Despite of being a very small city, Hong Kong has shops that rival any other international city. There is something for everyone, whatever your budget may be. All the international branded items have a store Hong Kong, the reason being it is one of Asia’s most vibrant, lively and important city. Central houses a lot of these. For reasonably priced quality clothing, Causeway bay is perfect, which gives you Times Square, Sogo and New World Centre. Great markets are scattered throughout the city. The best ones to browse include: Li Yuen Street, Ladies Street, Temple Street and Shanghai Street. There is also the famous, fabulous and vibrant Stanley Market. You would find that Tsim Sha Tsui sells everything under the sun too. Harbour Terminal is right next to the Star Ferry Terminal and Mong Kok is very interesting too.
Hong Kong Island Shopping
Causeway Bay has always been a favourite with tourists. Walk along the zebra crossing outside Sogo, the Japanese department store to find big names, small boutiques and bargain stalls, all in a tight cluster. It is like a shopping carnival and of course, it will still take you a whole day to walk through this carnival. Next to Sogo, is the Sony Style HK flagship store, offering the latest state-of-the-art Sony products. (There’s another 6,000sq ft Sony Style in Mongkok’s Wai Fung Commercial Building). Pop into the renovated wtc more, next to the Excelsior Hotel, for mid-range fashions. This is the rebranded World Trade Centre. You will find a large Muji, UniQlo, Pink Box, SPORT b, agnès b, DKNY Jeans, Jill Scott, bread n’ butter, TWIST, Jurlique, Sonia Rykiel, Lush and FANCL.
Next to Sogo, the Island Beverley and Causeway Place shopping arcades are handy for trendy clothes and accessories. If you’re short on time, head straight to Island Beverley, featuring mainly local designers and imported Japanese and European clothing. Also, explore trendy shopping mall La Foret behind Sogo for more fashionable items. From here, Fashion Walk, Style House, Windsor House and Hang Lung Centre are good hunting grounds.
Causeway Bay’s big and teeming meeting ground is Times Square. The place is a rendezvous spot for everyone from teenagers, to suits, to tourists. At the Times Square mall you’ll find upmarket flavours at Lane Crawford with its dizzying array of posh brands like Hugo Boss, Burberry and Alberta Ferretti. Other popular stores in Times Square include the Spanish fashion chain Zara and City Super supermarket.
Wanchai is steeped in history. The markets here have very competitive prices, whether its furniture or clothes. Admirality is the place to go for luxury goods. Pacific Plaza here is one of the most popular malls. Central is where you will get everything from shoes to clothes, luggage to jewellery, watches etc. Must visit are the 2 parallel streets called “The Lanes”. The stores worth a see are Chater House, Landmark, Bape Store, Marks & Spencers, H&M to name a few. Stanley Market is one of the most famous and vibrant markets. Stalls, shops and restaurants galore. Silks, souvenirs, handicrafts, paintings are the kind of cultural items you will find. Must visit is Exclusive, Horizon Plaza at Ap Lei Chau, The Peak Galleria at the Peak Tower.
Kowloon
Tsim Sha Tsui has numerous department stores and shopping centres. Harbour City is one of the largest and most famous shopping complexes here. Must see are Faces, Papyrus, Toys “R” Us, Oshkosh B’Gosh, Kingkow etc. Just opposite is Canton Road for designer wear. Some of the malls worth visiting, whether you shop or not are iSquare, K11, Megabox, Telford Plaza, Peninsula Centre where one can spend over a day just window shopping. Most of the branded names have their outlets in these places. You will find everything. Jewellery, cosmetics, skin care products, music and music systems, children’s clothes, trendy wear, toys, perfumes, golf equipment. Nathan Road is a sight to see while it bustles with life day or night. 
It has rightly been named “The Golden Mile”. Elements at MTR Kowloon is the place for a unique shopping, cultural, leisure and dining experience as it has an Ice Skating rink and movie theatre along with food and shops. For fast and fancy tailoring, drop by famous Sam's Tailor in Burlington Arcade, off Nathan Road. The unassuming Sam’s has stitched outfits for Bill Clinton, Michael Jackson, Luciano Pavarotti, Serena Williams and Archbishop Desmond Tutu, among others. Manu Melwani will fuss over you while you fuss over your fitting.
Temple Street Market and Jade Market are vibrant street markets of Hong Kong. Mong Kok is a very busy street market, quite facinating and a good place for bargains. Ladies Market is a hugely popular market where you will find bags, clothes, shoes, toys and more. If you would rather move about in an air conditioned retail space, Langham Place is the place for you. Langham Place on Shanghai Street is a large hi-tech mall hosting over 100 trendy boutique stores, such as the likes of Seibu, French Connection, H&M, Muji and a cinema. The mall also features the 83m "xpresscalator", a speedy way to get from the fourth to the eight floors.
Hong Kong SkyMart - Hong Kong International Airport, located at Terminal 1, Hong Kong International Airport, Hong Kong SkyMart is a world dedicated to luxury shopping and sumptuous dining choices. There are around 100 retail shops and 40 eateries.
Citygate Outlets - Tung Chung. Just a short taxi ride away from the airport is the Citygate Outlets where you can find famous international brands at discounted prices. Enjoy factory-outlet-style shopping, along with great dining and entertainment. Open daily, 10am - 10pm.
SkyPlaza - Hong Kong International Airport. SkyPlaza offers 35,000m2 of facilities located mostly in the non-restricted area of Terminal 2, providing a wide range of themed stores, renowned local and international cuisines, and entertainment zones for a 4D Extreme Screen, Asia Hollywood and i-Sports centre.
Maritime Square in Tsing Yi is a fascinating combination of Hong Kong old and new. The Square features more than 130 shops, themed restaurants and a cinema. Its proximity to Hong Kong International Airport makes it a great stop-off for transit passengers.
New Town Plaza, located close to Sha Tin station on the MTR East Rail Line, New Town Plaza boasts internationally renowned fashion labels and a wide range of gourmet cuisines, offering you a convenient one-stop shopping destination. Must visit is the Snoopy World.
tmtplaza is the largest shopping mall in the northwest New Territories. With a diverse range of merchandise and tmtplaza’s unique marketing and promotional programmes, customers are attracted from far and wide. Covering an area of more than one million square feet And with 400 shops over five levels; the plaza welcomes more than 300,000 customers each day and brings them excellent shopping, dining and entertainment experiences. Open daily, 10am - 10pm.
Landmark North, located next to the Sheung Shui MTR station, provides shoppers with a vast array of choices from 100 specialty shops in jewellery, fashion, cosmetics, electronic items and many more, plus a wide selection of restaurants. Easily accessible from Lo Wu Station with just a five minute train ride, Landmark North is a hot spot for travellers.
Some tips for shoppers
1. Shops you can trust completely, are the ones that display QTS signs. These shops have to pass through stringent quality control. They ensure superb customer support and services too. The QTS is organised by the Hong Kong Tourism Board. QTS stands for Quality Tourism Services.
2. Compare prices before you buy. Prices are clearly marked in the upscale stores, department stores and malls but smaller shops where they aren’t, bargaining is possible.
3. You are advised to carry along your own shopping bags. The HK government levies an environment levy on shopping plastic bags to discourage the use of the same. All stores have to charge 0.50 HKD.
4. Beware of bait and switch tactics. An unscrupulous shopkeeper will bait you with an item, take a deposit, and later claim its lack of availability, and then sell an inferior product at a higher price. Also beware of bootlegs and touts. Do not follow them to any warehouses or showrooms.
5. Always keep your cash and credit card receipts carefully.
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