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Shanghai is chock-a-block with places to spend money. The markup on luxury goods is extremely high in China, and even clothes at American chains are pricier here than in the States. Malls usually don't open until 10 am; boutiques open at 11 am. The upside is that chain stores tend to stay open later, with many closing at 10 pm. Independent shops close by 7:30 pm. Markets generally start earlier, at around 7:30 or 8 am, and close around 6 pm. Most stores are open seven days a week.
Yu Garden, a major tourist haunt in the Old City area of Shanghai, can be overwhelming, but if you’re looking for tchotchkes, hard bargaining brings rewards. Here is where you’ll find imitation jade, tiny Buddha statues, costume jewelry, scarves, and the like. Also check out these streets that specialize in specific traditional products: Fenyang Lu, in the French Concession, and Jinling Lu, west of the Bund, for musical instruments; Fuzhou Lu, between People’s Square and the Bund, in City Center, for books and art supplies, including calligraphy supplies; Changle Lu and Maoming Lu in the Former French Concession for qipao (Chinese-style dresses).
For a traditional massage, you’ll find hundreds of blind massage parlors, inexpensive no-frills salons whose blind masseurs are closely attuned to the body's soft and sore spots. At the other end of the spectrum lie the hotel spas, luxurious retreats where pampering is at a premium.
Taiwanese designer Nicole Teng's showroom is welcoming, with comfy oversize chairs (for sale), reclaimed wood, and quirky ceramic pieces on every surface. In addition to dinnerware and ceramic lampshades, Brut Cake sells beautiful handwoven and dyed fabrics.
This shop claims its covetable collection of mostly propaganda items from the '50s, '60s, and '70s is sourced from the countryside and areas in Sichuan Province and around Beijing and Tianjin. Whether they're authentic is up for debate. Shelves and racks are filled with women's clothing from local and international designers. Look for beautiful wrapping paper from Paper Tiger and dish towels, notecards, and T-shirts from Pinyin Press; both are indie, Shanghai-based design companies. Although this could be your one-stop shopping experience, remember this is communism at capitalist prices.
Designers Judy Kim and Bingbing Deng, who hails from Tianjin, founded their line of cheerful ceramics in Paris in 2010. Their Jing'An boutique is packed with bowls, vases, plates, trays, and beautiful cloisonné tiffin carriers in a rainbow of bright colors.
Halfway between a gallery and a shop, Spin sells reasonably priced contemporary Chinese pottery handmade in Jingdezhen, China's pottery capital. Treasures include chopstick rests shaped like bone fragments and too-cute dim sum paperweights in a little bamboo steamer. The ceramics sell for a fraction of the price of what they go for in New York City, where they're available at venues like Bergdorf Goodman. Note that this shop was once closer to the city center but moved to the northern Zhabei district in 2018.
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