Los Angeles, also called Tinsel Town, the City of Angels or La-La land is truly a heaven for shoppers. This beautiful city, home to the many rich and famous in America has over 1,500 department stores, numerous smaller specialty shops, a number of fashionable shopping plazas, and plenty of big urban malls.
Rodeo Drive is the most famous shopping district in Los Angeles, only three blocks long, showcases some of the most expensive shops in the world. In fact, the single most expensive store in the world- ‘Bijan’ is located here. Shopping at Bijan requires an earlier appointment. Some really big names in fashion designing like Armani, Gucci, Christian Dior, Coco Chanel, and Ralph Lauren have set up boutiques here.
Other prominent shopping districts include Robertson Boulevard, Melrose Avenue, Beverly Boulevard, Third Street, Montana Avenue, La Brea, Sunset Plaza, Westwood Village and Downtown/Santee Alley.
The Farmer's Market and Shopping Village in downtown Los Angeles has an exhaustive variety of gifts, fresh fruits and vegetables, seafood and flowers. It is just next door to the Farmer’s Market that the superb ‘The Grove’ shopping complex is found. This wonderful open-air shopping and dining center with a wonderful European ambience has some really great upscale shops, restaurants and movie theatres. The complex houses flagship stores for The Gap, Pottery Barn, Abercrombie & Fitch, Banana Republic, J Crew, Nike Goddess etc. Ideal for holiday shopping, there are also numerous smaller unique shops. For booklovers, there is the Barnes & Noble bookstore.
Want a taste of something ethnic? Then visit Little Tokyo, Koreatown, Chinatown, East Los Angeles, Olviera Street, Little Ethiopia and Thai town; easily accessed by bus, car, train or foot.
Some of the best indoor shopping malls in greater Los Angeles include South Coast Plaza, The Beverly Center, Hollywood and Highland, Del Amo Fashion Center, Santa Monica Place and Glendale Galleria.
South Coast Plaza, a tourist destination, is the largest and most frequently visited shopping center in America. Shop here and get more value for your money.
The Beverly Center located in West Los Angeles has 160 unique specialty boutiques and restaurants representing the styles and tastes of Los Angeles and has brand names like Hugo Boss, Dior, Coach and Diesel. The Rooftop Terrace, one of their recent additions, showcases some really panoramic views. Any visitor to Hollywood should visit the Hollywood and Highland shopping complex attached to the famous Grauman’s Chinese Theatre and the Kodak Theatre. It has got numerous voguish boutiques and restaurants.
Del Amo Fashion Center: It is the largest mall in west USA with 350 stores. Some of its many department stores include Macy’s, Macy’s Home and Furniture, Sears, JC Penny, T.J.Max etc. It has also got three food courts.
Santa Monica Place has got shops catering to teenagers but also has some upscale brand shops such as Kenneth Cole and Williams-Sonoma. This shopping mall was designed by the renowned architect Frank Gehry and was a backdrop for several notable films and television shows.
Glendale Galleria is an expansive three storey indoor mall with over 260 stores. There is a rich variety of men’s apparel and gadget shops, teen interest shops and shops selling children’s articles.
