Whether your strategy involves armfuls of hangers and a mammoth trying-on session or one carefully selected item and a TikTok-inspired fit hack (jeans around the neck, anyone?), the return of shopping IRL is definitely good news. And while fantasy basket curation online is certainly fun, nothing compares to being able to see, touch and try on new pieces without it all ending with a trip to the post office.

Since the enforced two-year lull of the pandemic, fashion brands have been enacting grand plans for luring shoppers back to bricks-and-mortar shops – and impressive new stores with strikingly beautiful designs, exciting pop-ups and excellent fitting rooms are now opening across London. One common theme? Many of these new stores aren’t just for shopping. From cafés and cocktail bars to rental offerings and alterations services, there’s more to discover than just what’s on the rails.

A new Rixo flagship with a seriously glam interior, a female-founded indie brand’s first London store, a sustainability-focused Selfridges pop up and many more: we spent a day browsing our way through the month’s best new openings. Ready to plan your next trip? Whether you’re heading east or west, searching for just-dropped styles or a curated selection of vintage, here are the stores you’ll want to visit…

Dior 

First look: Of course, the new Dior store is incredibly luxurious. After all, we wouldn’t expect anything less. Spread across three floors, expect to see the famous leather goods and accessories, womenswear and menswear all under one roof. Calming and neutral in its aesthetic, with pinpoints of the house’s famous blue shade peeking through, it captivates the brand’s fundamentals while reinterpreting the emblematic 30 Montaigne flagship in Paris. Few stores will be more sophisticated.

Don’t miss: Art lovers, rejoice – works by British artists such as Victoria Morton, Peter Seal and Selma Parlour, to name but a few, grace the walls of this suave store. So be sure to wind around the rooms to try to find them.

Find Dior at 196-198 Sloane St, London SW1X 9NR

Rixo 

First look: If you’ve ever wondered what stepping into a full-glam 70s-style mega boutique might be like, you don’t need to wonder anymore – just head to the King’s Road and visit Rixo’s new flagship store. This is the brand’s second location and it’s biggest yet, but it’s not just the signature printed dresses that fill the space. With a coffee kiosk (even the paper cups are Rixo-branded), an alteration station where you can get your existing pieces mended and customised, a boudoir-like bridal suite that can be curtained-off if you arrange a fitting and a brilliantly OTT cocktail bar, you could quite feasibly spend an entire afternoon in this sartorial treasure trove without running out of things to do.

Don’t miss: The most extravagant fittings rooms you’ll ever get dressed in. The curtains are rainbow and pinstriped, the mirrors are scalloped, the multi-coloured chandeliers are fabulously opulent – and the whole thing centres around two huge palm trees. Just don’t ask how they got them in through the narrow arched doorways…

Find Rixo at 114-116 Kings Road, Chelsea, London, SW3 4TX.

Aries

First look: Surrounded by fellow streetwear brands such as Supreme and Palace, Aries’s first permanent store is well placed in its Soho backstreet. This huge venue is part shopping experience, part art space and part café, with coffee and (soon to arrive) sandwiches made by Paperboy, a cult Parisian café. The pieces on sale are similarly well-curated, from Aries’s signature ‘No Problemo’ T-shirts to oversized shirts and rag rugs made out of surplus fabric from previous collections in an effort to reduce waste. Walk down the impressive scaffolding and marble stairs to find contributions from indie London brands including chunky silver accessories from unisex jewellery brand Bunney.

Don’t miss: The vintage T-shirt collection downstairs, curated by south London resale favourites Jerks. Whether you’re after a retro 00s fitted Britney Spears crop or an oversized style with a thought-provoking slogan, this is the perfect place to find unique T-shirts with personality.

Find Aries at 31 Great Pulteney Street, London, W1F 9NN.

Selfridges Worn Again

First look: While Selfridges itself certainly isn’t new (it’s been open for 114 years), its latest sustainability-focused project is full of fresh additions. Most notably The Corner Shop (a space on the Oxford Street side of the store dedicated to pop-ups) has been taken over by Marine Serre, best known for her distinctive crescent moon pattern and love of upcycling. From bags made from vintage towels to dresses sewn using 00s T-shirts, this philosophy certainly carries through to the pop-up, where you can also bring in old T-shirts to be decorated with the aforementioned moon print. Another part of Worn Again is a collection of pre-loved pieces (think designer, rather than bargain bin), curated into six edits, each with a distinctive aesthetic. Minimalism and Y2K – it gets our vote.

Don’t miss: The Vinterior pop-up nestled into Selfridges’ homeware section. If you love browsing secondhand ceramics, lamps and glassware online, this is a brilliantly elevated IRL version, filled with one-off pieces you’ll want to fill your home with.

Find Selfridges Worn Again at 400 Oxford St, London W1A 1AB until 14 May.

Flannels x The Dress-Up

First look: Flannels’ month-long rental pop-up is packed with going-out clothes, but not as you know them. Curated by Leah Abbott, the celebrity stylist behind some of Flo, Jorja Smith and Stormzy’s most standout looks, the line-up of luxe 90s and 00s-inspired dressed-up pieces – think bright pink bodycon, ultra-mini suiting and glossy micro bags – is all available to rent for anywhere between four and 20 days. It’s an ideal solution if you get bored of statement pieces easily but love making an impact and, with 81 pieces available from brands such as Jacquemus, Coperni and Saks Potts, you’re sure to find a fashion talking point.

Don’t miss: The pink, studded Coperni Swipe bag. This mini oval bag – with a shape originally inspired by the iPhone unlock symbol – has gone viral thanks to its distinctive silhouette and celebrity fans (we’re looking at you, Doja Cat). If you love the bag, this is the perfect opportunity to test-drive it.

Find Flannels X The Dress-Up at Academy House, 161-167 Oxford St, London W1D 2JP until 20 May.

Monsoon Vintage

First look: Monsoon started life as a stall on Portobello Road market 50 years ago, so it seems only right that its anniversary pop-up would be on the same Notting Hill street. With a selection of vintage pieces – from Monsoon and beyond – curated by stylist and vintage expert Bay Garnett, it’s full of secondhand gems that reference the brand’s 70s roots. The luxe velvet armchair, vintage art and retro playlist help, too…

Don’t miss: The rare archive shoot pictures on display, featuring James Bond actor Jane Seymour in a brilliant array of paisley dresses that are certain to help coax your summer wardrobe into colourful territory.

Find Monsoon Vintage at 237 Portobello Rd, London, W11 1LT.

Hai

First look: If you’ve ever coveted a colourful mini silk bag – think bamboo handle, petite silhouette, spring brights – the likelihood is Hai’s unique accessories are already on your radar. The London-based brand opened its first standalone store in Seoul, South Korea, in 2021 but, until now, it hadn’t ventured into bricks and mortar on its home turf. This cosy Shoreditch location isn’t just full of said bags and Hai’s newly launched silk ballet flats – the walls are lined with the brand’s new spring/summer collection, too. Expect ruffled midi dresses, structured silk shirts and ruched, textured tops in go-with-everything block colours. (You’ll probably snag a chocolate chip cookie, too.)

Don’t miss: The brand’s founder and creative director Tessa Vermeulen will be in the store most days over the course of the pop-up to chat and help visitors to style Hai’s signature pieces. Fair warning: she might just convince you to brave dresses over trousers for the first time since the 00s.

Find Hai at 16 Calvert Avenue London, E2 7JD until 31 May.

Uniqlo

First look: Walking into Uniqlo’s freshly opened Covent Garden store, you’d be forgiven for thinking it was a relatively lowkey space – that is until you walk a bit further and enter the three-storey high atrium of this building’s restored Victorian carriage-making hall. Expect Liberty-esque central opening with more viral crossbody bags than TikTok would know what to do with. As is to be expected, there are Uniqlo’s signature – and incredibly satisfying – walls of neatly lined up, colour-coordinated socks, T-shirts and jeans, but there’s a slew of extras too. A mini flower shop on the ground floor by south London florist JamJar Flowers, a repair and embroidery area where you can bring in your old (and new) Uniqlo items for customisation and TLC, and a matcha-focused café on the top floor with a roof terrace that we’re convinced will become Covent Garden’s best kept secret.

Don’t miss: Theory at Uniqlo, the other fresh store to pop up in this new location. Nestled into the back of Uniqlo (accessible either through the main shop or via a separate entrance on Floral Street), it’s full of simple, more upscale pieces – all with Theory’s signature minimalist approach. Plus, the fitting rooms have great lighting.

Find Uniqlo at 19-21 Long Acre, London WC2E 9LZ from 27 April.

Urban Outfitters Dress Boutique

First look: If your summer wardrobe is in need of freshening up, this warm weather-focused pop up is for you. Centred around the idea that what most of us really want when the sun approaches is a feel-good frock, it’s set in a grand, emerald-tiled King’s Road building that was once a billiards hall. More upscale and grown up than other locations, it’s stuffed with the cream of Urban Outfitters’ dress crop.

Don’t miss: The selection of pieces from Light Before Dark, the Urban Outfitters-exclusive brand with a sun-bleached aesthetic that fits seamlessly into sunny days. Expect stylishly washed-out colours, delicate lace and sweetheart necklines.

Find Urban Outfitters Dress Boutique at 141 King’s Road, London, SW3 4PW from 27 April.

Images: courtesy of brands