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The Rabbit Hole, Shops and services, Miami
Photograph: The Rabbit HoleLose yourself down the Rabbit Hole in North Miami

Miami shopping guide

Whether you’re on the hunt for clothing, gifts or vintage goods, consult our Miami shopping guide to discover 25 great stores, boutiques and malls

Written by
Jennifer Wood
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Miami shopping can be a strange experience. Whereas like-minded stores in other cities tend to cluster—one neighborhood might be great for buying jewelry and accessories, while another is lined with designer storefronts—in Miami it's not unusual to see a shop that sells $5 YOLO T-shirts wedged between two high-end couture boutiques. And the streets of South Beach's most touristy areas offer a seemingly never-ending supply of smoke shops, vintage clothing and thrift stores, sex shops and more smoke shops. It’s not so much disorganized; just a tad schizophrenic at times.

For roundtrip shuttle service to Dolphin Mall in Miami, click here

  • Shopping
  • Bags and luggage
  • Aventura

Miami’s best all-rounder, Aventura Mall boasts all the biggies: Bloomingdale’s, Macy’s and Nordstrom. It also has boutique locations for 7 For All Mankind, Burberry, Calvin Klein, Pucci and Ted Baker. In addition, there’s a 24-screen cineplex and popular restaurants such as the Cheesecake Factory and Johnny Rockets. It’s easy to get to from South Beach, as several buses terminate here—it’s just a hell of a long ride. And as a taxi can cost as much as $50 each way, it’s worth the price of a one-day car rental to stock up.

Base USA
  • Shopping
  • Designer
  • Wynwood

In addition to fancy, monochromatic threads, BASE is also known for its funky soundtrack (its CD collection is for sale, of course), coffee table books, candles and even Japanese anime. Just how cool is the stuff? Consider this: the store has a small location at the Delano hotel plus a 24/7 vending machine of goodies at the Mondrian South Beach.

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  • Shopping
  • Bookstores
  • Coral Gables

Heaven for book-lovers, Books & Books is a superb independent, well-stocked with bestsellers but also lots of small publishers. Its wooden-floored rooms include one devoted to antiquarian rarities and another to kids’ books. There’s a café, as well as regular discussion groups and author readings.

C. Madeleine's
  • Shopping
  • Bags and luggage
  • North Miami

Do you need a drop-waist dress from the 1920s? Can’t manage without a Pucci print skirt from the ’70s? You’ll find both here, along with high-necked linen and lace dresses, funky neckties, costume jewels, shoes, furs and postcards. Brands include Gucci, Balenciaga, Chanel, Vuitton and even hard-to-find Zandra Rhodes.

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Dylan's Candy Bar
  • Shopping
  • South Beach

Fashion legend Ralph Lauren’s daughter Dylan is like a modern-day Willy Wonka, offering more than 5,000 kinds of candy from around the world—not to mention ice-cream, macaroons and a sidewalk café serving up candy-inspired cocktails such as the Pop Rock Explosion—at this fun-for-all-ages emporium.

  • Shopping
  • Markets and fairs
  • South Beach

This gourmet market is pricey, but worth it, especially the kosher deli. There’s also a fine butcher and an excellent bakery.

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Genius Jones
  • Shopping
  • Design and interiors
  • Design District

Design snobs shop for their children here. Find bold wooden children’s furniture by Agatha Ruiz de la Prada and David Netto, plus toys designed to inspire without lighting up or blinking.

Kartell
  • Shopping
  • Design and interiors
  • Design District

A fantastic plastic paradise featuring a wide variety of pricey products created by internationally known designers, including gnome tables by Philippe Starck, modular bookshelves by Giulio Polvara and storage units by Anna Castelli Ferrieri.

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NiBa Home
  • Shopping
  • Design and interiors
  • Design District

Imagine Willy Wonka was diabetic and had to channel his love for candy instead into a technicolor world of glass, furniture, lighting and accessories. The result would be NiBa Home, a funky store offering cool furniture and flamboyant accessories, both new and vintage.

  • Shopping
  • Designer
  • Miami

Long Island transplants flock to Rebel to purchase top-of-the-line T-shirts with grand embellishments and price tags to match. Find a selection of jeans of the moment and other items from the likes of Juicy Couture, Vince and Sass & Bide. It’s worth going just for the sale room.

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Atrium
  • Shopping
  • Designer
  • South Beach

A South Beach unisex shopping hotspot, Atrium is also a great place to stalk celebrities if you don’t feel like breaking the bank on a $2,300 Alexander McQueen clutch. With designer brands at designer prices, don’t be surprised if you see the same $200 white T-shirt on a Kardashian in the latest issue of your favorite tabloid.

Bal Harbour Shops
  • Shopping
  • Designer
  • Bal Harbour
  • price 3 of 4

Where the ladies who lunch go with their lap dogs, and where the PYTs go with their GWMs (guys with money), the oh-so-exclusive Bal Harbour Shops has long been pinned as Miami’s Rodeo Drive. In this two-story, modernist Bali Hai, you’ll find big-bucks labels, including Prada, Gucci, Tiffany & Co, Chanel, Versace, Bulgari, Oscar de la Renta and Chloé, rubbing padded shoulders with upscale department stores Neiman Marcus and Saks Fifth Avenue.

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Bloomingdale's
  • Shopping
  • Bags and luggage
  • Kendall

"Bloomies" features classy cuts from top labels such as Donna Karan, Calvin Klein, Chanel and Fendi, plus trendier pieces such as 7 For All Mankind jeans and Diane von Furstenberg wrap dresses. Homewares, gifts, accessories and shoes also feature.

CocoWalk
  • Shopping
  • Shopping centers
  • Coconut Grove

Residents of this one-time boho ghetto howled at the arrival of corporate America in the form of this multi-story, semi-outdoor mall. It’s everything you’d expect from a block whose residents include Gap, Victoria’s Secret and Starbucks. There’s also a 13-screen Paragon movie theater.

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Dadeland Mall
  • Shopping
  • Shopping centers
  • Dadeland

This supermall fronts Florida’s largest Macy’s. Among the other 200-odd stores are Saks Fifth Avenue and a two-story Louis Vuitton. Dadeland is also one of the only malls easily accessible on Miami’s Metrorail system.

Falls
  • Shopping
  • Department stores
  • Kendall

Cashing in on the outdoor mall trend, the Falls aims to calm with lush foliage, wooden plank walkways, waterfalls and reflecting ponds. Anchors include a United Artists megaplex, Macy’s and Bloomingdale’s, though you’ll also find Abercrombie & Fitch, Gap and Brooks Brothers for fashion, plus beauty products from Origins and the latest gadgets at the Apple Store. There’s no tacky food court; try upscale eateries such as Brio Tuscan Grille and BJ’s Restaurant Brewhouse.

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The Fresh Market
  • Shopping
  • Specialist food and drink
  • South Beach

All the organic produce you could possibly desire, including fresh fish and seafood, plus a café.

  • Shopping
  • Designer
  • South Beach

Oh-so-trendy Intermix gathers the choicest styles by top designers such as Derek Lam, Stella McCartney, Current/Elliott, Givenchy and Helmut Lang.

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Luminaire
  • Shopping
  • Design and interiors
  • Coral Gables

This glass box showroom is a beacon for buyers of classic modern furniture by the likes of Le Corbusier, Arne Jacobsen and Jasper Morrison. It is practically a Design District poster child. It features a greatest hits medley of modern designers, with pieces by Ron Arad, Arne Jacobsen, Philippe Starck, Zaha Hadid et al.

Macy's
  • Shopping
  • Bags and luggage
  • Aventura

The quintessential all-American department store, Macy’s offers upscale and mid-range clothing labels, homewares, fashion accessories and cosmetics.

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  • Shopping
  • Bags and luggage
  • Bal Harbour

Offering upmarket merchandise, Neiman Marcus is a favorite of the smart set. But be warned: it earned the nickname "Needless Markups" for a reason.

Poliform Miami
  • Shopping
  • Design and interiors
  • Design District

Poliform Miami takes industrial chic to new heights. The style is pristine verging on the clinical: the cutting-edge kitchens almost look too clean to eat in. But these are the coolest wardrobes, wall units and furnishings this side of Milan.

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The Rabbit Hole
  • Shopping
  • North Miami Beach

At the base of the The Rabbit Hole’s thriving online business is this small North Miami shop, which the New Times has declared one of the city’s best. Among the curated selection of vintage clothing is a great range of party dresses from the 1970s and ’80s, offering one-of-a-kind looks for $50 to $100 a pop. Modern threads—dresses, skirts, tops and accessories—can be had for half that price.

  • Shopping
  • Womenswear
  • Ludlam / Tropical Park

The light pink walls give this shop, which bills itself as a "playground for your imagination," a cool vintage feel. But the affordable boudoir getups are utterly contemporary. For those looking for some sexy swagger to go with their purchase, Sexy Secrets offers pole- and belly-dancing classes.

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Shops at Sunset Place
  • Shopping
  • Shopping centers
  • South Miami

With its over-the-top architecture, giant man-made banyan trees and waterfalls, this is the Disney World of malls. Stores include Armani Exchange, Banana Republic, Gap, Urban Outfitters and Victoria’s Secret. A GameTime arcade, 24-screen multiplex and luxury bowling alley make this a hotspot for teens with time to kill.

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