Shopping: Las Salesas

Las Salesas is one of Madrid’s most alluring shopping districts. Little urban design shops where elegance and avant-garde aren’t at odds with the ordinary, sheltered from the invasion of giant retail chain stores. Concept stores for shopaholics, influencers, #igers and trendsetters… with a traditional twist.

Some of the most acclaimed young fashion designers have their boutiques in Las Salesas: Lemoniez (Calle de Argensola, 17), Ailanto (Calle de Orellana, 14; the firm owned by the Muñoz brothers, from Bilbao).

The store of the designer Jorge Vázquez—Orellana, 12; or NAC —Génova, 18— where you will also find garments as well as diverse accessories, such as jewellery, belts or wallets.

The designer Jorge Acuña—Almirante, 11—a haute couture space where off the peg  or made-to-measure clothing can be acquired. At Stüssy—Argensola, 10—you can find comfortable casual clothing for a sporty, urban market. For book lovers, head to the Taschen Store Madrid bookshop—Barquillo, 30—, by the famous German publishing house, where you will be able to find its entire catalogue, with versions in English of some books and multi-lingual editions in Spanish, Italian and Portuguese and German French and English. 

Concept Store and specialty shops

Moreover, Las Salesas is home to a high number of concept stores – that is, a shop that sells a carefully curated and unique selection of products that connect to an overarching theme. You can try, for instance, DO (Calle de Fernando VI, 13), for lovely items from international brands; Despacio Concept Store (Calle de Belén, 10), for unique bags and shoes, home décor items and gadgets; Gion (Calle del Barquillo, 18), for fashion and décor coming all the way from Japan; or González & González (Calle de Pelayo, 68), a curiosity shop for old-fashioned devices and designs, based on the philosophy that if something’s good, there’s no need to replace it. 

In Las Salesas you can also find an interesting array of specialist shops. Lumas (Calle del Barquillo, 23) is one of the best places in town for photo and graphic art hunters, offering real gems at affordable prices. The brand was established in 1628. At Cacto-Cacto (Calle de Fernando VI, 9) you can buy all sorts of cosy cacti, while Cacao Sampaka (Calle de Orellana, 4) is a haven for chocoholics. At Poncelet (Calle de Argensola, 27) you’ll find the finest cheese available in Madrid, which you can eat with the delicious artisan bread they make at Panod (Calle de Prim, 1), a new bakery that seeks to retrace of the origins of baking traditions. And if you’re a book lover, you should pay a visit to Antonio Machado (Calle de Fernando VI, 17) one of Madrid’s greatest bookshops. The Compañía Fantástica has its flagship store in the Salesas district which stands out for its original prints in its clothing designs.

[The Festival] by SALESAS

Una de las citas más animadas del barrio es  [The Festival] by SALESAS, que saca a las calles del barrio lo mejor de sus comercios y un sinfín de actividades para toda la familia. Suele celebrarse el primer sábado de cada mes.