I bet there are a lot of people who still believe that Paris is the most expensive city in the world! Not true-and that there is little or next to nothing that they can afford to bring home, apart from an Eiffel Tower key chain and a bottle of Chanel No.5. Yet, I can prove to you that by taking tips from the French themselves, visitors to Paris can come home feeling both chic and happy knowing their checking accounts haven’t gone into the red.

While it’s certainly true that you can limit your shopping to the posh streets of Paris and stick to such global brands as Hermès, Vuitton and Dior, you will only end up buying what you find in other major financial capitals, and you certainly won’t have the kind of fun that comes from venturing off the beaten track.

Location & Timing

Location and timing are crucial aspects of shopping for the best deals in Paris. Some of the best deals are in the least expected places. For instance, if you shop at an open-air food market, it’s a good idea to go mid-week, when it is less crowded and the prices are lower. Make a point of shopping a half-hour before the market shuts down (12:30 p.m. instead of 1 p.m.), because the stall keepers will often offer some great bargains to unload leftover merchandise.

Paris Flea Markets

If you shop the Paris Flea Market, go early in the morning when you get the pick of the best merchandise. (This is when the dealers tend to go as well). The best day of the week to shop is on Monday, when dealers want to unload all the weekend’s unsold merchandise. If you don’t speak French and don’t know your way around the Flea Market (the largest in the world), it’s a good idea to go with a professional shopper, who will negotiate and later help ship your treasures home.

The Paris Flea Market remains the best place to buy antiques in Paris, because it is virtually a “free-trade zone” at the gates of Paris, in a working-class district, where the rents are low, and the merchants manage to avoid paying lots of taxes. This is because they run a primarily cash-driven business. Don’t want to walk around with a wad of cash? Have no fear-you can go to various change outlets, and obtain cash against your credit card. Or if it’s a big purchase item, your professional shopper will put a hold on an item, suggest you leave a small cash deposit, and you’ll wire the remaining funds later on.

Do bring a tape measure to the market, as well as swatches of material-this way, if you decide on a wonderful find, you’ll know that when it arrives at your house, it fits into your décor and doesn’t overwhelm the room. When it comes to small items it’s good to carry them on the plane-take a suitcase within a smaller suitcase-so you have room to carry your treasures home.

Be Open Minded

You never know when a bargain will turn up, much less where. For instance, you don’t have to buy your wines at the most expensive shops in Paris-you can easily find delicious Bordeaux wines in the Monoprix chain, or at the Carrefour or Auchan hypermarkets at the gates of Paris. There are also wonderful market streets in the city, such as the Rue Mouffetard and the Rue Montorgueil, where you can find specialist wine shops with wonderful vintages. I know of one, where the merchant has a lovely poem tagging each vintage that he has tasted!

Food markets are not just for selling food-they also have merchants that sell wonderful fashion accessories, including handbags and carryon luggage, as well as scarves and even cashmere pashminas. Last year, I purchased a lovely lined raw silk turquoise tunic and a shocking pink cashmere and silk pashmina at my local market on the Boulevard de Grenelle, for less than half of what I might have paid in a department store. Many of these merchants import directly from India and Nepal, bring back the merchandise in a suitcase, and sell it in an open-air market, thus saving on a middleman or two. Okay, so it isn’t the Galeries Lafayette-but isn’t this more fun?

Monoprix

I also am a big fan of the Monoprix chain, where under a single roof you can find all sorts of goodies, ranging from gourmet food gifts to lovely silk scarves that are virtually Hermès knockoffs. On my most recent trip, I bought some lovely matching bras and panty sets on sale, fine cotton ribbed socks and some lipstick by the same company that makes Chanel products for half the price. (I’m not allowed to say which company!). If you have long hair that you like to tie back in a bow, or wear with a headband, Monoprix is also your best bet for both quality and price. Even their sweaters and jeans are nice for casual wear, and their children’s clothing is definitely worth looking at. Best of all, the size of these stores (which are in every arrondissement in Paris) is doable-unlike department stores, which tend to be exhausting.

Les Soldes

Most people don’t realize this, but thirty percent of the retail sales in Paris are done during a six-week biannual period, called “les soldes.” They usually start the first week in January, and in the second week in June. If you are enterprising and love French clothes, try to schedule a week in Paris to get the best deals on designer clothes and accessories. Or if you can’t schedule in a trip during those times, head for the designer resale shops where you can find gently used clothes and accessories by Louis Vuitton, Chanel, Yves St. Laurent, and Sonia Rykiel, to name a few.

Menswear

While many would argue that Paris is a woman’s city, don’t think the needs of men are overlooked. Not only are there wonderful discount designer men’s wear stores, but there are shops selling fine custom-made shirts for less than $100, and ready-to-wear shirts for less than $35, sewn with finest Pima cotton. The discerning man will also be delighted with the selection of stores selling cigars, desktop accessories, sailing gear, fishing gear and gourmet cookware.

Down Side

So what’s the down side of shopping in Paris? Two things: the sizes do run smaller than those in North America or the United Kingdom. The sales help can often be indifferent and even rude. To brace yourself for shopping in Paris, try to be as chic as some Parisians-while you don’t have to dress to kill, it’s a good idea to dress smart, and favor slacks and blazers over jeans and sweatshirts or tee-shirts. Women should make up lightly, and men should be well groomed. Keep in mind basic shopping etiquette. “Bonjour, s’il vous plait, and merci, au revoir” go a very, very long way. When in doubt, ask “parlez-vous anglais?” When you walk into a shop, please avoid touching the displays. Ditto for fine food stores, such as Fauchon, unless it’s very clear that it’s self-service. There’s nothing more gauche than walking into an antique store with a backpack.

Shopkeepers

Why, pay attention to all these niceties? It so happens that in France, a shop isn’t a moneymaking machine, but an extension of the storeowner’s personal space. Shopkeepers are watchful and tend to favor their regular customers over walk-in trade. Many have invested their life-savings into their small operation, and barely break even. But they are passionate about what they do, whether it’s offering homemade chocolate shaped into a colorful painter’s palette or an Eiffel Tower, or selling a custom-made hat that makes you feel like Greta Garbo or Audrey Hepburn. Often their mouthwatering displays are works of art in themselves. I have stopped counting the number of times when I have said the Flea Market is the only museum in the world where you can go shopping. And all of these things make shopping like the French an unforgettable experience, warranting many return visits to Paris.

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