10 Harlem Shops with Irresistible Gifts

Getting ready to tackle your holiday shopping?

Here are 10 small businesses in Harlem where you're sure to find loads of irresistible gifts—and they're all in the neighborhood.

From south to north:

1. Malcolm Shabazz Harlem Market

52 W 116th St between Fifth and Lenox Aves

Lined with vendors selling goods from all across sub-Saharan Africa, this lively open-air market on 116th Street is the perfect destination for gifts like shea butter, beaded jewelry, head wraps and colorful Senegalese baskets.

2. Silvana

300 W 116th St between Frederick Douglass Blvd and Manhattan Ave

Silvana's bohemian cafe on 116th Street doubles as a small gift shop lined with colorful totes, gourmet chocolate bars, children's books—plus what is probably the neighborhood's best selection of greeting cards.

3. Plant Corner

183 Malcolm X Blvd between W 119th and W 120th Sts

This exotic plant shop located in a Harlem brownstone has a lot more than greenery on its shelves: Look for environmentally-friendly candles, books for plant parents, and a nice selection of gift boxes.

4. NiLu

191 Lenox between W 119th and W 120th Sts

This treasure-filled gift store with a focus on Black and brown makers offers a little bit of everything—from luxury candles to made-in-Harlem chocolate bars. You may even find the perfect vintage home accessory, sourced by owner Katrina Parris.

5. Harlem Underground

2217 Frederick Douglass Blvd between W 119th and W 120th Sts

Grab a graphic Harlem-themed tee or two—in a range of colors, styles and sizes—at this friendly neighborhood shop that's been around since 1998.

6. Gotham Buds

248 W 125th St between Frederick Douglass and Adam Clayton Powell Jr. Blvds

The first licensed weed shop in Harlem—expect to be carded at the door since you have to be 21 or older to enter—has something for everyone and any occasion, including recreational flower, pre-rolls, vaporizers, concentrate, and gummies.

7. The Schomburg Shop

515 Malcolm X Blvd and W 135th St

This light-filled shop inside the Schomburg Center is the perfect place to find books and gifts related to the Black experience, from Justice Ketanji Brown Jackson enamel pins, puzzles featuring the art of Alma Thomas, and biographies of the likes of tennis legend Althea Gibson, who grew up just a few blocks away.

8. Harlem Chocolate Factory

2363 Adam Clayton Powell Jr Blvd between W 138th and W 139th Sts

Resembling an elegant Strivers' Row parlor, this small chocolate shop specializes in color-splashed truffles in flavors like red velvet, sweet potato pie and cognac caramel, plus chocolate bars molded to resemble Harlem brownstones—one of Oprah's Favorite Things a few years back.

9. The Oma Shop

1707 Amsterdam Ave between W 144th and W 145th Sts

Grab a latte at this cool little coffee-shop-meets-boutique while you check out the eye-catching wares on the shelves, from sculptural mugs to inclusive beauty and skincare.

10. Moonlab 42

405 W 145th St between St. Nicholas and Convent Aves

Looking for something you very likely won't find anywhere else? This sliver of a storefront run by a Georgian-American couple features art and objects made by their creative friends, including hand-dyed tea towels, made-to-order candles, soaps, tote bags, jewelry and much more.

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