Vancouver
This ironic antidote to the digital age lures ink-stained locals with its journals, handmade pencil boxes and T-shirts printed with typewriter motifs…
Must-see shopping in British Columbia
Vancouver
Arguably Vancouver's coolest record store and certainly the only one named after a much-missed cat… There's a brilliantly curated collection of new and…
Fairview & South Granville
Head upstairs to this large, under-the-radar gallery space and you'll find a kaleidoscopic array of stands showcasing the work of 40+ Vancouver and BC…
Vancouver
Grown hikers weep at the amazing selection of clothing (including lifestyle wear for urban hipsters), kayaks and clever camping gadgets at this cavernous…
Vancouver
Proving the printed word is alive and kicking, this small but perfectly curated secondhand bookstore is a dog-eared favorite among locals. A perfect spot…
Gastown & Chinatown
A former pop-up favorite with a now-permanent Chinatown location, this delightful bookstore is lined with tall stacks of well-curated, mostly used titles…
Victoria
The name is no coincidence. Victoria's cathedral to reading was established in 1963 by Nobel-prize-winning Canadian author Alice Munro and her husband Jim…
Vancouver Island
An agreeably Dickensian bookstore stuffed to the rafters with random busts, faded old maps, a grandfather clock and piles of dusty old tomes. Despite its…
Northern BC
The best bookstore in northern BC, Books & Company is also home to Cafe Voltaire, a top spot to have lunch. The daily soup, sandwich and panini options…
Vancouver
Just when you think you'll never find that combination licorice and hula-hoop store you've been searching for, here it is. This perky little spot with a…
Vancouver
Grab a paper bag and some tongs then dive into the pick-your-own drawers of brightly colored treats at this slender, white-walled gem dedicated to Swedish…
Vancouver
You'll feel like you've entered a tranquil forest clearing when you open the door of this delightful nature-themed photography gallery. Cooper's striking…
Okanagan Valley
The perfect rainy-day refuge, this used bookstore is one of Canada's largest and best.
Vancouver
From used postcards and insect rubber stamps to ladybug stickers and map pages from old books, this brilliant store offers a highly eclectic, ever…
Gastown & Chinatown
Like an art gallery for shoes, this alluringly cavernous store showcases the famed footwear of local designer Fluevog, whose men's and women's boots and…
Vancouver
You'll walk into this busy workshop thinking you don't need an apron. Then you'll fall in love. These handmade, sometimes punkish and always sturdily…
Vancouver
This seasonal farmers market is one of the city's most popular and is Kitsilano's best excuse to get out and hang with the locals. Arrive early for the…
Vancouver
You could easily spend a couple of hours perusing the new and vintage clothing in the main space of Front & Company, which colonizes a row of storefronts…
Vancouver
Art-school cool rules at this mostly womens wear boutique, with skirts, belts and halter-tops whimsically accented with prints of rabbits, narwhals and…
Vancouver
A magnet for slavering stationery fetishists (you know who you are), this store's treasure trove of trinkets ranges from natty pens to traditional washi…
Vancouver
Ostensibly a design studio working to commission, its two-story front-of-shop area showcases a kaleidoscopic array of quirky arts and crafts by mostly…
North Shore
Muscling in on the region's summertime night-market scene, North Van's is a few steps east of Lonsdale Quay. It's a fun way to spend a balmy Friday…
Victoria
This branch of Vancouver's charming hipster stationery store is socked into a quirky space resembling a hotel lobby from 1968. You'll find the same clever…
Vancouver
An irresistible, white-walled, double-sized store that appeals to design-minded individuals with its carefully chosen array of Tivoli radios, molded…
British Columbia
Every islander's favorite chocolate shop, the housemade treats in this excellent little store are hard to resist. But the velvet-smooth hot chocolate is…
Kelowna
Mosaic Books is an excellent independent bookstore, selling maps (including topographic ones) and travel guides, plus books on indigenous history and…
British Columbia
An eclectic mix of books with a good section of local-interest reads. Gives great recommendations.
Gastown & Chinatown
Known for recycling leather into hip, super-supple bags, belts, hats and purses, this eponymous store has a cult following. Erin herself is often on hand…
Gastown & Chinatown
Steps from Gastown's Steam Clock, this slender, white-walled gallery has an intriguing approach: distinctive paintings from local artists adorn its walls,…
Fairview & South Granville
Locals routinely beeline to this browse-worthy bookstore for discounts on new and just-released titles. If you're not sure what you're looking for, it's…
Gastown & Chinatown
A museum-like menagerie of everything from vintage taxidermy to retro cocktail glasses – plus clunky-keyed old typewriters that Hemingway would love –…
Vancouver
Serving the area's voracious bookworms, this used and new bookstore is one of several Drive literary nooks. It's a minilabyrinth of floor-to-ceiling…
Lower Mainland
There are over 2500 outlets of this upmarket discount store in Japan, but only one in Canada, which is probably why Daiso Richmond has a cult rather than…
Granville Island Broom Company
Vancouver
Ever since Harry Potter, locals have been entranced by this Granville Island fave, which makes its own beautifully handcrafted Shaker-style straw brooms…
Vancouver
One of the city's best used-book stores (there are also plenty of new tomes in the front room), this is the ideal haunt for the kind of serious browsing…
Vancouver
From classic rock to obscure German metal bands, this local-fave record store takes a no-nonsense approach with its basic racks of new and used vinyl, CD…
Vancouver
Drive coolsters add some vintage glam to their look in this Western-saloon-like establishment. But don't be fooled: this is one of the city's most…
Gastown & Chinatown
A size upgrade from its previous venue has delivered a cavernous market hall of hip arts and crafts-isans hawking everything from handmade chocolate bars…
Vancouver
A Vancouver favorite specializing in antiques and midcentury items, this retro-cool doubleroom is lined with 1950s-to-1980s furniture and treasures…
Vancouver
Kitsilano's fave indie music store has downsized in recent years, but it's still easy to blow an afternoon here with the vinyl and CD nerds, flicking…
