World Travel Guide

City Guide  - San Francisco  - Shopping
Shopping

Shopping is a national pastime in America and San Francisco passes muster given its status as its country's favourite city. All the big names are here - Saks, Macy's, Neiman Marcus, Tiffany's - most clustered around Union Square, the centre of downtown spending. But it is the dozens of galleries and bookshops within a half-mile (800m) radius of the square that provide the stimulus and respite to keep going.

The more interesting items are had further afield. A walk through Chinatown can pay dividends as discounted imported jewellery, clothing and objet d'art appear down Grant Avenue every few yards. Where else could one find pieces of priceless seventeenth-century vases, which were smashed during the Cultural Revolution, converted into US$10 jewellery boxes?

There is a more intellectual vibe in North Beach where Beat poet Lawrence Ferlinghetti's City Lights Bookstore, 261 Columbus Avenue, stays open until midnight. Ghirardelli Square, a former chocolate factory at 900 North Point Street, and Cow Hollow, to the north of the exclusive Pacific Heights, are both off the beaten track but worth making the effort and currently in vogue.

Markets exist in most districts. The Ashbury Market, at Haight Ashbury, often simply called The Haight, 205 Frederick Street, is a foodie's fantasy with deli items and plentiful fresh bread, making it an ideal stop for a DIY lunch. The committed shopper might find the Treasure Island Flea Market on Treasure Island worth the effort. Rated highly by local people, it sells antiques and collectibles every Sunday and has a green market, flowers and a food court. For the altruistic, Under One Roof, 549 Castro Street, offers a chance to give something back as all profits are split between groups working to combat AIDS.

Specialist shops offer something for every taste, from Chocolate Heaven, Pier 39, with chocolates from around the world, to Stormy Leather, Howard Street, South of Market, a fetish boutique owned and run by women for the past 16 years. While, for the latest up-to-the-minute high-tech gadgetry, the Microsoft and Sony stores in the Metreon Centre, 150 Fourth Street, dazzle and delight.

A US$500 million Bloomingdale's project at the site of the Old Emporium building has been hampered by union disputes but is now set to open in March 2003 and will be another landmark in the rapid revitalisation of the SoMa district. Gap Inc are based in the city. They have a Gap shop at 100 Post Street, as well as a cheaper brand called Old Navy, with a store on Market Street.

San Francisco is not easy on the pocket and there is an added 8.5% non-refundable sales tax on every item. Discount stores, like Marshall's on Market Street, do exist. Duty-free shopping is available at DFS Galleria at Union Square, where designer names like Burberry and Calvin Klein vie for attention, while Chanel and Armani are not far away. Opening hours vary widely - many shops are open well into the evening and most are open at least some hours on Sunday.



Copyright © 2001 Columbus Publishing
    
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