New York shopping and what to bring back

[Urbanvoltaire]

I'm off to NY for a week in August and am after some advice on decent shops, specify areas to wander about age what to bring back that's good value.

Ive been before but stent gave enough time to get any shopping in. Thanks all.

I spent last summer there and it nearly bankrupted me. Butter was £6. I couldn’t even buy cheap food at the supermarket to cook in. Everything was so expensive. Just be prepared!

I’ve not been for about 5 years but, unless it’s changed massively, I wouldn’t bother with their high street. But if you’re happy to buy second hand, their consignment shops are fab - I’ve never seen so many labels, if admittedly not all to my taste. I would check an up to date guide for recs as they probably come and go.

Dealtron - we were the same, went to Target and Aldi to get some cheap bits for breakfast/lunch as we were in an apartment, box of cereal $5, jam was $3, soya milk $3, everything at least $1-2 dearer.

I’m dreading it as I’ve booked Orlando next year.

I bought some Levi’s and some trainers both cheaper than here last year (but not much in it really) but honestly I think I’d rather spend my time doing things that you can only do in NYC.

I agree that the dollar rate is awful.

I can't stand Bloomingdales, such a cramped and over rated shop!

Look out for Bath and Bodyworks, their stuff is wonderful, especially candles and foaming soaps. Crate and Barrel and Potterybarn do lovely house stuff, but aren't that cheap. Ross Dress for Less and TK Max are worth a rummage if you see one.

Food is expensive. You may as well have a sit down meal somewhere than go to a deli!

NYC is extremely expensive, it's a major city and also there is more sales tax (equivalent of VAT) compared to most other parts of the US. I have family in the US and I don't shop in NYC, if you head outside to the suburbs you will save loads. However if you're going as a tourist honestly you won't want to spend time in a Target on Long Island. So I'd say just enjoy your trip as with the current exchange rate, there are few bargains for GBP holders.

Yes if you are in an apartment you may as well eat out. No savings to be had buying food in a supermarket. And I had to go to a separate liquor store to buy expensive wine (it was all expensive).

When we go to the US we always stock up on pharmaceuticals! You can buy big bottles of Ibuprofen with 500 tablets in and they last for ages, and my DH likes the unwaxed dental floss you can get there. American sweets are obviously much cheaper too, so we tend to get a few of the 'party size' bags of M&Ms. We also get Thanksgiving and Halloween stuff as it's much better there. I always pop into the huge Old Navy at Times Square and have a browse of their kids stuff, which is great. Hmm what else? Banana Republic. Sephora if you like cosmetics.

I have family in the USA and visit twice a year. I still buy jeans, trainers, and big bottles of Advil in the US, but that is it. I only buy the jeans and trainers there now because I know what I like. With a bit of effort I could probably find both in the UK for the same price.

A few years ago we did all our clothes and shoes shopping in the USA as it was so much cheaper but not anymore.

The Chelsea market was good as I remember - not cheap but some very interesting clothes and jewellery. Good food too.

Brooklyn shopping was supposed to be on the up, particularly Williamsburg (this was about5 years ago). Frankly we were a bit underwhelmed but it's probably moved on since then.

vinyl LP records are about the only thing worth bringing back.

Cvs great store for all tablets. Jersey gardens esp Coach Michael Kors and tommy Hilfigher. Mid week is best. Go online to Macy’s and check out depts you might be interested in and stick to these as it takes forever to do the whole store. It opens late so you could do it in a few hours.Old navy beside ma us is great too. Enjoy your trip.

Macys

God yes the food is so expensive, I bought a takeaway ready salad on day and it was 15 dollars!!

what a miserable thread - bring back pills! I am really not looking forward to all our lovely US trade deals post October!!

Sam Edelman sandals, mine was lots cheaper than here. Otherwise their dep stores are a bit rubbish. ‘Are You being Served’ springs to mind. I was expecting state of the art beauty departments, instead all were slightly downtrodden disappointing Croydon Alders from the 80s.

I will be going to US in a few months and looking forward to the trip to Sephora. Will definitely be splashing out on Tatcha products. Amazing skincare. Their lipstick is the best I ever tried, but the price

Sephora was also a huge disappointment. I went in four times willing myself to love it - but still didn’t buy anything!

The kids loved those vilely scented hand sanitizers from I think the Bath and Bodyworks. They're dinky sized with a keyring they hang off their schoolbags. If you have early teens, bring some back and they will love you forever.

Almond M&M

Spend your time sightseeing OP. Even in the 90’s shopping in the US was dull but at least the exchange rate was advantageous.

TBH I find NYC dull. Cities like Boston, Chicago and Washington are much more interesting.

I’d spend days put aside for shopping getting on a train to Boston or Washington and fly home from there.

Came back about 3 weeks ago. Although shops look expensive in fact most have a sale going on nearly all the time - you wander in and someone drifts up and says 'everything in store is 25% off today'. If you buy multiple items you can often get a better deal too.

I shopped in J Crew, Ann Taylor and Loft as you can't get those over here. tried Victoria's Secret as usual and as usual was disappointed.

Especially enjoyed Ellis Island; the twin towers memorial, top of the Rock and (biggest surprise) SS Invincible which also has the space shuttle and a submarine (DH is ex military but I really really enjoyed those). High Line was too crowded to enjoy but was pretty, definitely go early to that.

I live in New York and do most of my clothes shopping when I come back to the U.K. my parents just visited and spent the whole time complaining about how expensive everything is so don't expect bargains I'm afraid.

I second visiting JCrew and also it's younger brand Madewell. Do you have Aritzia over there yet? If not it's worth a look.

Check out Williams Sonoma and Dean & Deluca for interesting kitchen/foodie things and snacks. Dean & Deluca is in financial trouble and may not be around much longer, sadly.

One thing that is worth looking at is the Sample Sales. Have a look at Sample Sally for listings and reviews and also 260 Sample Sale on Facebook to see what they have on. There's often a sample sale going on in Chelsea Market too.

Century 21 near the Twin Towers memorial is a huge discount designer department store worth a visit. Madewell clothing great, I love their whisper tee’s. Beacon’s Closet great for consignment clothing, the biggest store is in Brooklyn. Stock up on Retinol in Walmart’s if you use it, still not that cheap but you can’t buy the prescription grade here off the shelf.