Shopping in France: Hypermarkets and General Shopping

Having enjoyed the opportunity for more individual, leisurely shopping in small French towns, you will, at some point, find that you need to partake in some major retail therapy to stock up your larder, your wardrobe, or to carry out refurbishing projects in and around the home. This is when you will probably have to drive to one of the out-of-town retail outlets providing goods and services on a larger scale. This is usually more time and cost effective and offers a greater choice of items.

The following lists the major chains for various retail purposes:

• Hypermarkets - groceries, clothing, white goods, electrical appliances, tools, toys, garden equipment and some basic furniture

Hyper U, Super U, Marché U; Carrefour; Géant; Casino; Auchan; E Leclerc; Monoprix (supermarket section of Galeries Lafayette)

• Discount supermarkets

Intermarché; ED (Carrefour's discount supermarket)

• Department stores

Galeries Lafayette - flagship store in Paris with branches in major French towns

• Furniture and Appliances

Ikea, BUT, Basika - offer a range of flat-pack furniture as well as soft furnishings and household accessories.

Darty - white goods and home appliances, computers and mobile phones

Fly - inexpensive furniture and home accessories

• DIY and Hardware

Mr Bricolage, Point P, Leroy Merlin, Castorama, Lapayre

• Stationery and Office Supplies

J M Bruneau, Metro, Top Office

We welcome your feedback about your personal retail experiences in France . Contact us at info@ourhouseabroadfrance.com with your experiences, recommendations and advice so we can share this with our readers.