The best fashion and gift stores Central & Golden Ring

Hamleys in London, in Moscow: Detskiy Mir (ЦЕНТРАЛЬНЫЙ ДЕТСКИЙ НА ЛУБЯНКЕ). This brand has nothing to envy to the finest of the world's toy department stores and brings a real fairy tale to life for children, with temporary installations with the logos of the major brands and actors in costumes. Created in 1957, this 8-storey store reopened in 2015 after 9 years of renovations. Its Children's Museum will introduce you to Soviet toys.

Just off the Shabolovskaya metro, this is the best shop of scavenging in Moscow. The healthy are filled with a whole sea of artefact that will make you a success in Paris.

Once a niche shop for enthusiasts or nostalgics, this shop, very far from the city centre, is now delightfully trendy and the cult meeting place for all DJs in the capital (local or visiting). It specializes in vinyl records: 33 or 45 rpm, from international, Russian bands from the Soviet and post-Soviet era...

It's the opportunity for you to find some rare gems, listen to your favorite tracks again or discover new ones on the turntables available in the store.

The Historical Museum shop is one of the city's good places to find souvenirs on the theme of the USSR. Re-issued posters, objects, books... the prices are affordable (since they are not as inflated as in the shops you can find on the Arbat), but you can't negotiate them like in its direct competitor: the big market of Izmaïlovo. This remains a practical option, as it comes quite naturally after visiting the museum.

The silhouette of the GOUM, or "State Universal Store", is entirely part of the Red Square decor. This russo-byzantine style building built at the end of the 19th century houses a triple shopping gallery on three levels. Today, foreign shops are replacing the traditional displays. It is a monument of Moscow life, as are the department stores in Paris.

The shopping center under the Manege Square, one of the ugliest in the capital, has many opponents. But in Moscow, the kingdom of consumerism, people buy first and think later. Mostly foreign brands that can be found everywhere else, but also and above all food-corners with recognizable signs: Il Patio, Dunkin' Donut, McDonald, Burger King. In short, this is not the gallery of change of scenery, or of wonder, but a very practical place to go if you want to easily get a fast food or gloves.

Next to the Bolshoi Theatre, the one that was the very first department store in Russia also dates from the Soviet era. There you can find samovars and chapkas, household appliances, hi-fi and audio equipment, clothes, cosmetics, shoes, jewellery, snacks... In short, you can find everything if you can find your way through the maze of 85,000 m2 of corridors and floors. This store is reminiscent of Galeries Lafayette: all the major international brands have their place here!

This distinguished representative of one of the most important bookstore chains in Moscow is located in a Soviet setting that is not without its charms. The shopper will find a huge catalog of books but also cultural items: DVDs of Russian classics with French subtitles, authentic old Soviet posters, beautiful handicraft souvenirs, etc. There is also a section dedicated to international books, including several shelves in French (on the^first floor). Small café at the end of the^first floor.

The largest and oldest bookstore in Moscow gives you the opportunity to buy books there for up to 1 hour. It was a reference to the Soviet era, and you could order the famous foreign literature books that were so difficult to obtain. Nowadays, it is in Moskva that Russian and foreign authors go first and foremost for their book signings or to celebrate their translations. For foreign readers, there is a wide range of good and beautiful books about Russia, as well as literature in different languages.

Located in the Kuznetsky Most district, this shopping mall connects Neglinnaya Street to Petrovka Street. With an irreproachable cleanliness and in a baroque setting reminiscent of a more intimate Goum, luxury brand stores line up without false notes on two aisles and two floors. It is very pleasant to venture into this gallery, to be greeted by its doormen in livery and to stroll in the middle of the Christmas decorations (so at the beginning of January). The clientele reflects the prices, which are very high for a Russian wallet.

One of Moscow's most famous shopping malls for its splendour, its area, the number of shops offered, including its cinema and restaurants.

Excellent bookstore offering various books in English: fiction, dictionaries, books of art.

It is the young Russian photographers who exhibit in this gallery, a gallery that also hosts artists from all over the world.

It offers a wide selection of books, from contemporary literature to classics, detective novels and works on psychology. The bookshop also organizes events such as conferences and book presentations. It has a website where customers can consult the catalog and make online purchases. The Dom Knigui bookshop is a must for book lovers in Moscow.

Fiction, old books and different albums in 54 different languages.

Beyond the will to exhibit artists, this gallery aims at selling. It mainly concerns contemporary Russian painters, those who count and are already present in the artistic landscape. In view of its privileged status with artists and buyers alike, the exhibitions are regularly renewed and of good quality. You can access the program of exhibitions and vernissages directly on their website. Finally, if you are lucky, you can also meet the artists who often visit the site.

With "À la Russe", the designer Anastasia Romantsova decided to recreate a pre-Revolutionary atmosphere, a clever mix of aristocratic dandyism of the time (hence the French name) and national fabrics. One sees there furtively, in the reflection of a dress, the costumes of the Cossack officers, Diaguilev's Russian ballets, the gaiters buttons of the little tsarevitch or the raw furs of the boyars' clothes. The success of his concept obviously comes at a price. There are also more affordable, but still original accessories.

A small photo shop that can help you if you have problems. In addition to argentique photo enthusiasts, there is a wide choice of devices and objectives of all brands at derisory prices. There are also the jewels from the Soviet optics, the Zenith and the Lomo. There are also means of formats (Holga, which is not Russian contrary to what might be believed) or Kiev, whose poetic lack of precision makes the contemporary Russian photographers happy.

Until recently, this alternative bookstore was a hidden gem, full of charm and mystery. It was the only one to translate the most recent and obscure works of humanities from the West and ended up becoming a real cult place in the academic and intellectual circles of the city. A victim of its own success, Falanster has now moved to a new location: the days of the bazaar and the columns of books piled up on the floor are over. It is still the meeting place for discussion evenings that go on long after closing time.

Located in the mythical Centralniy Dteskiy Magazin, this department store specializes in Russian souvenirs and handicrafts. Contrary to the tradition of cheap souvenir shops, these are expensive but of impeccable quality, for beautiful objects that last a long time. We recommend this place if you want to see all that the souvenir industry has to offer, as it also has some unusual items that are not easy to find elsewhere, such as Gzhel porcelain and handmade matryoshkas.