Shopping Local in Edinburgh

If you're visiting Edinburgh for the first time and looking for somewhere to pick up a souvenir or are new to the city and looking to pick up a present for a friend, here are a few ideas.

Edinburgh’s Indie Streets

Edinburgh is renowned for its vibrant independent business scene and several streets have become havens for independent stores, here are a few to visit:

Stockbridge: Stockbridge is a great place to visit when looking for gift inspiration as the neighbourhood has a wonderful high street. A few shops I'd recommend popping into on the high street include Rare Birds Book Shop, which features great books by great women; Galerie Mirages, a cornucopia of jewellery from around the world; Caoba, a fascinating Mexican gift shop; An Independent Zebra (88-92 Raeburn Place) and more.

St Stephen Street is just a short walk from Stockbridge's high street and is home to a range of brilliant stores such as the ever-so-charming bookshops, Golden Hare Books and Ginger and Pickles; serene lifestyle store, The Method; stylish vegan clothing and lifestyle store, Treen ; beautifully-curated fine jewellery store, ætla; and Space at Seventeen, a pop-up space with a brilliant residency line up. Bonus: At the very end of St Stephen Street and beginning of St Vincent Street you'll find Grow Urban, the ideal place to pick up a present for any houseplant lovers.

New Town: Broughton Street is another must-visit indie shopping street. Keep an eye out for ethical homewares and lifestyle store, Stor Lifestyle; tea-lovers paradise, Rosevear Tea; independent art and gift shop Curiouser & Curiouser and stylish Scandi-inspired lifestyle store, Lifestrory!  

Bruntsfield & Morningside: Bruntsfield’s high street is filled with so many lovely stores like quirky gift shop, Halibut & Herring; beautiful clothing store, Biscuit Clothing; florist and botanical store, Snapdragon; award-winning bookshop, The Edinburgh Bookshop plus another branch of Rosevear Tea and Curiouser! Morningside High Street also has a few gems including chocolatiers Edward & Irwyn; delightful homeware shop, Hestie and more! 

Leith Walk: One of Edinburgh’s longest high streets, Leith Walk is home to a range of independent shops including a variety of wonderful bookshops like Topping & Company, Typewronger Books (4a Haddington Place) and Argonaut Books as well as homeware and lifestyle gift shops, Handsel and Logan Malloch Ltd; loose leaf tea store, PekoeTea and more!  

Local Maker Stores:

There are a few shops in Edinburgh which solely stock independent makers and provide a wide range of gift inspiration:

An Independent Zebra (88-92 Raeburn Place, Stockbridge): An Independent Zebra was started by makers for makers and now stocks over 160 small independent businesses! 

Scottish Design Exchange (117-119 George Street, New Town): Scottish Design Exchange houses a collection of artwork and products from over 300 Scottish artists and designers. 

The Red Door Gallery (42 Victoria Street, Old Town): The Red Door Gallery is a hub of creativity for the visual arts and proudly supports the work of over 150 artists and creative businesses.

Leith Collective (Ocean Terminal, Leith): The Leith Collective is home to a collection of unique and handmade products made using sustainable recycled materials. With over 130 artists and makers from all over Scotland, there’s plenty of choice!

The Treasure Trove (23A Castle Street) - Dating back to 1882, The Treasure Trove's original purpose was to promote the handiwork of war widows or those who were housebound. Today, it continues to sell beautiful products handmade by its members.  

a shameless self-plug

Pockets of Pretty: An Instagrammer's Edinburgh (£20): Sneaking in my book as the last entry. Pockets of Pretty is a labour of love and is filled with various neighbourhood guides, coffee shop recommendations, day trip ideas and more!