609 Best Places to Shop in USA

This is the studio where architect Paolo Soleri's famous bronze and ceramic wind chimes are made and sold. You can watch the craftspeople at work, then pick out your own—prices are surprisingly reasonable.

Ring the doorbell for fine new jewelry and antiques at this Charleston institution that's been facilitating proposals, weddings, and anniversaries for more than 100 years. You'll also find wonderful wedding gift items. Should the need arise, Croghan's does excellent repair work too.

Stock up on top-quality cowboy gear and clothing, ranging from felt hats and bolo ties for men to women's paisley Western shirts and wool jackets; and there's a huge selection of gear for horses. You'll also find an impressive array of Western books and household and kitchen goods.

This acclaimed confectioner produces edible works of art in the form of strikingly designed chocolate bars like the WhiteSand with juniper, cardamom, and white chocolate, and the earthy Silk Flowers bar colored and flavored with peppercorns, chrysanthemums, and marigolds. Other specialties include bonbons and Mayan drinking chocolate, which you can sip in the adjacent café. 

The hip and well-selected array of goods at this modern-design shop makes it an excellent place for both window-shopping and finding gifts for just about anyone on your list (including yourself). A refreshing departure from the rest of the traditional gift shops in the village, this boutique is chock-full of eye candy, most of which is also functional. There are many locally sourced and contemporary products, from hats and jewelry to novelty books, home decor, and outdoor adventure essentials. Check out Daytrip Jr., its equally hip children's store around the corner.

The stylish, minimalist designs on the T-shirts, sweatshirts, tanks, and baseball caps at this shop focus on a love for the city and its spirit. Many proceeds go to nonprofits and community organizations. An additional store can be found at the Ace Hotel New Orleans ( 600 Carondolet St.) in the Warehouse District.

The main repository of Potterabilia sells everything from Hogwarts school uniforms to broomsticks and other Quidditch supplies (including the legendary Nimbus Two-Thousand-and-One). This is also a good place to buy a new pair of Spectrespecs or stock up on other magic equipment.

About 20 miles west of Palm Springs lies one of California's largest outlet malls, which hawks everything from bikinis and bags to sunglasses and stilettos. The complex's 180 stores include Jimmy Choo, Samsonite, Levi's, Saint Laurent, J. Crew, Armani, Gucci, lululemon, and Prada.

T-shirts and bumper stickers with the phrase "Be a New Orleanian. Wherever you are" deeply resonated with displaced residents after Hurricane Katrina. Since then, locals leave it to this shop's shirts, stickers, and hats to both satirize ("New Orleans: So far behind, we're ahead") and celebrate local culture in a clever way. The store has a Lower Garden district location ( 1320 Magazine St.) and a French Quarter location ( 713 Royal St.).

Owned by an Orcas Island–born sommelier who worked at restaurants in Vail and Vegas before returning home, this cheerful little bottle shop and tasting room in Eastsound has a great selection of wine, beer, and cider from around the world, including a wine series, the Orcas Project, that is produced in collaboration with Pacific Northwest winemakers and artists.

Austin's premier shopping and entertainment district, the Domain is just a short drive north of downtown, situated along North MoPac (Loop 1) at the beginning of North Austin's IBM campus and surrounding tech corridor.

The sprawling, open-air center is home to more than 100 aspirational and name-brand shops, like Gucci, Neiman Marcus, Tiffany & Co., and Tesla, that cater to the platinum-card set. Those on more modest budgets have plenty to appreciate, though, with familiar favorites like Bath & Body Works, Levi's, and Zara found amid dozens of excellent eateries and other noteworthy offerings, including luxury movie theaters, pop-up museum installations, salons, and dance studios.

Some complain there's very little Austin-specific about the North Austin locale, but more local flavor continues to arrive in the ever-expanding shopping district, including a lovely Kendra Scott jewelry location and homegrown eateries such as Juiceland. It's also home to the new flagship location of Cap City Comedy Club.

It's a pleasant place to spend a few hours, if only to window shop after a nice meal—or enjoy a full-blown retail-oriented weekend with a bevy of delicious fine-dining options to choose from and plenty of luxury and business-friendly hotels in the immediate vicinity.

Stuff your face with some of the best versions of Cajun favorites on site or fill your cooler with boudin, cracklins, stuffed pork chops, quail, and a variety of sausages. There's another location at  4120 NE Evangeline Thruway in Carencro, also just outside Lafayette.

Most locals have fond memories of visiting Doodlet's in childhood because this store has been delighting customers with its whimsical collection of pop-up books, silly postcards, tin art, hooked rugs, and stringed lights for decades. Considered one of Santa Fe's best gift shops, you will find wonderment in every display case, drawing the eye to the unusual. There's something for just about everyone at this delightfully quirky, popular shop, and often it's affordable.

Shopping is excellent and local all over downtown Asheville, with around 200 boutiques, including more than 30 art and crafts galleries. Several streets, notably Biltmore Avenue, Broadway Street, Lexington Avenue, Haywood Street, and Wall Street, are lined with small, independently owned stores. In fact, there are only two chain retailers in all of downtown.

Farmers and artisan food producers proffer fresh fruit and veggies, flowers, and other goodies at this phenomenally popular—and quite extensive—downtown farmers' market at Pioneer Park each Saturday from June through late October. Local bakeries and restaurants also sell tasty treats ranging from fresh salsa to cinnamon rolls, and there's a central food truck plaza with live music, too. A smaller version of the market takes place on Thursday afternoon from 4 until dusk in Liberty Park from mid-June through September, and a winter market is held on Saturday morning at The Gateway from November through April. Additional farmers' markets take place around the city, generally in summer, in Sugar House, Murray, South Jordan, and several other locales.

This yearly holiday outdoor market is located in Penn Quarter, transforming two city blocks on F Street into a one-stop shop, open-air winter wonderland. The market features local businesses and entrepreneurs across the region, finding unique, festive treasures in the heart of the District starting mid-November and usually going through a few days before Christmas. The outdoor shopping village’s expansive footprint allows for wide aisles for shopping, browsing, and also indulging in food stalls by local restaurants.

If you happen by this farm stand in the summer, don't pass up the chance to sample the tree-ripened white and yellow peaches, some of which may have been harvested moments before you arrived. You can buy peaches in small quantities, as well as organic peach jam.

Among the city’s most beloved bookshops, E. Shaver, Bookseller is the go-to spot for bibliophiles and book-clubbers, considering they have groups meeting monthly for fans of Jane Austen, social justice and culture reads, graphic novels, and much more. Among other services, staff can curate a book collection to fit the customer’s taste, ranging in size from a few feet of shelves to an entire library.

This beautiful little space at the end of historic Pier 4 features a highly curated selection of fiction, poetry, biography, art, and local interest books, as well as vinyl records. It's an outpost of the OG bookstore in the East End of Provincetown, Massachusetts.

For 150-plus years, this has been the hub of the Capitol Hill community. Vibrantly colored produce and flowers, freshly caught fish, fragrant cheeses, and tempting sweets are sold at the market by independent vendors. On weekends year-round, local farmers sell fresh fruits and vegetables (Tuesdays, too), and artists and exhibitors sell handmade arts and crafts, jewelry, antiques, collectibles, and furniture from around the world. A flea market unfurls on Sundays. The city's oldest continuously operating public market continues to be a vibrant and lively gathering place, complete with entertainment, art showings, and a pottery studio for residents and visitors alike.

Take some time to "eat, shop, and learn" (their tagline) at this vast Italian marketplace, an Italian grocery and food hall that occupies the main entrance to Park MGM. What are you eating, shopping, and learning about? Classes such as "hands-on tiramisu" enable guests to pay for a learning experience with some of Eataly's great Italian chefs. Perhaps the highlight of Eataly is a gift shop and market that sells a variety of goods imported straight from the motherland. But visitors may be more interested in the Cucina del Mercato, numerous food stalls that serve everything from wine and cheese to meats, pizza, pasta, gelato, and Italian pastries. Other highlights, mi amore? Dine at Toscano Ristorante & Bar or La Pizza & La Pasta, eyeball a replica of the famous bull mosaic in Milan (said to bestow good luck); drink wine poured "on tap"; sample the goodies at the Nutella counter (serving crepes, cookies, and croissants); and even purchase souvenir poker chips (sporting symbols of espresso, gelato, pizza, and Parmigiano Reggiano). 

Opened since 2013, Chicago’s sprawling Eataly location has a little bit of everything. Part-market, part–upscale food court with multiple cafés, and a gelato shop thrown in for good measure, it is a foodie’s paradise.

Just across the river from Wiscasset, this family-owned pottery operation is renowned for its vibrantly colored, exquisitely glazed porcelain, which is also sold at shops in Portland and York. But it's all made right here—the original location. The store also carries a fine selection of jewelry, glassware, and glass sculptures.