Fashion in São Paulo is inevitable. If you are looking for a modern city to visit, São Paulo is probably one of the best options. Cosmopolitan and diverse, São Paulo offers its visitors a great selection of options for tourism, business, and of course, fashion. São Paulo is a fashion pole in Brazil, serving as location for São Paulo Fashion Week, the most important fashion event in the country.
Besides that, São Paulo has a lot of neighborhoods where a lot of immigrants concentrated in the twentieth century. It is considered as the stronghold of several world countries, such as the Bexiga (Italian community) and Liberdade (Asian community). This fact contributed to the city’s multicultural fame. There isn’t a style that describes the city, seeing that people from all over the world and from Brazil lives there.
We selected some nice and interesting places in Brazil for fashion enthusiasts to visit. Discover São Paulo’s unique culture and fashion life now!
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Oscar Freire street
Probably the most famous fashion stronghold in the city, the Oscar Freire street is home to several international and Brazilian stores. The street is located in Jardins and Pinheiros, two of the most expensive places of the city. It’s known for being the most expensive square meter in Latin America. Usually, the brands create concept stores, attaching architecture, design, fashion and culture.
You can find everything from Brazilian brands to the biggest names in international fashion, such as Galeria Melissa and Osklen.
In the past, it was home for other international brands, like Dior and Versace. However, due to low sales and difficulties to maintain the stores, most international brands migrated to shopping malls.
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Shopping malls
If there is a city in the world that absolutely adores shopping malls, it has to be São Paulo. It concentrates 52 shopping malls, without the metropolitan region. There’s a shopping mall for every style and purpose. Want to buy clothes at affordable prices? Checked. Want to visit high fashion stores? Checked. Want to have an amazing gastronomic experience? Checked.
Regarding high fashion, the best options are: Iguatemi, JK Iguatemi and Cidade Jardim. They are all located in the west zone of the city. If you visit São Paulo’s up-state, you will find outlet malls with stores of several different brands. (Think Burberry, Hugo Boss, Carolina Herrera and more).
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Thrift stores
Looking for vintage pieces? São Paulo has several thrift stores for you to discover. If you are looking for a more refined curatorship, Oscar Freire has amazing thrift shops with high fashion pieces. But if you want something more affordable, go to the downtown. You’ll find a variety of options with nice prices (especially in Santa Cecília).
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Museums
There is always something happening in São Paulo. Exhibitions and shows are no exceptions. With its dozens of museums and institutes, you can always find an amazing cultural program to visit. For example, last week I visited an Irving Penn photography exhibition in partnership with The Metropolitan Museum of Art In New York. It included pictures from all over the world and original Vogue issues from the 50s!
The most famous museums in São Paulo are probably the São Paulo Museum of Art – MASP. known for its unique architecture, and Museum of Modern Art – MAM. Also, São Paulo hosts the São Paulo Art Biennial every two years. Art pieces from several artists all over the world are displayed there. The even is considered one of the three main events of the international artistic circuit.
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Paulista Avenue
Paulista Avenue is the most famous avenue and tourist spot in the city. It houses several commercial offices, consulates and cultural institutions. (The MASP, for example). There are many stores and two shopping malls. The Avenue is surrounded by important streets like Haddock Lobo and Augusta street. The fun thing about Paulista Avenue is that if you follow one of the streets that cross it, you can reach Oscar Freire Street and Ibirapuera Park. The Park is where São Paulo Fashion Week is held, (in the noble side of the city). You can also get to the downtown, depending on the side you are in. On your way to the city’s downtown, you’ll find Augusta Street and its lively nightlife with dancing clubs and bars. In the opposite direction, you can go to the Jardins neighborhood.
On Sundays, the car traffic is forbidden, and the avenue is open for pedestrians and the bicycle path, transforming the avenue in a big urban park. Hundreds of people walk there every day, making the avenue one of the most visited spot in the city. It’s also a good place to observe the diversified style of the city residents.
São Paulo is a very diverse city, with its multicultural population. With no doubts, it’s an amazing place to visit if you are looking for a cultural tour program in Brazil. Besides the places mentioned, the city holds place for hundreds of museums, institutions and stores to visit and discover its unique lifestyle. From the historic spots in the center of the city, with cute coffee shops and places that refer to the 20th century, to the modern buildings in commercial and noble areas, São Paulo is a place full of history and culture that can be rediscovered every single day!
The Artémis team would like to thank this article’s collaborator, Marina Tapia, who lives in São Paulo, and who informed us about the city’s most charming fashion places. Marina’s Twitter: twitter.com/natasharmanoff
(The pictures were found on Google by Marina, she also took some herself.)