Edmonton Local Shopping Guide

Shopping local is a key ingredient in keeping communities vibrant and unique. It keeps money in a city and it helps to promote a “local flavour” by allowing independent business to thrive. Since most or all of these sorts of shops will be unique to the local area, they can help to define the character of a city.

In order to help promote local shopping (both during Shop Local First Month and throughout the rest of the year), I have created this guide to shopping local.

Below, you will find a brief description of each of the main local shopping regions in the city, as well as a short list of some good local shops in each area. The shops have been selected based on two criteria:

1. They are locally owned and operated; and
2. I like them.

Most of the shops listed are retail stores, but a few are service providers such as hair salons. Generally, if the place is not a retail store, you will see a short explanation in brackets beside the name of the store.

Wherever possible, I have linked to the store’s official website. If the shop in question doesn’t have a website, then I have tried to link to it’s Yelp profile so that you can still find the address and some information about the store’s products and/or services.

Whyte Avenue & Old Strathcona

Old Strathcona is probably the first area that pops into most people’s heads when they think about shopping locally in Edmonton. While a few chain stores have managed to move in over the years, that vast majority of the stores on Whyte Avenue are independently owned and operated.

This is slightly less true as you start to head away from the Avenue and into other parts of Old Strathcona—or if you’re stopping to grab a coffee—but generally, if you’re shopping on Whyte, you’re supporting local businesses.

Whyte Avenue Shops

Here are just a few of my favourite shops on Whyte Avenue:

• Blackbyrd Myoozik
• Burlington on Whyte
• The Tinbox
• Ten Thousand Villages (technically, not local, but they only sell fair trade goods)
• Black Swan Antiques & Collectibles

Jasper Avenue & Downtown

The downtown area of Edmonton has finally started to come back to life in recent years. And, while much of the downtown retail industry is focused on City Centre Mall, with it’s slew of national and international chain stores, there are still some independent gems in the area.

And, while I’ve named this section after the iconic Jasper Avenue, the real heart of local shopping in the downtown core is probably 104 Street. This area has really turned into something special and unique in the downtown core, and with the exception of Audrey’s Books on Jasper, it’s the home of all of the downtown locals that I’ve listed below.

Downtown Shops

• Audrey’s Books
• Carbon Environmental Boutique
• 29 Armstrong
• City Market (the downtown farmers’ market, which may open a winter market soon)

124 Street

Just west of downtown lies 124 Street. This was an economically depressed area for some time, but the place has slowly been revitalized over the past 15-20 years. It is now a real gem for local businesses and restaurants.

I’ve even heard a few people suggest that 124 could rival Whyte Avenue someday. In fact, some Whyte Ave fixtures have moved north across the river in recent years, as the rents on Whyte increased dramatically during the real estate boom of 2008-09.

With the exception of Mountain Equipment Co-op, I believe that every retailer along 124 Street, from Jasper Avenue north to 111 Avenue is local and independent. And, while there are a few restaurant and coffee chains in the area, even most of the eateries on 124 are local indies.

Maybe 124 is already a rival to Whyte Avenue!

124 Street Shops

• Scottish Imports
• Mousy Browns (a hair salon, but they also sell hair products & other cosmetics)
• Ascendant Books
• Populuxe

High Street

Technically, the High Street district is a part of the 124 Street area. But it’s distinct enough to be treated as it’s own area, at least in my opinion.

High Street is one of my favourite areas for local shopping, perhaps because it’s one of the most walkable and is home to one of my favourite local restaurants: the Urban Diner.

High Street Shops

• The Tinbox (although, the Whyte Ave location is bigger/better)
• Paddy’s International Cheese Market
• Carol’s Sweets
• Call The Kettle Black (not sure if they’re still locally owned, since they’re also in Vancouver)
• LUX Beauty Boutique
• Notables Stationers

Highlands

While Highlands is mostly a residential area, it has a small area of local businesses along 112 Avenue between about 65-67 Street. While it’s small, this area features some excellent shops, including another of my favourite local restaurants, Culina Highlands.

Highlands Shops

• Mandolin Books & Coffee Company
• Catfish Coffee Roasters
• Sabrina Butterfly Designs

The South Side and Beyond

The shops listed above are just a sampling of local shopping districts and stores. There are many other local and independent stores in the city. And, with the exception of Old Strathcona, I haven’t even touched areas on the south side.

This is mainly because I don’t know the south side very well. It’s very rare that I go much farther south that Whyte Avenue unless I’m making a trip to IKEA.

If you know any good local shopping districts on the south side, please let me know. Hell, even if you just know a single shop, share that information in the comments, as well. Let’s make this our local shopping guide.

If enough people add comments and substantially build on what I’ve already got, then I will revise the post over time to include some of the comments (with credit given to those who provided the information).