CHAIN STORES

Ann Taylor 575 5th Ave (at 47th St; flagship store) tel 212/922-3621.
Mid-priced business and elegant casual clothing for women. More than ten branches throughout the city.

Benetton 597 5th Ave (at 48th St) tel 212/317-2501.
Italian chain offering youthful, contemporary, casual, bright-colored clothing for women, men and children.

Brooks Brothers 346 Madison Ave (at 44th St) tel 212/682-8800.
Something of an institution in New York, this flaghsip store, founded in 1915, offers classic conservative style, selling tweeds and quietly striped shirts and ties.

Burberry's 9 E 57th St (between 5th and Madison aves) tel 212/371-5010.
Classic plaids and tweeds, with a distinctly British feel to the conservative design.

Diesel 770 Lexington (at 60th St) tel 212/308-0055.
One of five US stores that sell this Italian-designed label. Funky, some vintage-inspired clubwear, lots of denim. The two floors include a café.

Eileen Fisher 103 5th Ave (between 17th and 18th sts) tel 212/924-4777.
This is the largest of their five NY shops full of loose and elegantly casual clothes for women. Their outlet is on 9th St between 1st and 2nd aves tel 212/529-5715.

Gap 60 W 34th St and Herald Square (flagship store) tel 212/643-8960.
Branches are on every other corner of the city; check the phone book for locations. Circular sale racks in the back of many stores offer terrific reductions.

DESIGNER STORES

Anna Sui 113 Greene St (between Prince and Spring sts) tel 212/941-8406.

Bagutta 402 West Broadway (at Spring St) tel 212/925-5216.
A confluence of top designers including Helmut Lang, Prada, Gaultier, Plein Sud, Dolce & Gabbana.

Beau Brummel 421 West Broadway (between Prince and Spring sts) tel 212/219-2666.

DKNY 655 Madison Ave (at 60th St) tel 212/223-3569.

Dolce & Gabbana 825 Madison Ave (between 68th and 69th sts).

Emporio Armani 110 5th Ave (at 16th St) and 601 Madison Ave (between 57th and 58th sts).

Gianni Versace 647 5th Ave (between 51st and 52nd sts) tel 212/317-0224 and 815 Madison Ave (at 68th St) tel 212/744-6868.

Giorgio Armani 760 Madison Ave (at 65th St) tel 212/988-9191.

Gucci 685 5th Ave (at 54th St) tel 212/826-2600.

Helmut Lang 80 Greene St (at Spring St) tel 212/925-7214.

Hermes 11 E 57th St between 5th and Madison aves) tel 212/751-3181.

Pleats Please 128 Wooster St (at Prince) tel 212/226-3600.

FUNKY, TRENDY, HIP

Canal Jean Co 504 Broadway (between Spring and Broome sts) tel 212/226-1130.
Enormous warehousey store sporting a prodigious array of jeans, jackets, T-shirts, dresses, hats and more, new and secondhand. Young, fun and reasonably cheap.

Diesel StyleLab 416 West Broadway (at Spring St) tel 212/343-3863.
The ultrahip top-shelf branch of this Italian chain has taken New York by storm.

New York Firefighter's Friend 263 Lafayette (between Spring and Broome sts) tel 212/226-3142.
Get those NY Fire Dept tees and trucks here; an NYPD section is next door.

Old Japan 382 Bleecker St (at Perry St) tel 212/633-0922.
Gorgeous, authentic Japanese clothes and trinkets, with a fantastic selection of antique kimonos.

X-Large 267 Lafayette (between Prince and Spring sts) tel 212/334-4480.
Check out the Mini line for women, X-Large for men. Cutting edge streetwear for B-boys and gals. Sonic Youth's Kim Gordon and the Beastie Boys' Mike D are part owners.

VINTAGE/SECONDHAND

Allan & Suzi 416 Amsterdam Ave (at 80th St) tel 212/724-7445.
Beautiful far-out fashion from the last several decades. Claims to have singlehandedly restarted the platform shoe craze.

Darrow Vintage 7 W 19th St (between 5th and 6th aves) tel 212/255-1550.
Designer and never-worn vintage, with a friendly and helpful staff. Popular with top models.

The Fan Club 22 W 19th St (between 5th and 6th aves) tel 212/929-3349.
An amazing selection of vintage clothes, many from movies, TV and theater, with a good supply of Marilyn Monroe frocks usually on display in the front window. The store benefits three AIDS charities.

Love Saves the Day 119 2nd Ave (at 7th St) tel 212/228-3802.
Cheap vintage as well as classic lunchboxes and other kitschy nostalgia items, including valuable Kiss and Star Wars dolls.

Screaming Mimi's 382 Lafayette St (between 4th St and Great Jones) tel 212/677-6464.
One of the most established vintage stores in Manhattan. Vintage clothes (including lingerie), bags, shoes and housewares at reasonable prices.

Tokio 7 64 E 7th St (between 1st and 2nd aves) tel 212/353-8443.
Attractive secondhand and vintage designer consignment items - a little pricier than most, but a good selection.

THRIFT STORES

Housing Works Thrift Shop 143 W 17th St (between 6th and 7th aves) tel 212/366-0820.
Upscale thrift shop where you can find secondhand designer wear in very good condition. All proceeds benefit Housing Works, an AIDS social service organization.

DISCOUNT CLOTHING

Dave's Army & Navy Store 581 6th Ave (between 16th and 17th sts) tel 212/989-6444.
The best place to buy jeans in Manhattan. Helpful assistants, no blaring music, and brands other than just Levi's.

Loehmann's 101 7th Ave (between 16th and 17th sts) tel 212/352-0856.
New York's best-known department store for designer clothes at knockdown prices. No refunds and no exchanges, but there are individual dressing rooms.

SHOES AND OTHER ACCESSORIES

Kate Spade 454 Broome St (at Mercer St) tel 212/274-1991.
All the rage, these boxy fabric bags with the little logo-label are a generic assertion of "Manhattan chic."

Kenneth Cole 353 Columbus Ave (at 77th St) tel 212/873-2061.
Classic and contemporary shoes, beautiful bags, excellent full-grain leather. Call for more locations.

Mary Quant Colour Concept Shop 520 Madison Ave (at 53rd St) tel 212/980-7577.
Mod make-up in every conceivable shade, all with the so-cool 1960s' flower motif.

Otto Tootsi Plohound 137 5th Ave (at 20th St) tel 212/460-8650 and 38 E 57th St (near Park Ave) tel 212/231-3199.
If you want to run with a trendy crowd, these shoes will help. Very current designs.

Robert Marc 575 Madison Ave (between 56th and 57th sts), tel 212/319-2000, and four other locations.
Exclusive New York distributor of designer frames like Lunor and Kirei Titan; also sells Retrospecs, restored antique eyewear from the 1890s to the 1940s. Very expensive and very hot.

Sephora 636 5th Ave (at 51st St) tel 212/245-1633.
Breathtaking "warehouse" of perfumes, make-up and body-care products. You have to see (or smell) it to believe it.

Steve Madden 150 E 86th St (between Lexington and 3rd aves), tel 212/426-0538; 540 Broadway (at Prince St), tel 212/343-1800; 2315 Broadway (near 86th St), tel 212/799-4221; and 41 W 34th St (at 6th Ave), tel 212/736-3283.
Very popular copies of up-to-the-minute styles, well-loved for their ability to take on New York's "shoe-killing" streets.