You'll find what you're looking for... and other Stockholm, Sweden Shopping Tips

Stockholm is THE city to go shopping in in Sweden. No matter what you are looking for, you will find it here.
As seen in my neighbourhood tips, the neighbourhoods in Stockholm differ from each other, and your purchase possibilites vary accordingly.

In downtown Stockholm, the area around The Sergel Square, you will find the big department stores, such as Åhléns, PUB, NK and Debenham´s. They have good selections of designer clothes, shoes, furniture and other home decoration items, kitchen utensils, stationery and perfume/make-up. Besides these, you also have in-door gallerias/malls and a huge number of varying stores lining the streets.

Towards Norrmalmstorg/Stureplan you find the more exclusive designer stores, and in Gamla Stan, if you dare to leave the main tourist street of Västerlånggatan, there are many many antiques stores.

In Södermalm, there are a couple of gallerias/malls and also quite a number of smaller shops for designer items and more. for vinyl records, the shop called Recordmania just by Moseback torg is the place to look.

Special stores to visit in Sweden are for example H&M clothing stores. These have started to sprawl the world now, still it might be cheaper in Sweden than elsewhere.
For books try Akademibokhandeln, there is one right by the Sergel Square, and one further down towards Kungsträdgården and NK Department store.
For furniture and little home gadgets of course IKEA is THE place to go. Swedish people have LOTS of IKEA stuff in their homes!!!
Ikea has several stores in the Stockholm area, though none in the inner-city part. Chec k out their homepage
ikea.com for details...!
Scroll down to read more about specific stores and what to shop for in Sweden!

What To Buy: Just buy anything you want!

What To Pay: Infinite amounts of money!
Swedish stores accept euros. (Most of them anyway)

Leave a Comment

Theme: Other
Directions: Shop til you drop all over Stockholm :-)

Name of Shop: Lush

The Lush stores are not unique to Sweden, rather they are orginally from Britain I think. But since they opened across the bigger cities in Sweden there has been a lush-mania creeping up.

What To Buy: This is definitely the place to go for bubble bath, soads, shampoos and other bath items.
There is skincare also, but no make-up.
A personal favourite is the Celestial skin-creme and the Figues and Leaves soap bar...
Hmm, but then if you have a tub in your hotel room, get a bath bomb to wash away the city dust in the evening.

What To Pay: From 2 US dollars/ 2 Euros and up...!

Leave a Comment

Theme: Bath and Beauty
Directions: There are several stores in Stockholm, on in Södermalm, one at Stureplan and in at the Central Station. And possibliy more I havent seen.
Website: www.lush.com

When in Sweden, of course you should get some literature to bring home with you...!
As you perhaps know already Astrid Lindgren was Swedish, and her childrens books are classics. Other famous Swedish authors include August Strindberg and Selma Lagerlöf (Ibsen, however, was Norwegian).

Good bookstores are located right in the city center. Within the Central Staion buiding for example there are already two paperback stores, one on ground level and the other below ground. They are called Pocketshop (a pocket in Swedish means a paperback book, probably indicating that it is small enogh to carry in your pocket - why the english word is used, though, is a mystery). These offer a selection of paperback books by both native and foreign authors.

Facing the Sergel Square, on the opposite side of it from Kulturhuset is one big store from the bookstore-chain Akademibokhandeln. English and Swedish books, both hardback anbd paperback are for sale, as are severqal guide books and maps.

An even wider range is offered by another Akademibokhandeln store on Norrlandsgatan, just opposite the NK department store. If you are looking for English books, this is the place to go.

What To Buy: Popular present-day authors in Sweden are for example
Jan Guillou
Jonas Gardell
Liza Marklund
Henning Mankell
Marianne Fredriksson
Bodil Malmsten
Håkan Nesser
Elsie Johansson
Ulf Lundell
Majgull Axelsson
Kerstin Ekman
Mikael Niemi

Try one of Jonas Gardells books, if you don't know what to choose, he has written several books with a setting in 1970's Sweden, with an acknowledged eye for the feeling of the time.

What To Pay: Swedish paperback books usually cost between € 5 and € 7. English paperback from about € 9. Hardbacks are much more expensive. Look for special offers and "Buy 4 pay for 3" and similar campaigns.

Leave a Comment

Theme: Books

Name of Shop: Recordmania

A few years ago the little shop Recordmania opened in Östgötagatan 2 on northeast Södermalm. It looks quite anonymous from the outside, but inside is one of the best selection of soul/funk-records in the world. People travel even from Japan only to shop here. If you are into "black music" and vinyl records this is the place to go. The staff is very helpful and really know their stuff. I have many friends who have shopped here and totally recommended it. So far I have only browsed through the stuff though.

What To Buy: Second hand vinyl records. They also buy second hand records I think.

What To Pay: From a few euro and up. It depends on the record and the quality.

Leave a Comment

Theme: Music
Address: Östgötagatan 2, Stockholm Södermalm
Directions: Subway: SLUSSEN. Exit: Götgatan, walk up to Moseback torg and the right on Östgötagatan.
Website: www.recordmania.com

Name of Shop: Hennes & Mauritz (H&M)

H&M is originally a Swedish store, but it's now seems to be conquuering the world, so chances are you have heard of it. Anyway, H&M is where many many of us Swedes buy most of our clothes. The reason for this - the stora has a high sense of fashion yet it is so cheap. OK, you have to be prepared that the quality thus usn't always the best ...

For example, if you tried a shirt and think it ok, then want the same on but in a different colour -try it on too, there may be variations!

What To Buy: Cheap jeans (not brand ones but if you can live with that ...)
Shirts and tank tops
Cheap basic wear
Odd funny clothes
Accessories
Bath and beauty items
Bags
Children's wear
etc

What To Pay: Bargain tank top from 10$, the most expensive leather jacket maybe up to 200$.

Leave a Comment

Theme: Women's Clothes
Address: All over Stockholm and all over Sweden!
Website: www.hm.com

Name of Shop: Lindex

Lindex is a chain of stores that sell clothes, mainly womens clothes I think. The style of the clothes is quite toned down, nothing too loud or strange is for sale here. Their range of lingerie is quite wide and very popular with Swedish women whereas their regular clothes are not as popular. If you are a plus size woman you may want to have a browse through their racks though, they have quite an extensive plus size collection.

What To Buy: Most popular is their underwear and swimwear range. Apart from that and other clothes they also sell affordable accessories, sunglasses, belts and the likes. There is also kid's clothes.

What To Pay: A pair of trousers from 30$ perhaps. A pair of sunglasses for 10$.

Leave a Comment

Theme: Women's Clothes
Address: Lindex stores are found all over town.
Website: www.lindex.se

Name of Shop: KappAhl

KappAhl is like Lindex a clothes store. In approach I would say it falls between the bolder styles of H&M and the more conservative style of Lindex. KappAhl is very popular with families with children, thay have lots of kids clothes. There is also a lingerie section, accessories and swimwear if the season is right. H&M. Lindex and KAppAhl are also typically found in every Swedish town, small or big.

What To Buy: Basic fashion, sometimes a bit bolder clothes. Nothing cool for your teenager though...


Leave a Comment

Theme: Women's Clothes
Address: All over Stockholm.
Website: www.kappahl.se

Name of Shop: Kicks

Kicks is a chain of perfumerie type stores found all over Sweden. These stores carry many brands of perfume, skincare and make up, both more expensive and cheaper.

There is also accessories and hair accessories for sale. You can find the following brands here for example:
Biotherm, Lancome, Revlon, Nivea, L'Oréal, Maybelline, MaxFactor, El'Vital hair produts, Lacoste, Armani, Nina Ricci, IsaDora.

What To Buy: Make up, perfume, soaps and bath gels, shampoo and other hair products, hair styling products, skincare products, bath products, nail polish, make up brushes and other make up items, earrings, necklaces, hair pins ...

What To Pay: From a euro and up. Look for bargains, there are always some campaign giong on.

Leave a Comment

Theme: Bath and Beauty
Directions: In the Pub house, Gallerian Hamngatan, Gallerian Sergelgången, Fältöversten and other locations in Stockholm.
Website: www.kicks.se

Name of Shop: Pressbyran

Everything from water, soft drinks and snacks to nail clippers and magazines. Pressbyran will come in handy on your visit to Stockholm.

Chances are you can also buy your subway tickets here.


What To Pay: 0,5 litre of sparkling water for 17 SEK. 1 fruit for 5 SEK.

Leave a Comment

Theme: Other
Website: www.pressbyran.se

Name of Shop: Debenahms.

Maybe you know of it already, but now it also has arrived in Stockholm. You can fins perfumes, clothes and jewellry and other department store stuff. They have quite a selection of Pilgrim jewellry if you like that style ( I do :-)

What To Buy: Pilgrim jewellry?

What To Pay: From 200 SEK and up.

Leave a Comment

Theme: Department Store
Directions: Drottninggatan, Stockholm.
Website: www.debenhams.com