A Cycling Guide To The Best Womenswear Shops In Amsterdam
Amsterdam has the most advanced bicycle lane system in the world, making shopping trips around the city an absolute breeze. These routes pass by some fantastic shops and to help you chart a course around Amsterdam’s shopping hotspots we have put together a short cycling guide that travels between the best places to pick up clothing in the city. The route begins on Dam Square, making its way through de Pijp and Museumplein, and then eventually returns to the city centre, covering some of Amsterdam’s most beautiful neighbourhoods.
De Bijenkorf
De Bijenkorf is a luxury department store on the Northern side of Dam Square. The building was designed during the Dutch expressionist movement in the 1920s and is an iconic part of Amsterdam’s city centre. Its fashion retailers are spread over two spacious floors and include international brands such as Chanel, Karen Millen and Adidas. Although fashion is De Bijenkorf’s main draw, it also has an entire floor dedicated to cosmetics and jewellery. Dam Square leads onto several busy shopping streets and a cycle path on its left flows down towards Rokin.
Weekday
Sweden’s principal fashion brand Weekday has its regional outlet on Rokin. This store sells modern, durable jeans by the truck load and significantly reduces the price of Cheap Monday’s during its bi-monthly sale. Recently, Weekday has begun to design a wider variety of clothing and its branch in Amsterdam has a great selection of sneakers, t-shirts and sunglasses, branded with the company’s distinctive smiling skull logo. From there, a cycle path travels downwards through Rokin and ends next to Utrechtstraat.
Centre Neuf
Utrecthtstraat is lined with boutique fashion shops and it is worth taking some time to explore this neighbourhood. Centre Neuf is dedicated to high-quality womenswear and sells clothes designed by international and local couturiers. Everything is reasonably priced and excellently curated. The shop is half way down the street and opposite de Koffiesalon, a quiet hangout that makes amazing flat white coffees. Eventually, Utrechtstraat turns into Stadhouderskade and from there it is only a short cycle to De Pijp’s main drag, Ceintuurbaan.
Things I Like Things I Love
Things I Like Things I Love is a great place in the city for vintage and designer clothes that have been handpicked by its team of expert stylists. They also have their own fashion label that creates designs to compete with larger brands. Stylistically, Things I Like Things I Love’s clothes are comparable to outfits made by American Apparel or Monki, and represent the latest trends in urban fashion. Many people consider De Pijp to be Amsterdam’s trendiest neighbourhood and the area has an abundance of boutique and vintage shops.
Vanilia
Vanilia is located just before Museumplein on Van Baerlestraat. Its collection is created by a team of in-house designers and Vanilia ensures that all of its materials are ethically sourced. The shop is built inside of an old bathhouse in one of Amsterdam’s most historically charming neighbourhoods. Vanilia has a distinctive style and makes clothes that are simultaneously beautiful and modest, exuding sophistication.
Hutspot
Van Baerlestraat runs past Vondelpark and then turns into Eerste Constantijn Huygensstraat. At the end of this street is Rozengracht and Hutspot, a three-floor department store that sells exceptionally fashionable women’s clothing and other contemporary design products. Hutspot also has a charming open-plan café that serves a fantastic lunch menu and artisanal coffees. Hutspot’s collection is huge and includes clothing from local and international brands. Rozengracht continues into the city centre and ends back at Dam Square.