What shops do you love going into?

[Limth]

I don't mean shops you like because they're products are good quality, or because they're reliable for certain things, or because their customer service is great.

I mean what shops do you go in and think "Yes, I love it in here".

For me its Iceland Food Warehouse. Our local one is massive, really clean, really well-stocked and I always find completely random oven-able beige goods.
I could genuinely browse for hours.

We also have Boyes in my local high street. It's like a mini department store that sells basically everything you could think of. It's like stepping back in time. I absolutely adore it.

Tk maxx for the festivities - also the Range for this reason
m&s food
used to love good old Debenhams
Victoria’s Secret just for a browse and to smell the perfumes!

Definitely T K Maxx

Oh yes, I get TKMaxx totally. Our local one closed a few years back. Now the nearest one is at an out-of-town shopping park and its just not the same vibes.

Waterstones....I just like browsing books.

Søstrene Grene

Any book shop
Sostrene Greene
Lakeland
My absolute favourite though is garden centres at Christmas

The white company... I feel inner peace when I step inside 😂

-Independent bookshops - especially ones where staff handpick favourites to recommend
-Pretentious, bouji organic food shops
-Garden centres!

HomeSense love love love it.

Came to say the same. When they have an upstairs home department I just think ' I'd like to move in here please...'

Waterstones, because books, bloody love books, and Anthropologie, because I love everything in it, it's vibe, but more in a museum kind of way, because I've never bought anything there!

My favourite ever is a little stationery shop in Oxford that is like being in heaven. The stationery is divine and they play opera on the sound system. The only drawback is not being able to afford much...

A secondhand and vintage clothes shop in a local town. I always, without fail, find something brilliant in there but it's closing down soon .

Also in the same local town, a beautiful fabric shop.

Any bookshop except WH Smith (which doesn't really count as one).

And garden centres, obviously, especially Burford garden centre.

Any independently owned home gift shop.
Especially this time of year.
Love the smells and all the sparkle .

I love a 'concept store'.

No idea what the name of them even means – but little shops of (generally overpriced) beautifully designed nonsense.

I think it might be an inner rebellion against mass-produced samey high-street stuff... or it might be much less deep and meaningful than that(!) but I just LOVE 'em.

Burford Garden Centre is lovely! Have you been to Daylesford? That is great for looking around, especially at Christmas.

Homesense for me. I love the candles especially.

I came on to say Sostrene but Burford Garden Centre is my totally aspirational place to hang out. If they would only bring back Supermarket Sweep, I'd happily fly my trolley around Burford!

Department stores. Hardly any left now 🙁 We still have JL and Harvey Nichols here in Edinburgh, but I miss Debenhams, House of Fraser and Jenners. Also an independent one in Aberdeen where I grew up called Esslemont and Macintosh.

Very few. But pretty much any bookshop or upmarket stationery shop.
I do like a museum or gallery shop (eg National Gallery, V&A, Courtauld, Royal Academy).
I also like Liberty's and Gudrun Sjoden, but they are only in London, so opportunities to visit are rare.
Chatsworth Farm Shop - I always spend more than I intended!
John Lewis are fine for essentials.

But I can go weeks or months without going in a shop (except your basic supermarket) - most of them are awful.

I used to love Boyes when I was a youngsters, back in the 70s & 80s, OP!

I like a trip to M & S, and I really miss Debenhams. Can't beat a good department store.

TK Maxx and Homesense, Anthropologie and Liberty's when in London, Selfridges.

Vinegar Hill. It always feels cosy & welcoming.

Agree with garden centres at Christmas.

We started a family tradition of doing a little tour of the local ones during Covid, when garden centres were on the allowed list. We actually queued for about an hour at one, just to get in. Worth it though 😁

Ours closed down :-(