Shopping in Paris is fun even if you don't buy a single thing.
While there are clearly many incredible places to shop,
this video spotlights four stores in particular you won't want to miss.
Let's start with Le Bon Marché, which is on the left bank
and spans several blocks between the 6th and 7th arrondissements.
It's the perfect place to begin because, when it opened in 1852,
it was the first department store in the world.
The engineer of the space was Gustave Eiffel -
who will sound familiar because he's of course also the man behind the Eiffel Tower.
Another famous part-time Parisian, Ina Garten, has a home nearby and loves to shop here
so you can live out your Barefoot Contessa dreams and pray you bump into her.
The Bon Marche is sort of like Harrods in London or KDW in Berlin
in the sense that it's a historic, beautifully edited department store.
There are 30,000 square metres spread between two buildings
and about 15,000 customers per day.
In addition to clothing and home goods,
there's a gorgeous food section with groceries
as well as food to takeaway.
It's a great spot to grab some treats
and head to the nearby Luxembourg Garden for a little Parisian picnic.
If looking at a whole aisle of French mustard sounds like fun to you (like it does to me)
you're going to love looking around here.
Next is another historic store in Paris called E. Dehillerin
which predates the Bon Marche by over 30 years.
It opened in 1820 and since then it's been the place to buy any sort of kitchen tool you can imagine.
It's a vault of cookery treasure.
Its most famous customer is Julia Child
who was a regular here while she attended cooking school at Le Cordon Bleu.
My guess is that it probably hasn't changed much in its history.
It feels like a place that hasn't taken much notice of the passing of time out on the streets outside.
Inside is a bit dark with narrow aisles brimming with professional cookware
in enamel, stainless steel, and copper.
The stairs creek in the best way
and the wooden shelves hold everything you could imagine
to fire up your French cooking dreams.
Note that the products here don't have price tags, they have reference numbers.
In order to find out how much something costs, you need to find a price list and check there.
For anyone who loves cooking, and food and French culture and history
and Julia Child, this is the place.
One of the most famous if not the most famous stores in Paris is Galeries Lafayette.
It's a chain but you want to visit the flagship store on Hausmann Boulevard in the 9th arrondissement.
Look for the 43 meter high glass dome that covers the great hall.
The idea was to let light in that would make every product sparkle.
Other stores will seem plain after seeing such majesty here.
If Galeries Lafayette is the most famous store in Paris,
then the next store - Monoprix - is the most famous in France.
Monoprix is to France what Target is to the US.
It's ubiquitous and honestly thank the shopping gods for that.
If someone says, 'Where can I find blank?’
'Monoprix' is generally a safe answer.
They sell all sorts of different products: clothing, shoes, makeup and toiletries,
stationery, and houseware like dishes, pots and pans, cutlery, and textiles.
It's also a good place to look for inexpensive Paris souvenirs
like these cute notebooks and mugs.
Some Monoprix stores also carry groceries and I LOVE looking around the food section.
If you're out and about and looking for some quick, budget-friendly food
just pop into a Monoprix and you'll find something.
Everyone loves Monoprix.
I hope you enjoyed this video - please give it a like if you did.
We also made a video at the Paris Flea Market, which is the biggest of its kind in the world,
so I'll link that if you want some more shopping fun and inspiration.
Check our other Paris videos for more on what to do and where to eat
and remember to subscribe for lots more travel adventures around the world.
Thanks for watching!