Los Angeles Shopping Guide: Stores and Shops in the Los Angeles Area

Spotlight

Los Angeles

Shopping

Los Angeles and conspicuous consumption go hand in hand — after all, both the shopping mall and the strip mall were both invented here and even today, fashion fads and trends typically begin here, so you can try on (and buy) unique styles and looks months before they catch on around the rest of the world. From small boutiques and specialty stores to factory outlets, flea markets, and tasteful outdoor shopping malls, it's easy to find a setting that suits your shopping mood, no matter how tight your wallet. We've covered our favorite shopping destinations to get you started – from stores to streets.

On Rodeo Drive in Beverly Hills, prices naturally trend toward the astronomical. Mercifully, window-shopping remains a riveting sport here and we heartily recommend popping in to the Dutch-architect-designed Prada "Epicenter" (343 N. Rodeo Dr.) and jeweler-to-the-stars Harry Winston (371 N. Rodeo Dr.). Other shops along this narrow sloping corridor include Tiffany, Cartier, Valentino, Christian Dior, but you'll also want to check out the Anderton Court Center (328 Rodeo Dr.), designed by Frank Lloyd Wright, which houses a series of small boutiques connected by a spiraling ramp.

Another great shopping destination near Beverly Hills is the ornate outdoor shopping center known as The Grove (189 The Grove Dr.). Built as a glorified main street of Anytown U.S.A., everything from iPod accessories (at the Apple Store) to fresh vegetables (at the neighboring historical Farmer's Market) can be found here; you'll also find a dancing fountain and double-decker trolley that lend the place a theme-park air. Between Beverly Hills and Hollywood is Kitson (115 S. Robertson Blvd.), popular with the likes of Nicole Ritchie, Lindsay Lohan, and Paris Hilton.

Who says nobody walks in L.A.! Chock-a-block with funky shops, Melrose Avenue (between Fairfax and La Brea) is where you'll find vintage-clothing stores, the world-famous Golden Apple Comics (7711 Melrose Ave.) store, and scenesters and celebrities looking to reassert their individual style at Fred Segal (8100 Melrose Ave.), a boutique department store that has influenced fashion around the world by launching the careers of young designers.

Other quintessential L.A. shopping districts include Santa Monica's three-block pedestrian-only Third Street Promenade, Venice Beach's artsy Abbot Kinney Boulevard, the trendy Sunset Strip between Crescent Heights and Doheny, and downtown's Santee Alley, where you can buy knockoffs of name-brand merchandise for a song. Finally, don't leave town until you take home your very own Oscar statuette from one of the tacky gift shops on Hollywood Boulevard.