Buenos Aires shops in layers: century-old galerías, leather ateliers where the cutter still measures you, and Palermo studios selling one-off pieces. Bring cash — many independents give 10-20% off for efectivo and skip card surcharges entirely.
A covered hangar of roughly 150 stalls selling restored Art Deco furniture, 1950s soda siphons, brass hardware and vinyl. Open Tue-Sun 10:00-19:00, quiet in the morning. Sellers restore on site, so ask to see the before photos.
A fair-trade shop selling directly from Wichí, Qom and Mapuche communities: chaguar-fibre bags, carved palo santo, llama-wool ponchos and silver-mounted mates. Weekday hours 09:30-18:30, Saturdays until 14:00. Each label names the artisan cooperative.
The gaucho fair on Lisandro de la Torre: rastra belts with silver coins, facón knives, boleadoras, woven matras and criollo leather. Runs Sundays 11:00-20:00 (April-December) with folk dancing in the street between the stalls.
A mate specialist stocking calabaza gourds, algarrobo wood cups, alpaca-silver bombillas and loose yerba from small Misiones producers. Staff cure a new gourd for you — a three-day process they explain step by step before you leave.
Leather house on Marcelo T. de Alvear making bags and jackets since 1943, with carpincho gloves and boxcalf briefcases stitched in their own taller. Open Mon-Fri 10:00-19:00, Sat until 14:00. Repairs are done for life on their own pieces.
The flagship of Argentina's best-known conceptual designer on El Salvador: sculptural resin jewellery, layered knits and asymmetric tailoring in muted greys. The shop doubles as a gallery, with the season's samples displayed on steel racks.
Argentine design in cowhide and leather: butterfly-chair covers for the classic BKF frame, sheepskin rugs, mate sets and cowhide throws. Open daily 11:00-20:00. Everything is produced locally and folds flat enough for a suitcase.
An outlet village built into the restored brick arches of the San Martín railway viaduct, with around 60 Argentine labels — Kosiuko, Rapsodia, Prüne, Vitamina — at 30-50% off past-season prices, plus food stalls under the tracks.
A tiny gallery inside a Florida Street arcade dealing in antique Mapuche and Andean silver: trapelacucha breastplates, tupu pins and coin necklaces, alongside contemporary work by the owners. Weekdays 11:00-19:00, Saturdays to 14:00.
A bookshop-café on Thames with floor-to-ceiling shelves, a strong Argentine literature section and a courtyard café at the back. Spanish-language Borges, Cortázar and Saer editions cost a fraction of imported prices abroad.
A specialist wine merchant focused on small Mendoza and Patagonian producers rather than supermarket labels — old-vine Malbec from Los Chacayes, Salta Torrontés and Río Negro Pinot Noir. Staff pack bottles in flight-safe foam boxes.
A 1915 Art Nouveau arcade linking Florida and San Martín, its marble passage lined with old-school shops: a stamp dealer, a tailor, a leather repairer and a hat maker who still blocks felt by hand under the stained-glass dome.