Where to go shopping in Lisbon

Known for its traditional crafts and longstanding shops, the Portuguese capital is also home to many forward-thinking native brands. Here's our guide to the best shops and boutiques to look out for on your next trip to Lisbon.

The best bookshops

Lisbon is home to a great number of bookshops, from modern arty spaces to old-school academic purveyors, including the world’s oldest, Livraria Bertrand. Located in Chiado, it has been in operation since 1732, and is now one of the largest booksellers in Portugal. Visitors can pick up literary tomes and English-language versions of works by famous Portuguese poets, such as Fernando Pessoa or Nobel Prize winner José Saramago, as well as join the shop’s historic tertulia (book club). Over on Rua de São Bento, chic travel bookshop Palavra de Viajante (which translates as “Traveller’s Word”) offers a literary journey around the globe – with recommendations from owner Ana Coelho. Those in the market for antique maps and rare books go to longstanding Livraria Sá da Costa in Chiado, to peruse leatherbound editions on its wooden shelves and quaint library trollies. bertrand.pt; palavra-de-viajante.pt; sadacosta.com

Where to buy tinned fish in Lisbon

The oldest shop in Lisbon to stock tinned fish, Conserveira de Lisboa has remained true to its roots and continues to sell quality conserved fish and preserves to its faithful crowd of foodie traditionalists. Opened in Baixa in 1930, it has updated very little: its products come in pretty old-fashioned tins wrapped in paper and tied up with string. The shop offers a nostalgic trip to another era, with wood-panelled shelves and tin signs hanging over a stone-topped counter. Classic buys include canned tuna, mackerel, squid and cod, and conserves from heritage labels Tricana, Prata do Mar and Minor. conserveiradelisboa.pt

Heritage homeware

Catarina Portas, founder of the popular A Vida Portuguesa brand, renowned for its heritage Portuguese goods, joined forces with craft association Portugal Manual to transform an old foundry on Rua Nova do Desterro into a 4,300-square-foot concept warehouse and shop, Depozito. Here, traditional Portuguese handicrafts – olive wood chopping boards, floral linen place mats – sit alongside more playful works by contemporary artisans and creatives. This approach spotlights regional craft through pottery, carpentry, basketry, cork, jewellery and textiles, and has brought in new Portuguese talents.

In the lively Bairro Alto area, Oficina Marques is a workshop, gallery and store in a former newspaper printing house, run by José Aparício Gonçalves and Gezo Marques. Among the upcycled wooden sculptures, hand-painted plates, oval-framed prints and Iberian water vases, most of which are made on-site by the duo, there’s a rotating exhibition of their work. For more traditional homeware, Principe Real Enxovais, next to the botanical gardens, stocks hand-embroidered lace tablecloths, napkins and bed linen from its eau-de-nil boutique. avidaportuguesa.com; oficinamarques.pt; principereal.com

Classic candles

Opened in 1789, candle shop Caza das Vellas Loreto is one of the city’s oldest boutiques and is part of the Lojas com História (shops with history) association. It has always been in the same chapel-like premises in elegant Chiado, producing and showcasing beautiful items in arched perpendicular cabinets. Products range from traditional beeswax candles, hung from their wicks in neat rows, to fragrant botanical creations. The fruit and vegetable-shaped candles, such as lemons overflowing from a basket and remarkably realistic pomegranates, are mini works of art. cazavellasloreto.com.pt

The chicest shoes

Wearing stilettos in cobbled Lisbon can be particularly tricky. In 2018, spotting a need for elegant flats, entrepreneur Fátima Carvalho founded Lachoix around the idea of smart, practical loafers. Just three years later, she opened a stand-alone shop on Pátio do Tijolo, with lines of flat sandals, Mary Janes, ballerinas and myriad loafer styles. Made in Portugal using Italian leather, and with a specially designed sole that doesn’t slip on Portuguese pavements (even in the rain), Lachoix shoes are sleek, stylish and extremely comfortable. Look out for understated slip-ons in dusty neutrals. lachoix.com

The best fragrances

Although Portugal has lacked a tradition in perfume making, it has been producing quality soaps and colognes since the 19th century. Claus Porto, founded in 1887 and known for its bright art nouveau packaging and colour-pop oval soaps, is one of the nation’s most beloved beauty brands. Its Lisbon shop – which sells gift sets of soap bars and tricky-to-find diffusers, candles and hand creams – occupies an old pharmacy that has been beautifully renovated by local design star Joana Astolfi, who paired the original wood-and-glass cabinets with minimalist polished gold tables. Downstairs is a barbershop, which uses Claus Porto’s Musgo Real line (a scent synonymous with Portugal’s stylish folk). Nearby, fellow heritage beauty brand Benamôr has been making creams and fragrances since 1925 from natural ingredients grown under the Portuguese sun: lemon, rose, aloe vera and almond oils. clausporto.com; benamor1925.com

Where to buy vintage furniture

For generations, browsing the antiques shops along Rua de São Bento has been a customary pastime for Lisbon’s residents. Highlights include Miguel Arruda Antiguidades (at number 356), with sculptures and furnishings ranging from midcentury modern to French Regency, and the exquisite art at São Roque Antiguidades e Galeria de Arte (No199), which also organises exhibitions – the latest features celebrity Portugal resident Ai Weiwei. Galeria Bessa Pereira (No426) also offers a splendid selection of art and vintage furniture, or, for more suitcase-sized finds, there’s The World of Vintage (No291), particularly good for table lamps. Additionally, at numbers 234 and 418 are the outlets for Depósito da Marinha Grande, the primary brand of the Portuguese glass industry, and a secret of interior decorators the world over. @miguelarruda_art_and_antiques; antiguidadessaoroque.com; galeriabessapereira.com;
@theworldofvintage2011; dmg.com.pt

The best concept stores

In the charming Príncipe Real neighbourhood, EmbaiXada set up shop in the iconic neo-Arab Ribeiro da Cunha Palace, originally built in the 1870s. Products from local brands and artisans coexist to showcase Portuguese talent, from Benedita Formosinho’s elegant holiday gear and cotton T-shirts by Isto to modern jewellery by HLC and fun swimwear from Latitid. Another great concept store, almost opposite EmbaiXada, is No50, where international brands sit alongside Portuguese creators, such as contemporary jewellery designer Carolina Curado. Converted warehouse 8 Marvila in the ex-industrial area towards the east, has residents including vintage shops Black Mamba and Anomaly, plus upcycled fashion line RO Archive. embaixadalx.pt; @21pr.conceptstore; 8marvila.com