First published on 1 Dec 2011. Updated on 1 Dec 2011.
50 - 41 | 40 - 31 | 30 - 21 | 20 - 11 | 10 - 1
Designer
1 Taojiang Lu, near Dongping Lu.
This boudoir-inspired space from Sara Villareal plays host to a huge array of hip US and European labels from Proenza Shouler to Jason Wu, alice + olivia and Diane Von Furstenberg. Darling of the British boho-chic set, Matthew Williamson, is also due to land in store next year – we can’t wait.
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Fashion
399 Lujiabang Lu, near Zhongshan Nan Lu.
When it comes to tailor-made clothing, the South Bund Fabric Market can’t be beaten. It pays to know where to go, though – both in cost and quality. We recommend 2F-215 for sumptuous
cashmere coats, Merry Jacky (3F-340) for classic
denim shirts and jeans, Andy Wen (2F-295+1) for Chanel-style
boucle jackets and Xia Rong Jun (3F-326) for sharp, quality
men’s suits and fitted shirts.
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Electronics
527 Huaihai Zhong Lu, near Chengdu Nan Lu.
Placing a whopping 21 spots above the Apple Store, we love German chain Media Markt for its huge range – if you can plug it in, this place has it. You might find products they stock cheaper elsewhere, but you’ll probably have to bargain and may be unable to return it if something goes wrong. As well as a huge selection of phones, cameras, camcorders, laptops and tablets, good buys include Sennheiser in-ear headphones (from 89RMB), Verbatim external hard drives (1TB, 899RMB) and DVD players from 109RMB. Braun blending wands are 609RMB and Delonghi coffee makers start at 798RMB and go way, way up to 40,797RMB. The six floor store on Huaihai Lu also has its own surprisingly decent cafe.
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Food & Drink
274 Wulumuqi Lu, near Wuyuan Lu.
We couldn’t, in all conscience, leave out this beloved Wulumuqi Lu institution. Fresh and rare fruit, vegetables and herbs are the principal draws, all far cheaper than the expat-baiting supermarkets in the area and, given the high turnover, probably fresher, too. There are cured meats (from 30RMB), cheeses, including fresh buffallo mozzarella (18RMB), and a gloriously messy amount of wine (from 45RMB). Amelia’s jams (from 45RMB) and Strictly Cookies are here, too. Stock is seasonal -- American-imported turkeys are currently in (50RMB/kg). See full address details
Fashion
969 Nanjing Xi Lu, near Maoming Bei Lu.
Uniqlo isn’t the most cutting edge clothing store, but its cheap, basic designs make it one of our favourite high street chains. Their T-shirts (99RMB) – which have featured collaborations with New York’s MoMA – are regular features in our summer wardrobe, while the quality and durability of items such as their winter knitwear (cardigans and jumpers from 149RMB) raises them above the perhaps more stylish H&M.
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Sports & Leisure
Basement, Lane 620 Quyang Lu, near Chifeng Lu.
There are no fixies, flashy neon rims or custom-made frames here, just a middle-aged man in a dank basement with the best range of Phoenix bicycles in the city. The heavy-duty frames and beautifully-painted Phoenix decorations are nearly unchanged from the 1958 Shanghai-made originals and are timelessly elegant, especially the racing green China Post bikes (458RMB), which are a cut above other Forevers and Phoenixes, in looks if not function.
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Art & Design
126 Jinxian Lu, near Maoming Lu
Not just somewhere to buy analogue cameras, this six floor emporium is the home base for an entire subculture. The store hosts exhibitions; has a media library; stocks T-shirts (238RMB); develops film at reasonable prices (50RMB for 4x6" prints and a CD) and has a cosy cafe selling 15RMB coffees. The cameras include Holgas (668RMB), the Lomo LC-A+ (2,180RMB) and the Pop 9 (398RMB, which produces a mosaic of nine identical pictures on one print). Last month, Lomo launched the Lomokino (638 RMB), a 35mm hand-cranked camera that takes photos so fast you can make low-frame-rate movies.
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Fashion
Bldg 1, Lane 210 Fumin Lu, near Changle Lu
Next door to Dong Liang, The Hive is a one-stop-shop for independent Shanghai-based labels, with the latest collections from JL, punksters Where What Who, preppy menswear brand threeSociety and its sister label Xiaozhe by George. Prices start from just 545RMB for one of JL’s quirky tees, printed with images of iconic Chinese animals.
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Entertainment
407 Dagu Lu, near Shimen Yi Lu
Movie Star is like an Aladdin’s Cave of film organised by pedantic librarians; over 2,000 vintage, art house and blockbuster films and TV series stretching back over 60 years are lovingly ordered by genre, language and title. Their good quality and cheapish: 12RMB/DVD and box sets from 100RMB. Best of all is Mr Li, an old Movie Star hand with a Rain Man-like ability to find the film you’re after.
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Couterfeit
580 Nanjing Xi Lu, near Chengdu Bei Lu
The four-storey ‘Taobao’ Market on Nanjing Xi Lu is the pick of Shanghai’s shanzhai malls, with a broad selection of fashion, toys, electronics, luggage, China tourist tack and more, all of which requires a bit of bargaining. Look for convincing Mulberry bag knock-offs, including ‘Alexa’ satchels (800RMB, 3F-103); mini-blow torches (55-120RMB, 2F-63A), Beijing opera masks (15RMB, 3F-130), good quality baseball shirts (100RMB, 1F-81), and pirated Wii and X-box games (6-10RMB, various stalls).
While the range isn’t quite as good, you can find many similar items at the Shanghai Science and Tech Museum Market. One store we especially like there is A3-98, which has wind-up tin toys (30-200RMB) and leather notebooks (35RMB).
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