A superior shopping destination any time of year, New York can cover everyone on your gift list with its diverse range of stores, markets, and pop-ups. From feminist finds to museum gift shops, here’s where to go Christmas shopping in New York City.
Winter Flea
Market
If you visit one Christmas market in the city this season, make it this one. Located in trendy Industry City, Brooklyn Flea’s Winter Flea boasts vintage movie posters, handmade homewares, antique furniture, and everything else that the coolest kids on your list are after.
It’s a Christmas classic for a reason: Macy’s Herald Square flagship stocks everything from cosmetics to electronics to cookware to clothing, meaning you can potentially knock out all of your Christmas shopping in one go (also known as the holiday holy grail). Even if you don’t find what you’re looking for (an unlikely scenario), you’ll love seeing the store’s iconic displays up close.
With 18 miles (29 kilometers) of—or over 2.5 billion—new, used, and rare books, Strand Book Store is sure to satisfy the bibliophile on your list. Whether the bookworm on your brain prefers poetry, non-fiction, travel guides or something else completely, this downtown destination should be part of your Christmas story.
Stuff your stockings (and your mouths) at Dylan’s Candy Bar, a boutique candy store Willy Wonka would approve of. Over 5,000 kinds of candy glaze—we mean, grace—the shelves here, granting you your pick between Belgian chocolate bars, retro candies, and big-ticket items such as chocolate-covered cheesecake bites and pre-assembled gingerbread house kits.
Turn everyday life into art with gifts from MoMA Design Store. At the gift shop of New York City’s iconic Museum of Modern Art, shopping categories like home, tech, kitchen, and accessories are all represented. Unique presents, such as hovering speakers, stylish travel pillows, and anti-theft backpacks, will make the rest of the year a masterpiece.
A trip to this unique retail experience is a gift in itself. Modeled after a magazine, STORY is a concept shop which reinvents itself, from design to merchandise, every one to two months. Its current “Home for the Holidays” theme features finds such as hoodie travel pillows and designer candles for the homebound and homebodies in your life.
Shop for gifts and groceries at Zabar’s, an Upper West Side specialty store known as much for its delicious lox as its New York City-themed kits, baskets, and boxes. The “Morning Basics” basket from this uptown icon will have Christmas Day breakfast covered, while the “New York Goodies” box is guaranteed to delight any homesick celebrants. For a show-stopping snack, the individually wrapped biscotti, which comes in a handmade jar from one of Tuscany’s most famous villages, is as lovely to look at as it is to eat.
Before you balk at this high-end name (known for its even higher prices), head to Tiffany & Co. to discover a wealth of affordable objects. Jewelry and accessories can be snagged for $250 and under, while home goods, including fine china and sterling silver pieces, are priced under $100. Whether you’re searching for a stocking stuffer or a Christmas morning scene-stealer, the shop’s iconic Midtown location has an Audrey-approved fit for you.
Celebrate the women on your gift list at Bulletin, a feminist find boasting an all-female team and products exclusively from female entrepreneurs. Here, you’ll snag gold cuffs stamped with the reminder to “fight like a girl,” sports bras emblazoned with cheeky sayings, quirky pins, and more which has hitherto only been sold online. And the best part? Bulletin allows you to consume for a cause, as 10% of all store profits are donated to the local Planned Parenthood.
The United States’ oldest luxury department store continues to be one of its best. At Lord & Taylor’s 10-floor Fifth Avenue outpost, classic cosmetic brands, luggage, costume jewelry, and more show that fine products at great prices never go out of style.
