With tariffs and restrictive trade policies in the news constantly, “Buy Local” has become more important than ever. Thankfully, Calgary has plenty of options. While not comprehensive, here’s a round-up of some of the best places to “shop local” in this city. (For the sake of brevity, the city’s many food stores focusing on edible ethnic specialties are not included.) Many of these stores are clustered close to one another in one of Calgary’s shopping districts including Inglewood, Kensington, Marda Loop, and along 17^th Ave SW.

 

SHOP LOCAL: KENSINGTON

The community of Kensington, located alongside the Bow River across from the City’s downtown core, is home to a number of locally-owned gems within walking distance of one another.

Well-established local clothing stores Kismet and Purr can be found nearly side-by-side along 10^th Ave NW. (Purr also has sister locations in Inglewood and along 17^th Ave, each of which carries slightly different inventory.) Kismet skews to a more mature clientele than Purr and carries mid-price-range European brands like InWear and Part Two. Purr offers a variety of trendy clothing brands, as well as hipster doodads including stickers, pins, skincare and cards. Just down the road is the Purr affiliate Purr Petite, which carries high-quality books, clothing and toys for babies and young children.

Kensington is also home to the locally-owned Beehive, which offers an astonishingly large selection of honey, as well as homemade bath-and-body and home-care products comprised entirely of natural, organic ingredients. (The body scrub is a personal favourite.) Sharing the theme of personal and home care is the Canary Refillery and Zero Waste Market. As the name suggests, one can source refillable laundry soap and shampoo and conditioner here, as well as other clean-beauty options.

Kensington also features several locally-owned gift stores, including long-time Kensington staple InGear. Nestled discreetly on the main floor of an apartment building along Kensington Road, InGear’s compact interior is overflowing with a selection of silver jewellery by Canadian designers along with other gift items from gloves to scarves to wallets. A bit further down Kensington Road is Mañana Imports & Gifts. Mañana’s owner travels extensively throughout Asia and South America to meet with local artisans who provide the store with its selection of fair-trade clothing, folk art, incense and spiritual statues. Of particular note is Mañana’s large selection of sterling silver jewellery.

Other local finds in Kensington include the Gummi Boutique for candy, Pages on Kensington for books (including a basement of used-book treasures) and the Hidden Gem Local Market, which hosts the work of dozens of local artisans and vendors under one roof.

 

SHOP LOCAL: INGLEWOOD

On the other side of the downtown core is another Calgary neighbourhood that offers plenty of local shopping opportunities: Inglewood.

One of the long-time, locally-owned anchors of Inglewood shopping is Espy. Its spacious interior along 9^th Ave SE offers a wide selection of men’s and women’s clothing, shoes and accessories. Denim is an Espy speciality. Espy also offers personal-styling and closet-makeover services.

Also along Inglewood’s main strip one can find Adorn Boutique – which exudes a very feminine vibe via the clothing and jewellery it sells – as well as The Shoe Closet, one of Calgary’s main destinations for funky shoe brands including A.S. 98 and Unity in Diversity. (The Shoe Closet originally opened in neighbouring Cochrane and still has a location there.)

For something other than clothing, look no further than Artesano Galleria. It offers kitchen gadgets, cookware and a whole lot of collectibles. One could spend hours looking at the various statues, ornaments and clocks featuring such playful motifs as Betty Boop and gnomes of all varieties.

Inglewood is also home to Lemonceillo Home and Gift. Lemonceillo carries a tasteful selection of home-related items from candles and diffusers to stemware and tea towels.

For locally-produced body care, check out The Apothecary in Inglewood. It carries the products one needs to complete one’s bathing and moisturizing ritual using all-natural products. The Apothecary also offers a zero-waste refillery service for both personal and home-care needs, as well as bulk herbs and spices.

For stationary afficionados, Inglewood is home to Recess, a store featuring a plethora of inks, journals, local postcards, notepads, and writing instruments.

If you are a green-thumb, then a stop at the locally-owned Plant is a must, as it caters to all things flora. And if fibre arts are more your thing, Stash, which occupies a large corner-store space along 9^th Ave SE, is a necessary stop as it carries an extensive selection of yarns, needles and kits for fibre newbies.

Inglewood also features many consignment and vintage-clothing shops, so it’s no wonder one could spend an entire afternoon browsing the Inglewood streetscape.

 

SHOP LOCAL: MARDA LOOP

The inner-city neighbourhood of Marda Loop is home to some of Calgary’s newest boutique destinations, thanks to extensive redevelopment in the area. Many of the boutiques are gathered in-and-around a couple of heritage buildings along 34^th Ave SW and form a shopping complex called The Shops at Avenue Thirty Four. Included in this complex are a small jewellery and home-goods store called Vienna at Marda Loop; the Little Rituals Candle Company; a bookstore specializing in romance novels called Slow Burn Books; and a well-curated consignment-clothing store, Revive Attire.

In the same neighbourhood, but tucked away on a cul-de-sac near the Garrison Woods Safeway store further along 34^th Ave SW, is a gift store called The Cardroom at Kricket’s. It’s full of cards and small gift items that range from classy (e.g. candles and stud earrings) to kitschy (guitar-shaped tea infusers and cheeky socks.) Next door to Kricket’s is the Crabapple Clothing Company, which sells higher-end clothing and accessories for women and men, including brands such as Rails and Norma Kamali.

 

SHOP LOCAL: 17^th AVE SW

Along 17^th Ave SW, just down 14^th Street from Marda Loop, one can find many, diverse, locally-owned shops. One would be remiss not to mention the long-time locally-owned jewel along 17^th called Rubaiyat.

Established in 1973, Rubaiyat is just as much art gallery as place of commerce, as it features an (expensive) treasure trove of beautiful items, from sparkling jewellery to glittering art glass to unique, upscale tableware. The Christmas season sees Rubaiyat transformed into a holiday wonderland with the most exquisite tree ornaments.

Just a short distance down 17^th Ave is the eclectic Steeling Home. It is a large store packed with coasters, doormats, mugs, pottery, socks and trinket dishes, and is the perfect one-stop shop for gift giving.

Along 17^th Ave in the historic red-brick Devenish Building one will find the Kate Hewko store. The titular Hewko is a local fashion designer who creates and curates a selection of accessories and clothing that is unabashedly bold and unique. Think leopard print, tulle, ruffles and sequins. Kate Hewko is constantly dropping new and crazy pieces so there is always something fresh in store.

For the men, 17^th Ave is also home to Less 17, which offers the latest in clothing and footwear.

And for those into rocks and crystals, Earth Gems – located in the basement of a building that also houses Ethos Bridal – is packed with bead strands and crystals and stones designed for collecting, crafting and metaphysical purposes.

 

SHOP LOCAL: 11^th AVE SW

Just a few blocks away, along 11^th Ave SW, is the amazing The Cookbook Co. Cooks. It boasts the largest selection of cookbooks in Western Canada, alongside gourmet condiments, cookware, and the latest gadgetry. (Cooking classes are also regularly offered here.)

Kit Interior Objects can also be found along 11^th Ave. While much of the store is dedicated to mid-century furniture and lighting from brands like Hermann Miller and Vitra, there are also smaller items for sale like brightly-coloured Marimekko mugs and plates.

 

SHOP LOCAL: TOY STORES

Calgary is also home to several independent toy stores that are filled with unique and interesting crafting kits, knick knacks, puzzles, and toys for toddlers to teens. While these stores carry mainstream, popular brands like Hot Wheels and Legoä, one can also find more creative and nostalgic offerings for all ages and price points. Included in this local, toy-store round-up are Cherry Tree Lane, located along 1^st Ave NE; Castle Toys, near Chinook Mall along 57^th Ave SW; and the Discovery Hut, with locations in both Chinook Centre and Market Mall.

SHOP LOCAL: CLOTHING BOUTIQUES

Of course, there are many locally-owned boutiques that fall outside of the main shopping aggregates. These include the trendy clothing store Heist Boutique located near Canada Olympic Park; the shoe-and-fashion staple Luna Blue along 14^th St SW; the ethical fashion and clean beauty store Piece on Peace in Spruce Cliff; the trendy clothing shop for men and women along 12^th Ave SW downtown called Twenty/Seven Boutique; the fashion boutique Girl + Friends Collective along Broadcast Ave SW; and the funky-footwear destination The Shoe Muse in Aspen Landing, known for the Chanii B line.

Photos and Story by Kathleen Renne