Shop ’til you drop

There’s a very good Printemps department store (Rue Nationale). And a medium-sized Westfield shopping centre, beside Gare Lille-Flandres. I don’t think anything is particularly cheaper.

Prices in France, like the UK, seem to be rising gradually. So don’t expect too many bargains.

Lots of places in France observe a maximum five or six day week (and often close for lunch). For example, many of the shops in Lille don’t open on Sundays and Mondays.

Chocolate is a bit of a thing here. There are lots of chocolate shops, from the chains such as Leonidas and Jeff de Bruges, to spectacular independents such as Maison Georges Larnicol (Rue Esquermoise).

Relatively recently, lots of tinned seafood (!) shops have appeared. Packaged in very colourful cans. People seem to like to give them as gifts. There are a few, including la belle-iloise on Rue Esquermoise.

If you’d like to take home a quirky cycling product reminder of your visit, head to Vera in Roubaix, 36 rue du Général Sarrail, for a locally manufactured cycling cap. A friend Andreas is the last operating frame-builder in Roubaix if you fancy a Roubaix-made new bike, LaFraise Cycles.

Some other shops. If you fancy returning with a fine bit of French knitwear (in particular), Saint James in the old town (Rue Esquermoise) is your destination! For cheese, Fromagerie Philippe Olivier (Rue du Cure Saint-Etienne/Rue Basse) is part of a small chain. And very, very good! (there’s also one next door to Calais Vins, if you’re stopping for Duty Free; and a very good patisserie). However, at the time of writing, the UK Government has introduced a ban on importing dairy products because of the risk of Foot and Mouth disease.

If you want to pretend you’re French, forget the berets and onion strings, and buy yourself a JOTT lightweight puffa jacket! One shop in Westfield another in old Lille. Everyone seems to have one, including me!

The K-Way waterproof jackets are currently ubiquitous. They are another northern France success story. There’s a shop on rue Basse in the old town.

Most of the big French brands have a presence here. So if you feel like blowing your life savings on a Louis Vuitton bag, there’s a shop.

 As an aside, if you are making a ‘significant’ purchase the shop will usually be able to help you claim back the tax as a Duty Free purchase. Certainly it’s offered in Printemps and I would guess places like Louis Vuitton; never been in!