10 places to buy everything in the city – Voyajando
how we grew up in Suzano (SP), close to São Paulo, for us it has always been very natural to go to the state capital to shop the most diverse – for the price, convenience and variety. After we lived in the city then, our “know how” (kkkkkk) about cool places to shop there increased, and we started to discover super special places to buy cool or cheap things, or both. And that’s the idea of today’s post: a shopping guide for São Paulo with the best places to shop in the capital – according to ourselves, hahahahaa.
(Hello Voyajante: the photos and information here are based on our experience before the pandemic).
So we’ve sorted out the coolest places to buy electronics, jewelry, makeup, clothing, home items and more down here. If you know of any other corner that we haven’t mentioned here, be sure to share it with us, so we can help many more people to mine the best of this wonderful city!
Looking for more specific items? To see our São Paulo outlets guide, click here!
Tips to enjoy your shopping in São Paulo
- In large popular centers, go prepared to walk. Preferably with comfortable shoes and small bags
- Always keep an eye on your belongings. Purses, wallets and cell phones always in front of the body
- Get there early. Popular commerce centers are usually quite crowded and busy. The sooner you arrive, the more you enjoy it without having to deal with crowds
- Also take cash. Many stores only accept cash or give good discounts when items are paid for in cash.
- Clothing stores – some stores in Brás and José Paulino do not have a dressing room. Some allow you to try on over your clothes (this in pre-COVID times, I don’t know how it is now), so a lot of people go with less bulky clothes (such as tank tops and leggings) to be able to try it anyway
How to get to shopping centers in São Paulo
This map below is for you to understand, more or less, where are each of the shopping centers that we are suggesting in this post. You can see that a lot is in the downtown area and, mainly because of that, the ideal is to use the city’s public transport to get there. All of them also have, of course, parking options and here the golden rule applies: the closer to the “fervo”, the more expensive.
In addition to public transport, another option is also to use transport applications such as Uber, which can bring you closer to major centers – soon, from the muvuca – without investing in parking lots that often charge by the hour.
Check the map of the São Paulo metropolitan transport system here.
Region March 25
We start with her! This is the place that lives in the heart of those who are patient and want to find everything in the same place, Hahahaha. The region of Rua 25 de Março, in São Paulo, is almost a shopper’s paradise due to its low price, variety and affordability. Close to the Mercadão de São Paulo, the Cerealista Zone (I’m talking about her here below) and with easy access by the subway on the blue (São Bento Station) and red (Pedro II) lines.
For those who have never heard of the 25th of March, go prepared. It is very full – mainly on weekends. The best way to get there is by subway or bus. If you go by car, be aware of the variation – huge – parking prices, which follows the logic of big cities: the farther away from the “fervo”, the cheaper, the closer, the more expensive.
We intend to make a very complete post just about the 25th of March region. But now for the more general tips. If you are looking for something specific, this is what you should look for first. Be careful not to fall into the temptation to “just peek” at other things because time passes quickly there and the stores are really full (kkkkk sounds like terrorism, but I swear it’s just a tip to help you).
If you’re just going to visit, prioritize stores that fill up faster, like Armarinhos Fernando and Camicado (which basically sell everything for your home, as well as toys and school supplies). If the focus is on jewelry, make-up and party items (fantasies and weddings), go straight to Ladeira Porto Geral, that’s where most stores of this type are. Now, if the focus is on toys, fabrics and household items, you can keep even on March 25th, mainly.
And these were the quick tips about this region, because it really is a world to be discovered and we have a lot to talk about there. If you have any questions, talk to us through our Instagram that, if we know and can, we’d love to help!
25th of March in São Paulo
Liberty neighborhood
The Liberdade neighborhood is a little quieter to walk around than the 25 de Março region. (unless it is during the specific events that take place annually there). To get to it, the ideal is to get off at the blue line subway station, Japan Liberdade.
There you will find products of oriental origin in giant emporiums. It’s a separate tour to walk the little streets and, in addition to enjoying the wonderful typical cuisine there, you can still take home all the ingredients and have a Japanese, Chinese or Korean meal at your own home. On Sundays, there is still the Feira da Liberdade. Famous and full of delicacies.
That’s also where you’ll find Ikesaki, a giant perfumery and beauty shop (with several floors), which looks like a maze with stairs, ramps and forks, where you can find practically anything of beauty (makeup, creams, equipment), professionals and home care.
Scene from a crowd on an ordinary Sunday in pre-pandemic Liberty
Brazil
Brás is one of the places in São Paulo famous for selling clothes and also for assembling trousseau. In fact, it is one of the main centers of popular commerce. I used to go a lot when I was younger, mainly because of the easy access. Brás station is easily accessible via the red metro and coral, emerald and sapphire lines of CPTM trains. Leaving the station, you only need to cross the street and cross the square to reach the busy streets – and shops.
The main streets that you will find most of the shops are: Rua Maria Marcolina (one of the busiest, it has everything); East street (with galleries and shops with the most popular pieces. It’s also cool for men’s fashion); Maria Joaquina Street (many denim pieces in general) and Bresser Street (with some of the most famous outlets and stores).
Bom Retiro (Rua José Paulino)
An option to Brás is the José Paulino Street, in the neighborhood of good retreat. Here, we’ve come to prefer to go there rather than to Brás, as it’s less mobbed and also for having slightly better quality clothing options overall. It’s on Rua José Paulino too – and in its surroundings – that you can find a wide variety of party dress stores. So that’s where you can go if you want to find a prom or wedding dress, for example.
To get to Rua José Paulino, the best option is Estação da Luz (yes, that cute one). It is connected to the blue and yellow subway lines and to the coral and ruby lines. A tip is to look for the closest exit to Rua José Paulino before even going through the exit turnstiles, because the Luz station is gigantic, and the chances of you leaving it far from where you want to go are great (own experience kkkkkkk). It is also possible to go by car, of course. some parking lots (a little further away from Estação da Luz), they charge per day and it may be worth it for those who come from far away. Another option is to leave it on the street and pay Zona Azul (you can buy it for an app).
And the main tip here, like other shopping centers in São Paulo, is: get there early. Even more if it’s Saturday. Also, if possible, bring some cash. (not much, attention to safety), because some stores, unfortunately, only accept cash or if you pay by card they charge more. Also take with you patience, determination and common sense. With all of that, the chances of you coming out of there with great choices are great.
Bride’s Street
I went to Bride’s Street – or Rua São Caetano, in Luz, which is its official name – three times in my life and, honestly, it’s not my favorite tour of São Paulo. Two of those times were before my wedding and once before the wedding of @jeaninecarpani. Our mother – who accompanied us on all three – says that this street used to boast the most beautiful wedding dresses and was a reference for everyone who was going to get married. Nowadays, it’s not like that anymore.
First of all, I say that the “how to get there” is just like the one on Rua José Paulino. Rua das Noivas is very close to Estação da Luz, but the exit from the station is different; ask inside the station before going out into the street. (I mean it when I say the season is big). There are also options for parking in private and on-street parking there.
Returning to the disappointment with Rua das Noivas, there are still many wedding-related shops there. The main item sold there are the bride’s dresses, of course, but you can still find accessories for weddings, costumes for bridesmaids, groom’s clothes, groomsmen’s and bridesmaids’ clothes, party favors… anyway! It’s almost an open-air bridal fair.
Neither Jeanine nor I found our dresses there because we were looking for a “footprint” more field (me) and more vintage (Jeanine). But there are many options – many indeed – especially if you are a more traditional bride. So, if you’re about to get married, I highly recommend that you go to Rua das Noivas to try on any type of dress (over there they have really many). That way you can have a clearer sense of what you want and, who knows, that’s not where you can find your “Yes to the Dress“.
Santa Ifigênia Street
This is where you’ll find electronics and electronics accessories of all kinds. Video games, lighting equipment, musical instruments, computers, cameras, cell phone accessories – cell phones too -, tablets and so on. The street is the right destination for people looking for more interesting prices and/or a greater variety of items – all together, at the same time. So yes (in a pre-pandemic scenario) the street is pretty crowded and the golden tip is: plan ahead and get there early.
Know what you’re looking for and browse specific galleries and stores – it’s easy to identify by looking at the store. There, professionals and amateurs gather, passing by video game lovers, musicians, photographers and even electricians and people looking for very specific electrical maintenance equipment. In other words, patience and perseverance will also be your friends here.
THE Santa Efigênia Street is located in the center of São Paulo, close to the Republic and March 25 regions. So you can even try to combine a tour in the region with a trip there. The tip, as always, is to arrive early. We’d like to park near Praça da República because there are more parking options and security too, because then you don’t need to go through the muvuca region of the 25 de Março if you’ve bought something a little more expensive – like a video game or something like that . If you take a bus, look for one that passes close to Praça da República (a little further away) or…
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