walk, E9 6DA

Best for: an international edit of beauty brands

After two centuries of curing London’s maladies, age was starting to wither this venerable pharmacy. Cue a multimillion-pound revamp back in 2015, which balanced the store’s imposing heritage with an exhaustive range of new products. Antique apothecary bottles and Queen Victoria’s prescription book are dotted amongst a globetrotting selection of beauty brands.

50-54 Wigmore St, W1U 2AU

Best for: unusual fragrances

This unisex fragrance store, with branches in Shoreditch and the West End, is not to be sniffed at. If it’s a cheap scent you’re after, go elsewhere. But if you want to enjoy the process of trying out high-quality, unusual perfumes and hearing from knowledgeable staff about how they’ve been created, this is the place for you. Bloom stocks niche perfumes from brands including Arquiste, and also runs regular events and courses so you can find out more about what you’re buying. 

4 Langley Court, WC2E 9JY

Best for: crate-diggers 

This isn’t any record shop – this record shop is owned by Jack White (of The White Stripes, The Raconteurs, The Dead Weather). Located on a busy Soho street, it has an eye-catching bright yellow exterior and sells White’s trademark pressing in obscure, limited-edition vinyl formats and often holds intimate gigs in the basement, which doubles as a label HQ. You can also press your own vinyl in-store and dig to your heart's content. 

1, Marshall Street, W1F 9BA

Best for: niche craft beer

‘Bottle shop’? Is that not just a fancy new term for an off-licence? Well, step through the door of this dedicated beer shop and you'll be forced to admit that ‘off-licence’ doesn’t quite cut it. You’ll find an enormous selection of bottles and cans of beer from London, the UK and beyond. 

97 Lower Clapton Rd, E5 0NP

Best for: future home classics

Britishness runs through every stitch and paintbrush swirl at House of Hackney’s flagship. The store flicks two fingers at minimalism; it’s decked out in the deliberately over-the-top juxtapositions of print-on-print-on-print that have made the brand’s name. From the dusky gothic Dalston Rose to the heady '70s Palmeral, all of HoH’s beautiful prints are here, on everything from armchairs to oven gloves. Look out for the collaboration with the estate of their aesthetic forefather and fellow east Londoner, William Morris.

131 Shoreditch High St, E1 6JE

Best for: quality vintage stock that spans the decades

This Covent Garden gem has been peddling vintage threads for well over 20 years – long before retro became fashionable. Here you’ll find a wonderful array of dress-up clothes, from ’30s cocktail frocks and Downton-esque beaded slips to slinky ’80s numbers. Home to a mind-boggling 1,000 pairs of vintage shoes, the basement is well worth a careful rummage: the knowledgeable staff will help you pinpoint the perfect decade.

51 Endell St, WC2H 9AJ

Best for: booze and beats 

Run by the folks behind Dalston drinking den Brilliant Corners, this Columbia Road emporium offers a well-curated assortment of records and audio equipment, plus wine and other drinks – definitely a winning combination. After all, crate-digging can be a thirsty business.

82 Columbia Road, E2 7QB

Best for: chic coffee table books

A purveyor of hard-to-source tomes on art, photography and culture, Climax Books was founded by former Dazed Editor-in-Chief Isabella Burley in 2020, and had already achieved cult status among the chicest members of London’s fashion crowd by the time its physical shop opened in 2023. Stocking everything from rare first-edition art books and cultural ephemera to some very cool merch including latex tote bags and underwear and t-shirts made in collaboration with Chopova Lowena, the Wardour Mews is currently open from Thursday to Saturday. You’ll want to buy something for the hot pink shopping bags alone. 

5 Wardour Mews, W1F 8A

Best for: delicious Italian delicacies 

Founded by the Salvino brothers, Antonio and Stefano, back in 1979, this popular deli offers Camden wanderers authentic Italian produce and home-cooked meals from family recipes. Drop in to bag a bottle of wine (from a choice of over 50) or sit down for handmade ravioli, pizza and arancini. You can also pick up delicious homemade Italian pastries and fresh-made sandwiches. No one goes hungry at Salvino.

47 Brecknock Rd, N7 0BT

Best for: records, gigs and a bit of booze

The vinyl revival is still going strong and this Uxbridge Road shop is the latest place to get your wax fix. Not an audiophile obsessive? The café, bottle shop and live performances at Nextdoor Records mean it’s likely to be your new favourite hangout – whether you know what a 45 is or not. They also host some pretty decent supper club residencies. 

304 Uxbridge Rd, W12 7LJ

Best for: designer chairs and home accessories

A champion of functional but beautiful design for decades now, SCP does a brilliant job of blending contemporary exhibition and retail space. The ground floor features artfully displayed, aesthetically pleasing furniture from design giants like Terence Woodgate and Matthew Hilton, as well as pieces from SCP’s in-house brand. Downstairs, the basement showcases jewellery, accessories and stylish but tongue-in-cheek knick-knacks for the home. Find a new store on Pimlico Road too. 

135-139 Curtain Rd, EC2A 3BX

Best for: on-trend vintage pieces

If you're into your retro clothing then stopping by this vintage stalwart should be top of your to-do list. The biggest of all Beyond Retro’s stores, this is a vast warehouse of second-hand and vintage fashion, including both men and women's denim, shoes and accessories. It’s never old jumble here, however – every piece is hand-selected for the store and ranges always reflect current trends.

92-100 Stoke Newington Road, N16 7XB

Best for: leisurely book browsing

Just a few paces from Brick Lane, Libraria’s dinky black shop front is deceptive – once through its small door and you'll discover books for days. A tunnel of double-height canary yellow walls is lined with rows and rows of books, making room for the occasional cushion-filled nook for visitors to sit and get cosy. Libraria isn't just the place for covetable hardbacks on philosophy, architecture, food and design, it hosts regular evening talks with authors and cultural speakers, screenings, performances and crafty workshops.

65 Hanbury St, E1 5JP

Best for: green-fingered purchases

The Nunhead Gardener is a local gem. Staffed by a knowledgeable team of keen horticulturists, it stocks indoor and outdoor plants, pots, barks and soils, plus tools and feeders and garden decorations. Candles and diffusers are available, too, making it a must-visit for anyone looking to improve their flat’s zen quality. Since it opened, The Nunhead Gardener has blossomed into a small chain with outposts in Mayfair, Elephant Park and Camberwell, which has its own floristry department.

1a, Oakdale Road, SE15 3BW

Best for: crafty cards and gifts

This rustic gift shop on Exmouth Market is straight out of a home counties village high street, and that’s why it’s a treat to find it in Zone 1. All products here are hand-crafted and hand-selected by owner Alice, with many of the store’s products being made on-site, either at the shop counter or in the downstairs studio. Alongside cards, textiles, jewellery and ceramics, Botanique offers bespoke floristry too, with same-day delivery available across the country. There’s also second branch on Church Street, Stoke Newington.

31, Exmouth Market, Clerkenwell, EC1R 4QL

Best for: dancefloor-ready vinyl

The doors are always flung open at this lively electronic and dance vinyl hubbub. Recline on the battered leather sofas and egg-shaped chairs that give the chic space a 1970s feel, or finger through rack upon rack of pristinely selected records favouring the deeper and edgier side of club music. The balanced selection journeys around the world taking in nu jazz, krautrock, minimal techno, exotica, dubstep, drum and bass and nu disco flavours, but fluorescent-clad kids best head for the front rack of French electro labels. The staff – DJs-about-town – are happy to help you dig out a hard-to-find release.

51 Poland Street, W1F 7LZ

Best for: cool casualwear for him and her

Brit brand YMC (otherwise known as You Must Create) shines with its lines of contemporary, wearable style for men and women, which have remained quietly relevant for more than 20 years now. It’s glass-fronted Shoreditch store is light and airy, and is the perfect environment to browse (and then buy) YMC's chic designs, on-trend shoes and quirky accessories.

23 Hanbury St, E1 6QR

Best for: picture-perfect homewares and accessories

This petite store looks like the drawing room of a smart country house scaled to the size of a Shoreditch studio flat. It’s a tight squeeze, but there’s plenty packed into Ben Pentreath and Bridie Hall’s dinky boutique. Design and architecture books sit alongside vintage maps and china mugs, and there’s a pretty range of decoupage crockery from designer Hall. It’s an ideal gift destination, but you’ll inevitably find yourself stocking up on Pinterest-ing additions for your own pad, too.

17 Rugby St, WC1N 3QT

Best for: plants, pots and all things nice

You’d maybe not expect to find a fully-fledged garden centre nestled into one of De Beauvoir’s house-lined streets, but hey, here we are. N1 might be compact but it has everything you’d ever need to get green-fingered: house plants, garden plants, seeds, soil, pots and tools. Walk past it and you’ll be greeted with the most wonderful smell – and be lured in to treat your patio to a new flower (or three). 

25A Englefield Rd, N1 4EU

Best for: edgy new labels

Offering a platform for the capital’s most exciting and emerging designers, ever since its birth Machine-A has been a tireless champion of independent brands. Housing avant-garde brands that you know and love – the likes of Raf Simons, Maison Martin Margiela and Craig Green can all be found in there – what makes this Soho store unmissable are actually the names that you’ve never heard of but will be incredibly happy to discover. Expertly curated by founder and buying director Stavros Karelis, this buzzy boutique is an absolutely integral part of Soho.

13 Brewer St, W1F 0RH

Best for: legendary leathers

With Kate Moss parading around in its tough-ass boots and every rocker worth their salt (The Clash, The Sex Pistols, Ramones) having worn its biker jackets, Lewis Leathers is a true British heritage brand. Just a stone’s throw from its original site, and still using the same phone number it had in the 1930s, this icon of bikerwear cool sells 15 classic vintage designs from the 1960s and 1970s. It’s not cheap – most jackets are over well over a grand.

33 Windmill Street, W1T 2JP

Best for: furnishing your flat across the decades

There are 20 dealers selling across four storeys at this warehouse-style showroom. Each floor has its own character: if you like artily arranged mid-twentieth-century furniture, head down to the basement; if it's Victorian antiques you’re after, negotiate the tangle of chests, tables and accessories on the first floor. There are hundreds of pieces to consider, including vintage and modern design items, so leave plenty of time to roam around.

Imperial House, Jasper Rd, SE19 1SJ

Best for: gigs and garments

Although this vintage treasure trove for retro finds has been around for years, it still lies undiscovered by many. Spread over two floors, the spacious shop offers women’s and men’s clothing and accessories from the ’20s to the ’80s. There’s a particularly good selection of flowery summer dresses, and a fair range of shoes, handbags and gloves displayed on mismatched, kitsch sofas, chairs and tables. It’s not just about the clothes, though – Paper Dress Vintage also operates as a bar by night with a late license on Fridays and Saturdays. Music events are held regularly here, too.

352a Mare St, E8 1HR