Miss Dubai hacks: The shops Google doesn’t tell you about in Dubai!
Dubai is a place where it’s secret hacks are revealed the longer you live here, it seems. One of these great mysteries, which you don’t seem to be able find readily available on the internet, is discount shops and where to find them. As part of our “Dubai hacks” series, we bring you the shops that you need to know about.
- Daiso
Daiso is the poundland or dollar store of Dubai. Most items, if not labelled, are 7 dhs (so it’s more like a bit more than a pound land). It is literally the place you can go for some sellotape and come out with a garden gnome and several types of cup. Daiso is a Chinese store where cheap and cheerful is the mission statement. Do you need mini easels? No. Do you have any purpose for them at all? Absolutely not. But will you buy them nonetheless? You bet it.
- Viva
More and more Vivas are popping up around Dubai so it’s becoming a bit more than a Dubai secret with locations now in the marina and also on the Palm Jumeirah. Viva is a discount supermarket with no branded items – as long as you’re not going there to buy your Heinz tommy k and Andrex then be prepared to save! At around a third of what your usual shop comes out at, the real question is what are you going to spend all that saved money on? Answer: more items in Viva, probably.
- Park n Shop
Missing your favourite goods from home? Well look no further than Park n Shop. Park n Shop is a supermarket with many British and American brands that you otherwise can’t find in Dubai. While you’ll most certainly find your favourites from the supermarket, you absolutely won’t find them at “home” prices. However if you just really wanted a Tunnock’s Tea Cake or a packet of Discos, this is definitely your place. The biggest one is out at DIP but there are also park n shop locations at JLT and in Jumeirah too.
- HEMA
Located in Ibn Battuta mall (there may be more that we are unaware of), HEMA is a home store with everything from birthday décor and stationery to cosmetics and crockery. You won’t deck out your whole home from there but you will certainly at a minimum have some fancy stationery and some nice soft furnishings.
- Home Box
Yes we have IKEA here but sometimes you want something with a little more style at a cheaper price, and that’s where Home Box slots in nicely. With everything from duvets to beds, you can kit the whole house out for a fraction of the price of other places!
- Homes for Less
When a shop is called Homes for Less it’s not exactly hiding the fact it’s going to have some bargains but it would be remiss to omit it. Offering, you guessed it, home items for less, you can find Homes for Less in many malls and shopping areas in Dubai however one of the bigger ones is located in Ibn Battuta mall along the same stretch as M&S.