“The best way to shop is often by precinct rather than by product.” That’s what The World Loves Melbourne says, and here is its shoping list of Melbourne shopping:
The Emporium is “arguably the hottest place to shop in Australia … a brand new world-class shopping destination over seven levels … the largest retail development to be delivered in the Melbourne CBD for more than a century … over 24 Melbourne flagship stores and the largest collection of Australian designers under one roof, with over 200 high street fashion and food brands.”
Collins Street is “perhaps the most famous Melbourne shopping street … home to high end jewellery (including Georg Jensen, Makers Mark, Bvlgari, Jan Logan, Rutherford and Tiffany & Co), high end fashion (Cose Ipanema, Husk, Herringbone, Hugo Boss and the legendary appointment-only boutique Le Louvre), shoes and luxury goods (such as Ralph Lauren, Hermes, Chanel, Gucci, Bally, Salvatore Ferragamo and Louis Vuitton).”
Block Arcade, a laneway between Collins and Little Collins Streets, erected between 1891 and 1893 “is one of Australia's best surviving examples of the Victorian Mannerist style … over 30 boutique shops include Haigh’s Chocolates, Melbourne-based Douglas & Hope (fashion and homewares), various fashion, jewellery and specialty shops …”
Bourke Street Mall is one of the major shopping hubs of Melbourne -- “plenty of designer brands here including popular Myer and David Jones, Sportsgirl, and the addition of international brand Zara. Check out the iconic David Jones Food Hall.” The iconic General Post Office in the mall, built in 1864, “provides a great retail experience showcasing fashion, luxury goods and dining. Look out for gorman, Leona Edmiston, Mimco, Ben Sherman, Georg Jensen, Camper, Cacao Fine Chocolate & Patisserie plus delicious eateries in GPO Lane.”
Melbourne Central is “a modern shopping complex with many name brands including Crumpler, MAC Cosmetics, Kiehl's, MOZI, GAP, Oroton, Calibre, Peter Alexander, Armani Exchange, Calvin Klein ck, Country Road, Dangerfield, Diesel, Elwood, G-Star, Guess, Saba, Alanah Hill, Sass and Bide, and many many more.”
Chapel Street in South Yarra is “one of the best fashion strips (if not the best) in Australia” and provides designer chains and unique boutique experiences. And the Chapel St Bazaar is “a classic featuring haberdashery, homewares and fashion, with hidden gems to be had.”
Brunswick St Fitzroy is “a great place for vintage clothing … it’s also great for op shops. A popular stop are the factory outlets – get yourself some bargain Alannah Hill …”
Smith St Collingwood, Melbourne's first suburban shopping strip where the first Coles store opened in 1914, “has been transformed in recent years to be a trendy precinct full of fashion, great cafes and restaurants and boutique stores.”
Bridge Road in Richmond is “best known for its abundance of clothing factory outlets of well known retailers, which makes it a popular tourist attraction … business types know you can pick up a value suit along this precinct … there are also many stores of up-and-coming local fashion designers.”
Melbourne is a city with hundreds of charming, evocative, idiosyncratic, old shops. And to read about them, go to Tales of Brick and Mortar, Aron Lewin’s fascinating website that profiles many of those shops, across all categories and regions, interviews their owners and founders, and takes readers into their worlds through the photographs of Tatiana C C Scott. Lewin tells The Age that his brief is simple: “To document the history behind well established shops across Melbourne.”