The best fashion shops in the world's most fashionable cities

As London Fashion Week begins, we round up the best shops for clothes, shoes and accessories around the world, recommended by our experts. 

New York

The most anticipated new opening this autumn will be The Webster in SoHo (29 Greene St; opening date tbc), the celebrity favourite clothes shop in Miami. This will be the new place to see and be seen. The new store will offer an impeccably stylish range limited collections with partners like Paris's Le Bon Marché, swimwear brand Eres and shoe designer Amélie Pichard. The top floor of the new store will be open to VIPs only (with a rooftop deck hosting parties), while the fifth floor the hair salon will feature Parisian hair stylist David Mallet.

Lucie Young

Located just south of Central Park are the women’s and men’s stores of Bergdorf Goodman (bergdorfgoodman.com), on opposite sides of Fifth Avenue at 754 and 745 Fifth Avenue respectively. The quintessential luxury New York shopping experience, going strong since 1899, they carry a variety of high-end clothing and feature signature design houses such as Chanel, Gucci, Versace and, for the boys, Yves Saint Laurent and Paul Smith. The women’s store is the show-stopper. Chic, modern brands such as 3.1 Philip Lim, Alexander Wang and Theyskens’ Theory can be found in the 5F Contemporary section catering to young, sophisticated Gossip Girls. For an afternoon break, head to the seventh floor where BG Restaurant serves a full lunch menu and high tea.

Though Saks Fifth Avenue (saksfifthavenue.com), the upscale department store established back in 1924, has expanded internationally, a visit to its sprawling flagship location on Fifth Avenue (where else?) is the real deal. While the first floor buzzes with scattered accessories and over-zealous perfume sprayers, a calmer experience awaits on the upper levels. Find a curated collection of classic and contemporary brands, lingerie and designer shoes – the latest Manolo Blahnik Jewel Satin Pumps and knee-high Tory Burch boots, for example – spread over 10 floors. The bridal boutique is spectacular, and there are frequent store-wide clearance sales.

To avoid the crowds, head for the intimate in-store boutiques of Escada or Louis Vuitton.

Douglas Rogers

Stocking the likes of Current/ Elliott, Equipment and Graham & Spencer, Big Drop’s (bigdropnyc.com) rails are full of both wardrobe basics and trend-led pieces. If you like something, snap it up quickly: the stock changes weekly. 

For a fantastic selection of luxe brands (including Alexis Bittar, Lulu Frost and Sophie Hulme), head to Intermix (intermixonline.com). The accessories edit is particularly good. 

Sonia Juttla

For designer clothes, shoes and accessories, from Michael Kors to Marc Jacobs, at more affordable prices, Century 21 (c21stores.com) is always worth a look.

Soo Kim 

Paris

For more than 20 years, Armand Hadida has been picking out cutting-edge, ready-to-wear accessories and designer items. He now has seven shops, including a vintage design store in the Puces de St-Ouen, each with its own distinctive style.  This women's branch, L’Eclaireur, is an art installation in itself, with cascading planks of wood by Belgian artist/architect Arne Quinze and hundreds of video screens.  I enjoy coming here simply to ogle at the shop but also for amazing handbags and clothes that are adventurous yet wearable.  leclaireur.com

At the forefront of the current French menswear revival, Melinda Gloss, a new label, now has Left and Right Bank outlets, with this stylish store in a converted bank. It has quickly gained a reputation for the quality of its fabrics, with fine cotton shirts, pure wool jackets, and a large range of knitwear. melindagloss.com

Almost sculptural ladies' shoes are artistically lit in Robert Clergerie, a long boutique designed by Thierry Dreyfus located on Paris's shoe row.  Clergerie was one of France's most influential shoe designers in the Eighties, and the brand, still made in France's shoe capital, Romans, is making a comeback with fashion designer Roland Mouret. New lines are introduced each season but the lace-up Oxfords and brogues in numerous versions remain a classic.  robertclergerie.com

Like its neighbour and rival Galeries Lafayette, Printemps has shot seriously upmarket in the past few years with an array of glitzy, luxury mini-boutiques, fine jewellery and a huge space devoted to watches. Printemps Mode stocks every fashion label imaginable, while the home/beauty store proudly claims to be the largest beauty department in the world, and includes the Scent Room devoted to exclusive perfumes. printemps.com

Located just behind Printemps, circular Citadium is a much younger version of its parent, and has evolved from its original sports shop emphasis to become a funkier department store for youthful clothing. Often packed with Parisian teenagers, a whole floor is devoted to stylish trainers and sports shoes.  citadium.com

Le Bon Marché, the "good bargain", Paris's oldest department store opened in 1852. It still has a distinctly august Left Bank aura (it's less touristy than its Right Bank rivals), and serves a chic, monied clientele. Designer labels and a gorgeous lingerie department are supplemented by younger fashions, a good modern jewellery selection and a new luxury watch department for men. lebonmarche.com

Natasha Edwards

Los Angeles

The secret to shopping in LA is to know which area matches your aesthetic. Are you a Silverlake artist/hipster? An incognito movie star who likes truffling in the Melrose Place and Melrose Ave boutiques, or are you looking for major American brands like Anthropolgie, the Gap and Banana Republic in which case you should go directly to Santa Monica’s Third St Promenade or the Beverly Centre.

West Third (between La Cienega and Fairfax) is one of LA’s most fashionable and easy to shop streets. Among the wall to wall boutiques, check out OK for home furnishings, the Cook’s Library for foodie ideas and Milk for fashion.

Venice’s Abbot Kinney Boulevard is a great shopping street for dozens of vintage and creative boutiques like Strange Invisible Perfumes (100 per cent organic fragrances), Bohemian Exchange (a trendy clothing exchange) and Surfing Cowboys (homespun beach obsessed fare).

Forget Rodeo Drive if you want to see the celebrities. Head instead to Melrose Avenue (starting at Melrose Place and extending to Fairfax. Melrose Avenue has some of the swankiest designer stores in town; Maxfield (no8825) Fred Segal (no8118) and designer consignment store Decades (no8214).

At the other end of the price spectrum, The Third St Promenade in Santa Monica is essentially a giant outdoor mall for all the top US brand stores (Abercrombie & Fitch, Anthropologie, Apple). Other malls worth a visit in LA include The Beverly Center (beverlycenter.com) and The Grove (thegrovela.com).

Lucie Young

Miami

Founded by Miami local Simonett Pereira when she was 22, Style Mafia has grown into an international, high fashion brand with reasonable prices. Her minimalist Wynwood showroom is filled with the company's signature modern silhouettes of ruffles, bell sleeves and voluminous trousers. stylemafia.us

Miami’s original luxury shopping destination, Bal Harbour Shops is a posh outdoor mall with lush landscaping, koi ponds and art installations. It is flanked by Saks Fifth Avenue and Neiman Marcus department stores, and sprinkled with designer flagships (Chanel, Saint Laurent, Prada and the like) and upmarket jewellers such as Audemars Piguet, Bulgari and Tiffany & Co. Be sure to duck into Oxygene, a locally owned, multi-brand boutique bringing Parisian street chic to Miami: I love their well-edited selection of women’s apparel brands like Lanvin, Balmain and Isabel Marant, and their adorable collection of baby designer clothes from Dior to Dolce & Gabbana. If you decide to make a dent in your bank account here, be sure to get your parking ticket validated for a discount when you exit (alas, nothing is free at Bal Harbour Shops). For a break from the shopping, try Makoto, which serves inventive Japanese fare and sushi. balharbourshops.com

Aventura Mall, 20 minutes' drive north of South Beach, one of the largest malls in Florida. An upmarket, pleasant shopping experience, its 300 stores offer something for everyone, from luxury labels like Dior to more affordable brands like Gap, as well as electronics, toys, jewellery and menswear stores. There are also restaurants, a movie theatre and gym. Bloomingdale's department store is always my first stop, to score sales prices on designer shoes, fashion and handbags, or simply stock up on make-up and lingerie

Sunset Harbour is a quaint, village-like neighbourhood in the northern stretches of South Beach with a dolce vita spirit – I find myself here more than any other part in South Beach. Aptly named for the beautiful, unobstructed views at sunset over Biscayne Bay, it has come into its own in the past five years owing to a boom in locally-owned restaurants, fitness studios and shops. The neighbourhood is compact, with all the highlights within a few short blocks. My favourite boutique is Frankie (frankiemiami.com), which has adorable, fashion-forward beach-to-street pieces that complement any South Beach girl’s wardrobe. There’s Eberjey (eberjey.com), a local lingerie and swimwear brand with the prettiest pieces that I just want to live in. Sunset Clothing Co. (facebook.com/SunsetClothingCo) offers fashionable men’s and women’s casual wear, like designer jeans, comfy tees and espadrilles. Consign of the Times (consignofthetimes.com) allows you to sift through designer clothes discarded from the closets of Miami’s most fabulous women.

A shopping street in tree-lined downtown Coral Gables, Miracle Mile is famous for its bridal boutiques, as well as its designer shops, art galleries and outdoor cafés. Popular boutiques include My Best Friend’s Closet, Hip.e and ISA Boutique, all locally owned with an enticing selection of women’s fashion apparel. Also look out for designer home goods stores, like Luminaire and Artemide. shopcoralgables.com

Shayne Benowitz

Rome

Master shirtmaker Piero Albertelli was a Roman legend whose made-to-measure shirts were avidly sought after by Luchino Visconti and other smart society dressers. In 2006, his sixties shop opposite Rome's lower house parliament buliding was bought up by bespoke brand FG (Flanella Grigia), which thankfully opted to change nothing. Silk-lined suits, delicate cotton shirts and cashmere coats are finely detailed with hand-stitched buttonholes and mother-of-pearl buttons. fgroma.com

For more than 100 years, the Marini family has been handcrafting bespoke footwear in its tiny shop on Via Francesco Crispi. With its leather chairs, shoe models and Pinocchio-style shoemaker’s studio, the shop hails from a past era of proud craftsmanship. Displayed on the back wall are the shoe lasts of some of the famous feet shod by Marini, including Marcello Mastroianni, Gregory Peck, Robert De Niro and Anna Magnani. calzaturemarini.it

With no name on its door, Maurizio Catalioti's boutique in Rome's famous 'turtle fountain' piazza (Piazza Mattei 5) is a well-kept secret on Rome's prêt-è-porter scene. He handpicks an exquisite selection of dresses, trousers, outer wear and shoes from a series of recherché, under-the-radar designers. Catalioti is always looking for the next beautiful thing, and likes to change his line-up every few months. Remember to keep your smile handy: Maurizio's sometimes frosty welcome can usually be softened with a bit of charm. 

SBU, Rome's coolest jeans store, occupies a former draper's shop on the ground floor of a lovely Renaissance-era palazzo near Piazza Navona. A perfectly-formed range of printed T-shirts, crisp shirts and other men's essentials are sold here by the Perfetti brothers. SBU's very desirable jeans (around €180), cut from light Japanese denim, have a loyal Roman hipster following. There is also a small womenswear collection. sbu.it

A fashion concept store to rival Colette in Paris or 10 Corso Como in Milan, White Gallery spreads out over three floors of a solid, Fascist-era building in the heart of Mussolini's model suburb, EUR. In its cool marble halls, a stunning selection of clothing, shoes, accessories and lifestyle items are displayed like exhibits in an art gallery. Make sure to head up the marble staircase to the glassed-in tailor's workshop on the top floor for bespoke menswear from Kiton, Isaia and Zegna. whitegallery.it

If Rome is swimming in a sea of shoes, then S...carpe Diem (a laboured pun on scarpa - 'shoe' and the Latin phrase carpe diem) is the whirlpool. This tiny Piazza Navona shop manages to cram in a remarkable, eclectic selection of stilettos, wedges, boots and other delightful and flirtatious footwear. Though the boutique can barely fit more than a few customers, its whimsical selection of heels from designers like Pura Lopez, Aldo Castagna and SAX seems never ending. Owner Franco will make adjustments on-site. scarpe-diem.it

Lee Marshall

Venice

Arnoldo & Battois, the shop by two Venetian designers born and bred, Silvano Arnoldo and Massimiliano, offers contemporary variations on early 20th-century travelling bags in a range of very Venetian hues, they look like what Mary Poppins might carry on her arm if she were reborn as a third-millennium fashionista. Prices start in the €180 range, but the January and July sales offer substantial discounts.

If there were a prize for the most Venetian shop in Venice, Monica Daniele, a traditional outfitters not far from the Frari, would saunter through to the finals. Monica Daniele specialises in clothes that would not look out of place in a painting of 18th-century life by Pietro Longhi. Her real claim to fame is to have rescued from obscurity the tabarro, or Venetian wool cloak, as worn by Casanova and his contemporaries.

In Venice, every other shop seems to sell Carnival masks, but serious players who only stock their own, hand-crafted products are few and far between. One of the most highly respected is Ca' Macana, which has three branches around Dorsoduro (I've listed the main one). This was the shop that Stanley Kubrick went to when he needed masks for Eyes Wide Shut, and testimonials from clients such as Nicole Kidman and Leo DiCaprio are proudly displayed in the window. camacana.com

It started life in 1989 as an upmarket optician called L'O.FT (L'Ottico Fabbricatore; Vaporetto stop Rialto) with its own line in fashionista eyewear. Over the years, this dynamic little outlet just across a bridge on the busy Rialto - Accademia route has branched out into womenswear and accessories. Don't be put off by the rather minimalist selection you see through the shop window. This shopfront area is a mere portal to another world – a former warehouse, accessed via a courtyard behind the shop, which hosts a curated selection of togs and bags by stylish, independent Italian design firms. Eyewear is still the forte of the front-of-shop space, with a cool selection of shades and frames, including some hipster own-brand frames in wood laminate. 

Anne Hanley

Milan

There is a gorgeous store complex, 10 Corso Como, which sells fabulous clothing, art and furniture. It’s a fantastic place to buy really beautiful gifts. It was founded by the former Vogue editor, gallerist and publisher Carla Sozzani and you’ll find many a treat to take home. 10corsocomo.com

Massimo Bottura, Italian chef/owner of Osteria Francescana - winner of the latest 'World's Best Restaurant' award 

• Massimo Bottura’s Milan

One of the world’s most elegant shopping arcades, the Galleria Vittorio Emanuele II is a 19th-century marvel with glass vaulted ceilings and mosaics. Inside you’ll find the Gucci café and the original Prada store

Or try nabbing a designer bargain at one of the city’s designer outlet stores – Il Salvagente is one of the best. salvagentemilano.it

Kate Salter

Barcelona

Santa Eulalia has been dressing wealthy Barcelonins since 1843, and, although it no longer produces its own haute couture, it has become the city’s top address for luxury labels such as Marc Jacobs, Lanvin and Etro. Still celebrated for its bespoke shirt-making and men’s tailoring, Santa Eulalia also designs its own line of women’s ready-to-wear fashions. santaeulalia.com

Unleash your inner Carrie Bradshaw at Cherry Heel, a fabulous boutique full of luxury Italian shoes by the most prestigious and covetable designers. Set in a sumptuous Modernista building, the shop is arranged on several levels, each lined with shelves full of desirable footwear, complemented by bags and accessories. cherryheel.com

Geared towards women who love fashion and don’t mind paying a little extra for gorgeous fabrics and beautiful detailing, the Bimba & Lola collections – which also include bags, shoes, and accessories – are always bang on trend and feature a charming logo of a leaping greyhound, modelled on one of the founders’ favourite pets. Although the whole collection is usually very strong, the bags stand out. bimbaylola.com

The Born neighbourhood is packed with fantastic boutiques, but Coquette is my absolute favourite. The fashions are feminine and relaxed, with a touch of Gallic chic. Labels run the gamut from homegrown like Hoss Intropia to Danish firm Custommade, as well, of course, as French designs such as Isabel Marant, Laurence Doligé and Athé by Vanessa Bruno. It’s always worth taking a look at the small but well-chosen selection of accessories, particularly the funky, retro-style bathing costumes. 00 34 93 319 29 76; C/Rec 65, 08003

La Comercial Hombre has wrapped up this corner of the chic Born neighbourhood, with six shops dedicated to fashion for men and women, as well as one which contains beautiful items for the home. In this branch, you’ll find everything that the well-dressed man about town requires, from designer clothing to a gorgeous range of fragrances and Diptyque candles. lacomercial.info

Gràcia’s narrow streets are chock-full of shops, including some fabulous independent fashion boutiques, but the Mushi Mushi Collection has long been one of my favourites. It’s small, but manages to offer a surprisingly wide selection of women’s fashions, from the likes of French labels Sessún, 2Two, Zero Cent Cinq and Des Petits Hauts, and Danish designers Custommade. The style is cool and relaxed, with a romantic, feminine touch, and there are also a few accessories, including shoes, bags and jewellery, to choose from. mushimushicollection.com

Sally Davies

London

For designer and bling: Mount Street and Bruton Street in London's Mayfair, home to Stella McCartney, Alexander McQueen et al; Bond Street and Regent Street have now formed the Luxury Quarter (londonluxuryquarter.com), offering bespoke shopping tours; Sloane Street is the high-fashion retail artery linking Knightsbridge and Harvey Nichols (trendy) with Sloane Square and Peter Jones (sensible – with the best roof-top café views); in the City the honours are shared by the Royal Exchange (theroyalexchange.com) and the Jean Nouvel-designed One New Change (onenewchange.com), nicknamed the "Stealth Bomber".

For chic boutiques: Marylebone High Street; and South Molton Street; Upper Street, Islington; Clarendon Cross (clarendoncross.net) in Holland Park; the boutiques around Artillery Row and Spitalfields Market, near Liverpool St.

For high street: Oxford Street, obviously; the great temple of Topshop at one end and Selfridges at the other;  St Christopher’s Place (look for the tiny alleyway across from Bond Street tube station); Kensington High Street and Church Street; and the Kings Road, Chelsea with the Duke of York’s development. Westfield Shopping Centre at White City in the west (uk.westfield.com/london) is now partnered by the massive Westfield Stratford City in the east (uk.westfield.com/stratfordcity/) and the Canary Wharf Malls (mycanarywharf.com) on the Isle of Dogs.

For cheap, cheerful and vintage: Cabbages & Frocks Market on Saturdays at St Marylebone Church (cabbagesandfrocks.co.uk); huge, youthful Camden Market (camdenlock.net); Brick Lane (visitbricklane.org) on Sundays; Spitalfields on Thursdays (visitspitalfields.com); Retromania in Victoria and Virginia’s at Clarendon Cross (above); Frock Me! (frockmevintagefashion.com) at Chelsea Town Hall, Sundays; Absolute Vintage, Hanbury Street, E1 (absolutevintage.co.uk) and of course Portobello Road (portobelloroad.co.uk) where the market stalls open only on Saturdays, but the numerous shops and antiques centres are open all week.

Sophie Campbell