Guide To Shopping For Luxury Goods In Europe For The Best Bargain

Aside from being a popular wanderlust travel destination, Europe is also extremely popular amongst the shopaholics as well as branded goods collectors and enthusiasts. Luxury goods are often the lowest priced in the UK, German and France, so we can totally see why!

Plus, with 90% of luxury goods manufactured in Europe (usually France or Italy), the items aren’t shipped to faraway destinations, hence the lower costs. With the deduction of VAT, you can get quite the savings too. Keep reading for tips on how you can get the best bargain and where to shop in Europe!

The trick to making sure that you’re getting a bargain is to take full advantage of the VAT refund. The Value-Added Tax (VAT) is the sales tax implemented across the European Union. For residents of non-EU countries, you can get a refund of anywhere from 5% to 25% of your purchase of designer goods. If it’s a large purchase, this will be quite the savings!

Designer stores in many European cities are also accustomed to having foreign shoppers. They will typically walk you through the VAT refund process and provide all the necessary documents for filing a claim at the airport. In the event they don’t, simply ask the store assistants for some help. Make sure to have all your documents handy when claiming for your VAT refund at the airport before leaving!

As with most things, it’s good to do your own research before your shopping spree in Europe. If there is an item that you’re after specifically, it’s good to search up the prices so you have a better idea on what you can expect to pay and know how much you’re saving.

If you don’t have a specific item in your wish list, you can also browse through the online website to see if anything catches your eye. Make a mental (or physical) note of the styles, designs, and whether they’d fit into your wardrobe! The last thing you want is to have buyer’s remorse after shelling out a huge sum during an impulse buy.

Europe is a haven for luxury shopping from beautifully dressed flagship stores to boutique shops, bustling shopping streets and so on. For the bargain hunters out there, outlet malls are the perfect go-to! 

For example, The Bicester Village Shopping Collection has a family of 11 unique shopping destinations across Europe and China as well, all an hour or less from some of the world’s most celebrated cities. The Villages are home to more than 1,300 boutiques from the likes of Saint Laurent, Anya Hindmarch, Stella McCartney and many more, with remarkable savings of up to 60% on the recommended retail price.

They call it retail therapy for a reason and to make your shopping experiences even that much more convenient and cost-effective, you can opt for roundtrip transfer, gift card and meal vouchers on Klook for the various Bicester Village Shopping Collection.

Having a travel-friendly credit or debit card certainly has its upsides, especially if you’re a frequent traveller. Do check before your trip is your bank charges foreign transaction fees for your respective credit or debit cards. The fees can certainly add up if you’re making large purchases, especially if you’re making multiple purchases during your trip.  

The safest bet in making sure which brands are cheaper in Europe is to check if they’re made in Europe. They will typically be cheaper due to lower overhead costs as there are no extra charges like import tax, duty tax and transportation costs to ship the items to overseas stores. 

Some of the most popular brands cheaper in Europe include Chanel, Louis Vuitton, Burberry, Saint Laurent, Gucci, Givenchy, Balmain, Christian Louboutin, Dior, Hermès, Lanvin, Chloé, Céline, and more.

Kickstart your international travel adventures by booking your travel essentials on Klook, from WiFi and SIM Cards to rail passes. We've got good news too - you can now ease your travel plans by securing your transportation tickets easily on the Klook platform, before jetting off on your Europe adventure: