Are you looking to be more mindful about where you spend your money? If you want to shop local this holiday season, we can help with this guide to some of our favorite places to drop some dough IRL.
Why now? Because the day after Thanksgiving is Small Business Saturday, a reminder that while we all love the convenience of online shopping, there's still something to be said for supporting the local stores, shopkeepers and boutiques that breathe so much life into our neighborhoods.
Why it matters: These days, retailers take a risk in establishing a brick-and-mortar location to showcase their collections and share their vision. Reward their courage with your presence, positive feedback and sense of community. Every shop represents a dream in the making.
What's next? Check out a few of our favorite places to #ShopLocal in L.A., hitting a variety of locations, wares and price points. You'll also find over 100 other local retailers in the LAist Holiday Gift Guide, which curates dozens upon dozens of gift ideas to help you shop local this holiday season.
Shopping online may be efficient, but there is no substitute for the experience of stepping through the entrance of a well-considered store and delighting in the joy of discovery in person.
These days, retailers take a risk in establishing a brick-and-mortar location to showcase their collections and share their vision. Reward their courage with your presence, positive feedback and sense of community. Every shop represents a dream in the making.
As a counterpoint to Black Friday and Cyber Monday, we're highlighting just a few of our favorite places to #ShopLocal in L.A., hitting a variety of locations, wares and price points.
But this is just a starting point: You'll find over 100 other local retailers in the LAist Holiday Gift Guide, which curates dozens upon dozens of gift ideas to help you shop local this holiday season.
This season, meet not only the makers, but the merchants in your neighborhood and celebrate their contribution to making SoCal so uniquely our own:
Tía Chucha’s in Sylmar
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Courtesy Tia Chucha’s Centro Cultural & Bookstore
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Located in Northeast San Fernando Valley, Tía Chucha’s Centro Cultural & Bookstore is dedicated to making culturally relevant books and literacy available to an intergenerational and diverse BIPOC community.
Established by Los Angeles Poet Laureate Luis J. Rodriguez in 2001, the mission of the founder and his impassioned retail team is to highlight literature and storytelling that puts an emphasis on Xicanx and Latinx history and culture with an eye toward social justice and transformative healing. Home to more than 7,000 books, including bilingual children’s books, art, poetry, antiracism, queer/LGBTQIA, social change and more, the booksellers also offer book clubs, literary arts workshops, author events, and children’s story time. Some stores offer more than merchandise and this is one of them.
Museum stores are the perfect place to shop for unique and thoughtful gifts and Southern California has some of the very best. One of our favorites is the Huntington Store at the Huntington Library, Art Museum, and Botanical Gardens due to its extensive and ever-changing mix of creative, quality merchandise with wide ranging appeal.
Inspired by the institutions’ many gardens, art collections, geography and local interests, home decor, art, books, jewelry, personal care items, kid stuff, gardening products and more are displayed in a bright and airy atrium designed with warm natural wood. The store also stocks exclusive collections of botanical prints and logo merchandise as well as books, keepsakes and ornaments specific to the museum’s collections and tea room.
Don’t miss the opportunity to take a stroll through the art and gardens while you are there for a truly enriching experience — consider it the mental health break we all need in this busy season! Consider becoming a member, too, to receive store discounts starting at 10% and up depending on membership level. It makes a great experiential gift for those who don't want more "stuff."
Move over Willy Wonka, Letterpress Chocolate has gold tickets too. David and Corey Menkes, the Los Angeles-based artisanal makers who roast and stone-grind every small batch of their intricately hand pressed treats, offer discovery tours that include an inside look at the cacao tree and fermentation process, sampling of cacao juice and beans, and an introduction to the machines to see how the magic is made.
Tours at their Robertson Boulevard location are $20 for ages 12 and up, and finish in the Letterpress boutique where the chocolate equivalent of sweet sommeliers guide you through a tasting of dark chocolate bars — and you'll also find a wide assortment of gift sets. We can’t think of a better way to select holiday gifts this season — or next. If you're still hungry after visiting Letterpress, here's a list of places to dine nearby. You can save some chocolate for dessert! Here are 20 more gift ideas for the foodie on your holiday gift list.
A “Refill Station” in modern terms is a store aimed at helping consumers reduce plastic consumption and waste by allowing us to bring our own containers (or purchase a reusable container) and buy refills on everything from lotion, shampoo and conditioner to laundry detergent and dish soap when the bottle is empty. No more buying giant plastic jug after giant plastic jug, destined for the landfill when finished. With three locations in Long Beach, BYO Long Beach offers a wide selection of refillable products in addition to a well stocked supply of eco-minded merchandise, home goods, clever gifts, plants and more. Encourage a greener world with less waste by supporting the refill station closest to your home or consider a visit to a BYO Long Beach branch. It’s a gem. Also, check out our list of 17 gifts that are also kind to the planet.
The Last Bookstore in downtown L.A. is not just a place to shop, it’s an experience to be savored. A nirvana of sorts for book lovers since 2011, the 22,000 square-foot literary gorilla in the Spring Arts Tower is organized into creatively conceived sections to display more than a quarter-million books inside the century-old bank building. Yes, the store is a gold mine for IG selfies, but stopping only to take photos of the book tunnel, the fantastical sculptural displays and vintage architectural details would be telling only half the story. The store is a treasure trove for readers looking for everything from graphic novels and travel guides to rare books, vinyl records and beyond. Book clubs, author events and sleepovers at the iconic institution are also on offer. It's in-person shopping at its finest. And if you find yourself in DTLA, here are LAist's recommendations for where to grab a bite. Check out more book gift ideas here.
Founded by Los Angeles artist Angie Myung and her partner, husband Ted Vadakan with the launch of a colorful pocket-sized wallet in 2003, Poketo has evolved into a creative powerhouse brand collaborating with forces such as Nike, MOCA, the Guggenheim, and Disney.
Their flagship Santa Monica store reflects that energy. Guided by the philosophy: Art for you every day, the bright, cheerfully designed store with a crisp, modern feel is a ray of sunshine no matter what the forecast. The store also serves as a hub for the community of artists and makers Poketo seeks to inspire, and as a result, the team received the Edge Award for Positive community impact from the Los Angeles Design Festival. Poketo's wares also land on our holiday list of best gifts to thank a party host or hostess.
Do you know a hopeless romantic? This is the place to experience the meet-cute of your dreams — not to mention getting your hands on the perfect holiday gift. The Ripped Bodice Bookstore — as the name suggests — is devoted entirely and passionately to the celebration of romance novels. The store is proudly woman and queer owned by sisters Lea and Bea Koch, and the well-built shelves heave with a lusty selection of diverse and LGBTQIA+ inclusive fiction as well a wide and deep selection of gift items with a focus on supporting independent, woman-owned businesses. In addition, the bookstore team undertakes several large projects to advance their genre each year including, The Ripped Bodice State of Racial Diversity in Romance Report, the Read, Romance, Repeat subscription box, which would make a great holiday gift, and the development of television projects based on romance novels in association with Sony Pictures Television. In 2023, the store unveiled their second location in Park Slope, Brooklyn — and the adventure continues. We have suggestions for places to dine in Culver City, too, without breaking the budget (so you'll have more to spend on holiday gifts).
The home goods and textiles designed by Los Angeles-based creative Heather Taylor have been featured in publications such as Vogue, House Beautiful, and Domino and are stocked by trendsetting retailers such as John Derian, Nickey Kehoe and Le Bon Marche but the best place to experience them is in Taylor’s own brick and mortar store in Westwood Village.
Opened in 2018, Heather Taylor Home features not only her namesake collection, handcrafted in Chiapas, Mexico, but also a well-curated merchandise mix aimed at complimenting and enhancing her signature, eclectic style. For more shopping inspiration, check out our list of 17 unique, handcrafted gifts you can find right here in L.A.
It’s a store, it’s a studio, it’s an experience. Shopping at the 5,000 square-foot Match Stoneware showroom in Culver City means browsing the finished collections on display while a team of artists work on creating new pieces nearby. Visitors are welcomed to enjoy a personalized tour of the studio space and offered insight into the process of how the work is created. It is as close as you can get to making the pottery without tying on an apron and getting your hands in the clay.
In addition, the handcrafted, contemporary platters, plates, cups and bowls can be seen gracing the tables of some of the finest restaurants in the region owing to collaborating with chefs across the city, including at restaurants such as Vespertine, Destroyer and Somni, to name a few. If it’s good enough for chefs Mei Lin and José Andrés, we’re in. Allow yourself enough time to shop as well as to watch the artists practice their craft. For the budget-minded, the showroom also offers a number of one-off pieces that have been discounted for slight imperfections. Score! Here are 20 more gift ideas for the foodie on your holiday gift list.
The place to go for first-edition books. Located just off the Sunset strip, the store exclusively stocks first editions and first state copies of collectible literature and boasts an abundance of books signed or inscribed by their authors — including Winston Churchill, John F. Kennedy, Ernest Hemingway, J.K. Rowling and Dr. Seuss. In addition, the store also offers shooting scripts signed by the authors as well as the celebs who headlined the film adaptations. Actor Michael Caine once said the shop is, “like the most wonderful museum, except you get to buy the exhibits.” If you are looking to browse for something special where Oprah, Angelina Jolie, Bono, Nicole Kidman and others also shop, this is the place. Dark glasses optional. And since you love clearly love reading, check out our list of 17 picture books that make great gifts for kids — and adults, which also includes a guide to other children's book stores across L.A.
With their luscious Los Angeles area locations (Beverly Grove, Culver City, Studio City, and the OC pop-up at Coco Republic), Rolling Greens has established a signature style that captures the essence of the aspirational California lifestyle. At once elegantly luxe and relaxed, the stores offer plants, decor and home goods creatively displayed inside spaces you’ll want to move into. Browse for gifts, greenery or inspiration and soak in the style. To linger longer, check out the schedule of workshops or meet with a botanical barista at the Arrangement Bar to create something completely unique. Also check out our list of the 15 best L.A. gifts for plant lovers.
Inspired by a heritage of adventure and travel, Joanna Williams established Los Angeles-based Kneeland Co. Rarities on West Adams Boulevard as a tribute to her family’s passion for discovery. Located in the West Adams neighborhood, her store offers an eclectic mix of globally sourced home goods, jewelry, art and textiles. The location also serves as the headquarters for Williams’ textile archive, online website and advisory service for both residential and commercial clientele. Rarities, William’s word for the one-of-a-kind art and decor she curates from around the world, can be shopped according to country or featured artist and her passion for design and spirited style infuses the store with a meaningful sense of place. For more unique gifts, check out our curated list of artisanal gifts you can only find right here in L.A.
Vintage items have soul. They are also a great way to imbue your space with personality and individual style. Southern California has some of the best vintage markets in the country — in fact you’re likely to see them featured on design shows like HGTV’s Flea Market Flipand topping vintage shopping lists on the regular. Go for the people watching (celebrities, designers, trend setters), hidden treasures, and the fascinating stories behind the merchandise. The vendors know their stuff. Find out everything you can about what you are buying — and return home with stories of your own. Here are a few of our favorites:
Dodgers center fielder Andy Pages celebrates after hitting a two run RIB-single during the seventh inning in Game 4 of the National League Division Series against the Atlanta Braves.
Topline:
The Dodgers beat the Atlanta Braves 4-1 on Wednesday night to clinch their NL Division Series, as they seek to become the first NL team to win three straight World Series.
What happened: Andy Pages drove in two runs with a bases-loaded single in the seventh inning to give Los Angeles the lead.
What's next: The Dodgers will face Milwaukee or San Diego in Game 1 of the NLCS on Sunday.
Andy Pages drove in two runs with a bases-loaded single in the seventh inning to give Los Angeles the lead, and the Dodgers beat the Atlanta Braves 4-1 on Wednesday night to clinch their NL Division Series.
The Dodgers won back-to-back games in Atlanta to take the best-of-five matchup 3-1 and advance to the National League Championship Series as they seek to become the first NL team to win three straight World Series.
Pages lined a 3-2 pitch from Robert Suarez up the middle to drive in Teoscar Hernández, who singled off starter Tyler Mahle, and pinch-runner Tommy Edman for a 3-1 lead. Didier Fuentes walked pinch-hitter Josue De Paula and Kyle Tucker to load the bases. Edman ran for De Paula.
Max Muncy’s solo shot off Raisel Iglesias in the ninth padded the lead and gave the slugger 19 postseason homers with the Dodgers, extending his franchise record.
Dodgers right-hander Tyler Glasnow, making his first start since Sept. 24, allowed only one hit but walked five batters in 4 2/3 innings. After he issued two walks in the fifth, left-hander Alex Vesia ended the inning on Matt Olson’s groundout to second base.
The missed opportunity left the Braves with 18 walks in the series, and none scored.
Glasnow and four relievers combined to give up just three hits. Tanner Scott pitched a perfect eighth before Edwin Díaz got three quick outs for the save.
Mahle, a native of Newport Beach, California, who grew up a Dodgers fan, allowed two runs — one earned — in 6 1/3 innings.
Michael Harris II hit Glasnow’s first pitch for a single before stealing second and eventually scoring from third on a wild pitch that bounced off catcher Will Smith’s chest protector.
The Dodgers pulled even in the second with the help of two Atlanta errors. Shohei Ohtani walked, stole second and advanced to third on catcher Sean Murphy’s errant throw into center field. Muncy’s pop fly into shallow left field was dropped by shortstop Mauricio Dubón for another error, allowing Ohtani to score.
Hernández crashed into the wall while attempting to catch Ozzie Albies’ double off Vesia leading off the sixth. Hernández pointed to his head and neck when talking to an athletic trainer but remained in the game.
Edgardo Henriquez stranded Albies at second. Henriquez allowed one hit in 1 2/3 scoreless innings for the win.
Injury report
Dodgers second baseman Miguel Rojas was held out after leaving Tuesday night’s 3-1 win during an at-bat in the eighth inning with lower back soreness. Los Angeles manager Dave Roberts said Rojas would not be available off the bench.
Ronald Acuña Jr. started in right field for Atlanta one day after being moved to designated hitter in a late lineup change due to right knee soreness.
Up next
The Dodgers will face Milwaukee or San Diego in Game 1 of the NLCS on Sunday.
Jordan Rynning
holds local government accountable, covering city halls, law enforcement and other powerful institutions.
Published October 7, 2026 3:49 PM
A pedestrian is walking past City Hall in Los Angeles on Tuesday, July 8, 2025.
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Allen J. Schaben
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Los Angeles Times via Getty Images
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Listen
0:39
LISTEN: LA joins other local governments that have banned nitrous oxide sales
Topline:
The L.A. City Council voted Wednesday to ban tobacco and cannabis shops from selling nitrous oxide, a drug often called laughing gas or whippits. The new city ordinance will add penalties that include up to a $1,000 fine or six months in county jail if approved by Mayor Karen Bass.
Why it matters: The FDA warns that inhaling or misusing nitrous oxide, which is sometimes used by dentists and medical doctors to sedate patients, can lead to serious health problems or death. Many community members say they have seen the drug’s recreational use become normalized. Among those who advocated for the City Council to approve the ban were several students from Bert Corona High School in Pacoima.
“ I want to grow up in a community that's drug-free, where we feel safe just walking around, where this isn't just accepted as a part of everyday life,” Mayra Rodriguez said during public comment at the City Council meeting. “We shouldn't have to grow up around this.”
Other laughing gas bans: Local governments have banned nitrous oxide in places like Rialto, Huntington Beach, Santa Ana and unincorporated areas of Orange County. Gov. Gavin Newsom signed two bills last month that put statewide bans on nitrous oxide from being sold at retail locations, with added flavors or in containers larger than 8 grams.
More context: It has been a misdemeanor under state law to knowingly sell or possess nitrous oxide for use as a recreational drug for more than a decade, but the state allows it to be used for things like medical care, vehicle performance and cooking.
Councilmember Imelda Padilla, who introduced the motion that passed Wednesday, said the city ordinance will strengthen existing protections enacted by the state. She asked community members to report any cannabis or tobacco shops selling nitrous oxide to the City Attorney’s office at TEP@lacity.org.
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President Donald Trump speaks during an event on health care affordability in the Oval Office at the White House on Thursday in Washington.
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Mark Schiefelbein
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AP
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Topline:
The Democratic National Committee on Wednesday sued President Donald Trump’s administration for recent television advertisements that promoted his political message while costing taxpayers millions of dollars. The complaint, filed in the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia, alleges that the ads are illegal government-sponsored propaganda and accuses Trump of personally directing them. It asks the court to declare the ads illegal and stop the use of federal funds to pay for them.
The backstory: The spots, which began airing in September, already have cost more than $12 million to run, according to the media tracking firm AdImpact, and a total of $20 million in Homeland Security Department funding has been tapped to pay for them. Responding Monday to the criticism, Trump defended the ads as “positive promotion for our Great U.S.A.” but said he’d pay for them using his MAGA Inc. super PAC going forward.
What's next: The complaint, filed in the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia, alleges that the ads are illegal government-sponsored propaganda and accuses Trump of personally directing them. It asks the court to declare the ads illegal and stop the use of federal funds to pay for them. Trump has faced bipartisan backlash for the ads, which glorify him and echo his campaign pitch as voters cast early ballots with the midterm elections less than a month away.
The Democratic National Committee on Wednesday sued President Donald Trump’s administration for recent television advertisements that promoted his political message while costing taxpayers millions of dollars.
The complaint, filed in the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia, alleges that the ads are illegal government-sponsored propaganda and accuses Trump of personally directing them. It asks the court to declare the ads illegal and stop the use of federal funds to pay for them.
Trump has faced bipartisan backlash for the ads, which glorify him and echo his campaign pitch as voters cast early ballots with the midterm elections less than a month away.
The spots, which began airing in September, already have cost more than $12 million to run, according to the media tracking firm AdImpact, and a total of $20 million in Homeland Security Department funding has been tapped to pay for them.
Responding Monday to the criticism, Trump defended the ads as “positive promotion for our Great U.S.A.” but said he’d pay for them using his MAGA Inc. super PAC going forward.
But on Tuesday, the fifth ad in the campaign began airing with the notice “paid for by the U.S. Government,” promoting Trump’s military actions in Venezuela earlier this year. The same day, Trump made it clear he hasn’t committed to reimbursing any money that has already been spent, telling reporters “we’ll decide.”
DNC Chair Ken Martin said in a statement that Trump is misusing taxpayer dollars in “a last-ditch attempt to save Republicans in November.”
“Americans deserve better than to have their hard-earned tax dollars used for Trump’s illegal schemes,” he added.
Legal experts have suggested the ads run afoul of a federal statute against congressionally appropriated money being used for “publicity or propaganda,” and potentially other federal laws. The Homeland Security money tapped for the ads comes from a $175 million package Congress gave to the department as part of Trump’s immigration enforcement agenda.
The White House has defended the ads as public service announcements akin to what past administrations have done to promote various policies. Legal experts have said the recent ads differ from many past public service announcements because they aren’t aimed at helping members of the public benefit from specific government programs.
The defendants in the lawsuit — Trump, the White House, DHS and the Office of Management and Budget — didn’t immediately respond to requests for comment.
The annual flu season usually starts in October or November. But this year, it looks like the flu started to pick up in early September.
Why now: The timing of the flu season isn't the only thing that's odd. It's also unusual that flu activity seems to have started in Western states, such as California, Washington, Hawaii and Alaska, experts say.
The backstory: It's unclear why flu activity would have started so early, and in such an unusual part of the country. But one clue might be a new variant that evolved a mutation, which appears to make it better at evading existing immunity, especially among teenagers.
What's next: Experts suggest scheduling your flu shot.
Fall has only just begun, but it's already time to start thinking about the quintessential winter bug: the flu.
The annual flu season usually starts in October or November. But this year, it looks like the flu started to pick up in early September.
"There are enough signs pointing in the same direction to make me think, 'OK, yes. This is the start of flu season,'" says Caitlin Rivers, an epidemiologist at the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health.
The percentage of people testing positive for the flu in the West has been rising steadily since around the beginning of September, she says. And the number of people showing up in emergency departments because of the flu has also been rising for weeks, she adds.
"It's very uncommon to see flu activity rising this early. It's activity that we might normally see more like November or December," she says.
The timing of the flu season isn't the only thing that's odd. It's also unusual that flu activity seems to have started in Western states, such as California, Washington, Hawaii and Alaska.
"It typically starts in the South and then expands from there," Rivers says. "So two uncommon developments there."
Rivers stresses that the amount of flu activity is still very low in most parts of the country. But that's starting to change as the flu picks up nationwide.
It's unclear why flu activity would have started so early, and in such an unusual part of the country. But one clue might be a new variant that evolved a mutation, which appears to make it better at evading existing immunity, especially among teenagers.
"That's our best argument for what's going on right now in terms of this early flu season," says Dr. Alex Greninger, a virologist who heads infectious disease diagnostics at the University of Washington. Doctors there are seeing as much flu right now as they usually would around Christmas, and the mutated variant appears to be common, he says.
So Greninger, Rivers and others are urging people to think about getting their flu shot earlier than usual.
"It's crucial that people get an influenza vaccine," says Scott Hensley, a virologist at the University of Pennsylvania. "And this might be a year that people might want to get a vaccine early."
But the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention hasn't been promoting flu shots as it usually does. Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr., who oversees the CDC, is a long-time vaccine skeptic.
"It is disappointing that CDC is quiet given that flu kills of hundreds of kids a year and can result in tens of thousands of hospitalizations and tens of thousands of deaths," says Dr. Demetre Daskalakis, who resigned last year as the director of the National Center for Immunization and Respiratory Diseases at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention to protest what he called political interference at the agency.
The CDC declined to make an official available to NPR for this story. In a statement, a CDC spokesperson said, "CDC is developing a communications strategy to provide clear, accessible information about influenza vaccination and other critical steps people can take to protect themselves during respiratory virus season. This includes information about the benefits and risks of vaccination to support informed decision-making."
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