67 Best Shopping in Provence, France

Where else should you buy blue jeans but in the birthplace of denim? Guillaume Sagot's hand-cut options for men and women are not only of supremely elegant cut and fit, but they're also sustainably produced, a rarity for denim. Made using 17th-century weaving techniques, the fabric is soft yet durable, so this chic boutique-atelier draws fashionistas from near and far.

Within walking distance of the town center and tourist office, this traditional bakery for the boat-shaped navette, an emblematic cookie of Marseille and Provence, was revived by the founder of the Provence-based cosmetics giant, L'Occitane. Delicately perfumed with orange flower water, the oblong cookie is said to represent the boat that brought saints Mary Magdalene and Martha to the coast near Marseille. Other traditional biscuits, flavored with lemon, almond, anise, or orange flower (including calissons d'Aix and macarons made from local almonds) are baked here by hand in gourmet versions updated by Paris superstar pâtissier Pierre Hermé. Though you'll also find them in gastronomic shops, all of the biscuits made here—easily transportable in tins—are sold in the Biscuiterie store at a 10% discount.

This is the place to sample more than 100 Gigondas vintages—all for free—and learn everything you want to know about the terroir, wine making, organic wines, and the AOP Gigondas appellation from friendly, highly knowledgeable staffers who speak English. Afterward, you can stock up on the best of these stunning wines.

Ex-fashion designer Laure Traverso (Marc Jacobs, Paul & Joe) escaped the Paris treadmill to open her own wildly creative concept store that spotlights all things French that are also sustainable, ethical, design-conscious, and just plain cool. Discoveries abound: look for chic emerging fashion labels, beautiful leather and straw bags, shoes, belts, avant-garde jewelry, lingerie, handmade home furnishings, and organic cosmetics made in Provence. There's even a grocery corner with local microbrews, chocolates, and teas.

Part charming café serving lunch, snacks, and coffee and part concept store, CQFD (Créations Éthiques Franco Décalées) is hands-down Avignon's chicest shopping destination. Its spacious rooms brim with a curated selection of whimsical clothing and jewelry, chic stationery, tableware, soaps, cosmetics, and handmade housewares (including eco-paints and hand-blocked wallpapers). Everything is eco-conscious—and made in France.

Here you can stock up on fine soap, shampoo, body lotion, and other beauty products—all made using top-quality organic essential oils distilled in Provence.

This popular shop has been mixing herbal treatments on the same premises since 1805. At the laboratoire, trained herbalists use dried local and exotic herbs or plant extracts to customize a concoction for whatever ails you—from sleep issues to digestive troubles. At the contemporary tearoom across the street, you can sip an infusion and purchase packaged herbal teas, loose herbs, spices, coffee, honey, beauty products, books, and traditional candies.

In addition to chic men’s and women’s sportswear and casual attire by a small but choice selection of crème de la crème European designers, this beautifully conceived boutique sells lingerie, shoes, hats, books, linens, ceramics, photographs and graphic art, and Aesop skin care. Everything is handpicked by the charming owner, who is also a well-known French fashion photographer. The shop's cozy courtyard café is the perfect place to recharge your shopping batteries.

This family enterprise (since 1957) earned the coveted status of Entreprise du Patrimoine Vivant (Living Heritage Company) as the last shoemaker offering authentic boots for the famous Camargue cowboys, les gardians. Aside from some chic cowboy-esque models, there are stylish and durable full-length fashion boots and booties, suede and leather chukka boots, supersoft espadrilles, and strappy sandals—all made from supple, vegetable-tanned calfskin provided by the same tanner that supplies Hermès.

Known for its lush orchards, Apt excels at a technique for preserving fresh fruit that dates back to Roman times and was prized by everyone from the French popes to Madame Sévigné. At this local cooperative, founded in 1962, the old techniques were updated to 20th-century standards, but the colorful local fruits preserved in all their sun-ripened glory are still a sight to behold, and you can taste things before buying. Bigarreau cherries from the Luberon are an absolute favorite, but you'll also find Cavaillon watermelons and melons, Provence apricots, figs, plums, pears, and Corsican clementines, as well as kiwi, pineapple, and, of course, candied ginger.

Maire Duchêne, an independent perfumer trained in Grasse, the world capital of perfumes, dreamed of creating fragrances that would capture the essence of Arles and its beautiful surroundings. Her dream has been realized in this jewel of a boutique where her five sensuous perfumes evoke the spirit of Arles in a mix of citrus and pink peppercorn, the Camargue in notes of vetiver and amber, and Les Baux in lemon and white flowers. Her sublime smelling soaps and candles make for heady mementos of Provence.

Aix's most famous purveyor of calissons offers an assortment of the delicate almond pastries in gourmet flavors and enticing colors along with the white-frosted classic. The Rue Gaston de Saporta location is the flagship, but its wonderful museum just outside the city center ( 5380 Rte. d’Avignon) delves into the history and making of this sweet and is well worth a visit. The shop also sells fruit syrups, biscuits, cakes, nougats, and a variety of other beautifully packaged candies that are perfect for gifts.

With more than 100 stalls, Nîmes's central covered market is an excellent spot to grab a quick bite while stocking up on all the area's gastronomic specialties: crisp PDO (Protected Designation of Origin) picholine olives and olive oil, anchoïade (a heady mix of anchovies crushed with garlic and olive oil), Pélardons goat cheeses from nearby Cévennes, and Costières de Nîmes wines. For deeply satisfying regional cuisine—think brandade de morue (salt cod gratin) or taureau (bull's meat) with Camargue rice—and the convivial company of locals, head to Halles Auberge, which is open daily for lunch.

This confiseur dates from 1866 and is in its fifth generation of family ownership on the same St-Rémy premises. It makes the famous Provençal calisson, an almond-shape marzipan confection, as well as a gorgeous array of candied fruits—from cherries and strawberries to kiwis and even whole pumpkins—using a recipe credited to Nostradamus (a native son of St-Rémy). There are also fruit syrups, jams, chocolates, and regional honey. A tour of the factory and a stop in the beautiful boutique are pleasurable ways to spend and hour or two.

If "made in France" sounds good to you, head to this 190-year-old Marseille institution, which sells all things French. The main store carries everything from housewares and hardware to timeless perfumes, classic toys, and true Savon de Marseille. A second shop across the street ( 8 rue des Recolettes) has irresistible clothing and accessories for women, men, and kids, including wool or sheepskin slippers, rakish straw hats, cashmere capes, chunky wool sweaters, and cotton work shirts.

This fourth-generation winemaker's organic reds, whites, and rosés are served in gastronomic restaurants countrywide, so what better place to taste and buy these award-winning wines than at the source? How is it that they're allowed to reproduce a Van Gogh painting on their labels? Well, because the family mas is featured in the work!

Here you can purchase top-quality, AOC (controlled origin) olive oils and learn how they're made, from picking and pressing to blending and bottling. Free tours and tastings (in English) demonstrate why these regional oils—most made from green olives and some made from fermented black olives—end up on tables in some of the best restaurants in France.

This elegant cooperative features the best of the legendary Beaumes-de-Venise wines, made exclusively from the muscat grape, as well as the appellation's lesser-known but equally worthy reds, whites, and rosés. There are also options from the neighboring Gigondas and Vacqueyras. All can be tasted in the degustation room, as can local olive oil, fruit juices, and more. Wines can be shipped worldwide.

The official maison des vins of Châteauneuf-du-Pape, Vinadea has the town's best selection of wines, along with wine expertise if you have questions. Tastings are offered daily, and wines can be shipped internationally. Keep in mind that shipping rates are offset by the fact that you're getting "cellar door" prices with no markup.

This cozy bookshop near Cours Mirabeau is not only a great place to buy and read English-language books, but also to meet other English speakers.

For five generations, this family-run outfit has produced some of the country's finest olive oils. You can buy several varieties at the centrally located boutique—which also has a tantalizing array of tapenades, sauces, condiments, and jams—or visit the mill a mile out of town to see firsthand how the oil is made.

The French chain Catimini offers an imaginative, jazzy stock of kids' sweaters, jackets, and dresses.

Colorful, whimsical, elegant—the sculptural handblown glass creations sold here range from exquisite perfume flacons and decorative paperweights to everything you need to impress at the dining table.

This shop has picks for women—bold jewelry, exuberant scarves, and colorful sunglasses (Jackie O herself once bought a pair here)—as well as a selection of scented candles, stationery, and glassware in a range of gorgeous jewel tones. There are also some vintage items.

This distiller, founded in 1898, makes aperitifs and digestives using aromatic ingredients such as gentian root, anise, thyme, wormwood, and peaches. Indeed, more than 65 plants and spices go into its famous Pastis Henri Bardouin.

This famous bakery, up the street from Notre-Dame-de-la-Garde, has made orange-spice, shuttle-shape navettes in the same oven since it opened in 1781. These cookies are modeled on the little boat that, it is said, carried Lazarus and the Three Marys (Mary Magdalene, Mary Salome, and Mary Jacobe) to the nearby shore.

Since 1926, the Riviera-based perfumer has been bottling the sun, sea, and all the luscious scents of Provence in colorful vials. Its popular fragrances—orange flower, rose-lavender, verbena, jasmine, vetiver, the signature Coeur du Soleil, and so many more—come in perfumes, candles, soaps, shower gels, and home fragrances. You'll also find gifts, stylish Mediterranean clothing, and fashion accessories.

If you're into Louis XVI, the Fusterie quarter caters to antiques hunters and interior decorators.

Particularly noteworthy on the fashion front is Gago, which sells stylish designer wear for women including Céline, Balanciaga, and Comme des Garçons.