Gloucester's shopping scene is a local affair, and the locals are proud of it. Feel free to ask someone where the action is for the best shopping- you'll get an unvarnished opinion!
There are no shopping malls or major retailers on Cape Ann except for the two big grocery chains, Stop and Shop and Shaw's, and a McDonalds and Subway on the outskirts of downtown. If you enjoy art and handcrafted items, you can explore the art galleries and small shops at the Rocky Neck Art Colony, go on a grand tour of the island with a Cape Ann Studio Tour (info at the Chamber of Commerce on Commercial Street), or go Downtown. A brew of small local businesses is percolating in the Downtown district, where artists and retailers mingle with two independent coffee shops (the Lone Gull and Pleasant Street Coffee and Tea), gift shops, an artists' co-operative gallery (Local Colors), a local live theater company (West End Theater), a natural foods store (Common Crow Natural Market), clothing from utilitarian (Nelson's) to retro (Bananas) to fabulously urban (Ula Blue) and dining options from the bottom to the top of the scale. Parking is best gotten in the public parking lots down on Rogers Street (Rt 127); it's a short walk from this harborside parking to the parallel Main Street and the Downtown district. Warning: the parking meters are well-supervised and you'll pay a premium to visit if the meter expires!
Most folks will also make the tour around the Cape to visit Rockport for more fun shopping options.
Other craft and gift stops in and around Gloucester are Nancy Larson Jewelry Designs and Joie Designs (ceramics and crafts with primitive images of the local landscape and history). A local treaure is furniture innovator and manufacturer Klein Design. Their showroom is at 99 Sadler Street, but their merchandise can be purchased online at www.kleindesign.com as well.
If you're looking for a good Malling it's available to you a short 17 minute drive away on Route 128 The North Shore Mall at the intersection of Route 128 and 114 in Peabody has dozens of upscale national retailers. The more working-class Liberty Tree Mall in Danvers is a little closer to Gloucester, boasting a big movie theater. You can't miss it - Or, you could miss the malls and stick around to enjoy the local color!
