Listopedia: The Design Files’ top New York design stores

New York is well known for being the best place in the world to go shopping, so we’ve shortlisted ten of the best design and interiors stores we visited.

I’ll preface this list by saying NEW YORK IS EXPENSIVE. Especially when it comes to interiors and design. Admittedly, many of the stores listed below are eye-wateringly pricey, but since most of us aren’t really in the market to buy actual furniture or bulky homewares whilst on holiday, I like to think of New York’s incredible design store scene as the world’s most inspiring window-shopping opportunity. This is where you must become a sponge, absorbing all the beauty and visual stimuli around you, in order to return home abuzz with fresh creative ideas for your own home/store/whatever!

ABC Carpet and Home

Don’t be deceived by the somewhat uninspiring name, this place is the bees knees (and it doesn’t actually sell carpet). ABC Carpet and Home is the home furnishings store of your dreams. For a self-confessed interiors junkie like me, no trip to New York is complete with a trip here. Set over six levels, ABC Home stocks an exhaustive range of vintage and new furniture, contemporary and classic design pieces, and an eclectic array of homewares, soft furnishings, tableware and kitchenware from across the globe. Like so many other NYC department stores, the in-store visual merchandising is an art form in itself, especially around holiday time. You’ll need an hour or two to browse if you want to check out every floor (which you certainly should). Make time to lunch in the excellent in-store restaurant, ABC Cocina, too. 888 & 881 Broadway 

MOMA Design Store

An oldie but a goodie, Manhattan’s Museum of Modern Art has an excellent design/gift store and bookshop, with locations both within the museum itself, and on Spring St in the bustling detail hub of SoHo. The SoHo store, set over two levels, is a great spot for last minute gifts, design objects and exhibition merchandise. We LOVE the art and design bookshop downstairs! ‘Cos, you know, design books are such a convenient thing to bring home in a suitcase. 81 Spring St, SoHo

Michele Varian

Michel Verian’s store was introduced to us by Australian ex-pat stylist Glen Proebstel, who is a fan of the eclectic edit of homewares, accessories, soft furnishings, furniture and lighting in this beautiful SoHo store. There’s something very personal about the way the products are curated here, it’s always varied, there’s a particular focus on handcrafted things and small manufacturers, and it’s one of the few stores in NYC where you can be assured of seeing a range of pieces that you truly haven’t seen anywhere else. , SoHo

The Future Perfect

The Future Perfect has a long history of championing young American designers. Its first incarnation was back in 2003 as a humble furniture and homewares store in Williamsburg, Brooklyn (long before the hipsters claimed the area as their own). Back then, the store, founded by NY native David Alhadeff, was central to the rise of many Brooklyn-based designers and makers who have since gone on to great things (such a lighting designer Lindsey Adelman (http://www.lindseyadelman.com) – she’s HUGE now!). After 12 years in business, The Future Perfect has had a coming of age. Now with stores in San Francisco and Manhattan, the brand has morphed into slick retail gallery showcasing both American and International designer furniture and lighting in super stylish surrounds. 55 Great Jones St