Most large villages and every neighbourhood in big towns and cities have one or more chemist's stores (pharmacies). There is a chemist on-call in every area 24/7, although in a smaller city or rural area, you or your doctor may have to call and rouse them. Check the window in your local pharmacy for details on after-hours emergencies.

Every city has several shopping centres and France is now criss-crossed with hypermarkets, usually in zones industriels, where just about anything can be found from every kind of food to car tyres and gardening equipment.

Nearly everything is closed on Sundays except some tabacs, épiceries and boulangeries which open in the morning; banks are also always closed on Mondays as well as many food stores. Again, in theory, the boulangers alternate their vacations and days-off so you never have to go without bread.

More and more often stores advertise la journée continue, meaning that they don't close for lunch; this is especially true with urban department stores and other chain stores.

Hypermarkets are open Monday to Saturday, usually from 8.30am until 8.30pm in the provinces, and from 8.30am to 9.30pm or even 10pm in the Paris region and some big French cities.

Very few big stores are open on Sundays, with the exception of some selling furniture and DIY goods.

In very small villages, it is usually at the Tabac (tobacconist) where you can find basic shopping items.

In Paris, or other French cities where many people live in multi-storey buildings with no elevators or parking, many grocery stores will deliver your purchases to you at your home for a small fee; Carrefour even allows you to do your food shopping online.

If you are lover of French antiquities but cannot afford les antiquaires, keep an eye out for les brocantes or les dépôt-ventes, or thrift stores; you can also sometimes find thrift stores that carry books, music, home appliances, bicycles etcetera. Clothing dépôt-ventes have become more fashionable in recent years and can be a way to indulge in French couture without paying couture prices.

Where to find what

• Hypermarkets (food, appliances and computers, shoes and clothing, home furnishings, personal hygiene items not reserved for chemist shops, books and music, toys):
  • Auchan, Leclerc, Carrefour, Monoprix, Intermarché, Super U
• DIY stores: 
  •  Bricorama, Castorama, Leroy-Merlin, Mr. Bricolage
• Home appliances: 
  • Darty, Carrefour, Auchan, Conforama, Boulanger
• Furniture, floor and wall decorations:
  • Ikea, St. Maclou, Mondial Moquette, Conforama
• Computers, audio-visual equipment:
  • FNAC, Darty, Carrefour, Auchan
• Mobile phones:
  • The Phone House, France Telecom, Bouygues, SFR shops
• Major department stores:
  • Au Printemps, Galeries Lafayette, Le Bon Marché, BHV, La Samaritaine
• Baby and children's clothes:
  • Natalys, Du Pareil au Même, Petit Bateau, Kiabi, Okaïdi
• Men's clothes:
  • Célio, H&M, C&A, Armand Thierry, Burtons
• Women's clothes:
  • H&M, Naf Naf, Kookai, Etam, Jacqueline Riu
• Shoe shops: 
  • André, Eram, La Chausseria, Halles aux Chaussures
• Perfumes and beauty supplies:
  • Sephora, Yves Rocher, Marionnaud, (and beauty departments at Monoprix)

Essential shop names in French

• Baker: boulangerie
• Bookshop: librairie
• Butcher:  boucherie
• Cake shop: pâtisserie
• Chemist: pharmacie
• Fishmonger: poissonerie
• Grocer's: épicerie
• Greengrocer's: marchand de fruits et de légumes
• Newsagent: marchand de journaux
• Post office: bureau de poste
• Supermarket, hypermarket:  supermarché, hypermarché
• Tobacconist: bureau de Tabac

Online shopping

It took a while for the French to feel comfortable using their bank cards online but now most of the major chains have an online presence. It is worth noting that all goods bought online are subject to the law on mail-order purchases meaning a refund or exchange can be obtained during a limited period, even if the same store’s high-street outlet would refuse.

Leguide.com is an excellent search site for online retailers.

Clothes, major appliances and furniture at discount prices:

• Cdiscount
• Mistergooddeal
• La Redoute
• Telemarket

Appliances:

• Show-room-2001

Groceries:

• Auchan Direct
• Ooshop (Carrefour)

Computers, Gadgets, IT supplies (also has stores in Paris):

• Surcouf
  

Books, CDs, DVDs:

• Fnac
• Amazon
• Alapage

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UPDATED December 2006

Copyright Expatica

Subject: Survival Guide, Christmas markets, shopping in France, French shops