Philadelphia is the perfect city to refresh your wardrobe and it has one distinct advantage over neighbouring New York – tax-free shopping. Not only is it exciting to explore the stand alone stores of covetable American brands that haven’t yet made it to the UK, but to also get an extra incentive on top of the usually favourable exchange rate.
Here are some of the best places to shop in Philadelphia…
Rittenhouse Row
Rittenhouse Row, including Walnut Street, is a real destination for designer and high end high street shopping with stores such as Burberry, Kenneth Cole, Coach, Club Monaco, Lucky Jeans, Anthropologie, Urban Outfitters, designer boutique Knit Wit and sneaker store Ubiq.
The neighbourhood also features the Shops at the Bellevue (a historic luxury hotel), including Polo Ralph Lauren, Tiffany, Nicole Miller, Williams-Sonoma and Teuscher Chocolates. For a break from shopping, have lunch on the terrace at Stephen Starr’s stylish brasserie, Parc.
Chestnut Street
Chestnut Street is one of the most popular shopping streets in Philadelphia and includes the Shops at Liberty Place shopping mall. Here you can find J.Crew, Bath & Bodyworks, Victoria’s Secret, Godiva Chocolates and Nine West. However, the most exciting shop on Chestnut is the amazing Italian gourmet produce store, Di Bruno Bros. It’s the place to grab a tasty deli lunch, stop for a coffee and cannoli, find interesting gifts to take home or just drool over the beautifully-presented Italian delights.
The Piazza at Schmidt’s, Northern Liberties
This lovely square is lined with a number of independent boutiques, cafes and restaurants and is the perfect spot for weekend brunch and shopping. Try Blooms for womenswear and accessories by local designers, Corsa for streetwear and Sole Control for rare and limited edition sneakers.
Out of town….
Philadelphia Premier Outlets® is the place to find major bargains at outlet stores by designers and brands. Located in Limerick, PA, approximately 40 minutes drive from the city, Philadelphia Premier Outlets® features over 150 outlet stores by designer and affordable brands.
Womens and menswear stores include BCBG Max Azria, Theory, Polo Ralph Lauren, Elie Tahari, Calvin Klein, Coach, Diesel, DKNY, Michael Kors, True Religion Brand Jeans, Kenneth Cole, Lucky Brand, GAP Outlet, Banana Republic Factory Store and Last Call by Neiman Marcus.
Beauty shoppers will find great bargains at Bath & Body Works, Crabtree & Evelyn, BareMinerals and Lancôme. My favourites stores were the chic and colourful Kate Spade New York boutique outlet, Yankee Candles (with an impressive range of different scents) and the Converse store, where I bought two pairs of sneakers.
There are regular daily bus services from the Greyhound Terminal in central Philadelphia to Philadelphia Premier Outlets® and shoppers can sign up to the VIP Shopper Club online to receive additional discounts.
King of Prussia Mall is department store heaven – Bloomingdales, Nordstrom, Neiman Marcus, Macy’s and Lord & Taylor can all be found there. Located 25 miles from Philadelphia, King of Prussia Mall is the largest shopping mall on the East Coast with over 400 stores.
Some of the more exciting stores that don’t have a presence in the UK are Madewell, Aeropostale, Lilly Pulitzer, Williams-Sonoma and Pottery Barn. It would be easy to spend a whole day at King of Prussia Mall. However the dining choices aren’t particularly interesting there, so I’d recommend a light lunch or coffee break at Cafe Nordstrom and then head back into Philadelphia for dinner.
For more Philly destination ideas, read my guides on Things to do in Philadelphia and Arts and Culture in Philadelphia.