The Cities with the Most Loved Independent Stores

In a consumer economy overshadowed by big chains and then by online shops — both indie and corporate — running a high-street boutique is a tricky balance of engaging with mass culture while differentiating from the norm.

Indeed, the high street has become a complicated ecosystem of major and minor players who can benefit from observing or working with each other. Just look at how “superchain” Barnes & Noble is now celebrated as a hero by indie bookshops for helping “readers discover new titles and publishers stay invested in physical stores,” according to the New York Times. At the other end of the scale, the existence of online stores boosts the experience of IRL luxury shopping at brick-and-mortar indie stores, giving consumers an added sense of exclusivity.

Indeed, the indie stores that do this the best balance a distinct personality alongside sturdy reliability. And those entrepreneurs who cultivate the strongest identity may stand the best chance of thriving — and keeping precious consumer dollars in local communities rather than among remote shareholders and executives.

But how do you create and maintain a beloved independent brand? For inspiration and to identify the boutiques that Americans love the most and the cities with the highest-rated indies, OnDeck analyzed reviews of 17,411 independent stores across America’s 100 biggest cities.

What We Did

We collated the star ratings and review count for every store under Yelp’s “boutique shopping” filter in the 100 most populated U.S. cities and used these figures to calculate a weighted average score for each city. Then, we repeated this process solely for independent stores in the “women’s clothing” and “accessories” categories.

Key Findings

• Independent stores in Indianapolis have an average rating of 4.33, the highest for any major U.S. city.
• America’s favorite independent boutique store is Fine And Dandy in New York City, with an average rating of 5.00.
• San Diego has the most loved independent women’s clothing stores, with an average rating of 4.44.
• The highest-rated indie accessory stores are in Oakland, CA, where the average rating is 4.45.

Indianapolis is the City with the Most Loved Independent Stores

First, we ranked America’s 100 most populous cities according to the average rating of their independent boutique stores. Indianapolis has America’s most loved indies, with an average of 4.33. The city’s indie stores are centered on the downtown Mass Ave district, a street tagged “45 Degrees from Ordinary” for its unique merchandise but inspired by the angle of the road on the city map. Mass Ave is the home of Indianapolis’s most loved indie, an “unconventional little gift store” called Silver In the City.

“When I was living and working in downtown Indy in the late 90s, I was frustrated with the limitations of my job and also with the downtown retail offerings,” says owner Kristen Kohn. “I wanted Indy to have a neighborhood where residents could take their visiting friends and families, a place to spend time and enjoy a unique experience. Becoming a part of that experience has been so fulfilling.”

Indianapolis aside, California dominates, with five of the top ten cities. Oakland, Los Angeles and San Francisco are all within a few decimal points of each other, with an average rating of 4.32, followed by Long Beach (4.29) and Sacramento (4.26).

“When you step into a store, you will feel the gratitude and the impact you are making by shopping in the community,” says Rachel Michelin, president of the California Retailers Association. “As you visit different parts of California, you can take that part back home with you.”

The Most Loved Independent Boutique Stores in America, Ranked

America’s most loved independent store is a West 49th Street boutique offering “accessories for dapper guys.” Fine And Dandy was established in New York City by Matt Fox and Enrique Crame III in 2008 as an online store, occupying storefront premises since 2012. The store offers personal style consultations and maintains an online style blog to build community.

“We provide great variety at an affordable price. We sell lots of items that you might not find elsewhere, like sock garters, shirt garters, and spats,” says Fox. “In December 2010, we had our first popup shop and it was amazing to interact with our customers face to face. We continued to do more popup shops and then eventually began to look for a permanent retail space.”

Beyond Fine And Dandy and much-loved stores in Detroit, Austin and Portland, it is again a California story. Six of America’s ten most loved indies are in California. Top-rated is HoboJane Boutique in Long Beach, with an average rating of 4.98. This women’s clothing store offers curated new and vintage goods with no “high-pressure sales tactics.”

“Monthly, I do a Sip and Stroll event inviting local artists to showcase their goods, and have live music as well,” says founder and proprietor Sara Jane Martini. “Sip and Stroll incorporates local artists, neighbors and gives people the opportunity to shop for cool items that won’t break the bank. It’s been a very conscious decision to carry affordable brands that appeal to the predominant demographic in this area.”

San Diego is Home to the Most Loved Independent Women’s Clothing Stores in America

San Diego’s Sew Loka on Logan Ave is America’s favorite indie clothing store for women. Established around the slow fashion brand of Claudia Biezunski-Rodriguez, the store offers one-offs created from upcycled materials and vintage fabrics.

“One of the biggest barriers I faced was what I call the “legitimacy” barrier,” says Biezuinski-Rodriguez. “When I first opened up my shop, I didn’t have a portfolio or anything like that. It was difficult to convince people that, hey, I’m really good at sewing! But that was a challenge I was willing to confront because I knew that what I did was genuine and legit.”

Californian stores occupy the top three places in this category. In fourth place is Denver’s FM (4.23) on Broadway, offering clothes for all, jewelry and gifts. The store notably houses Love Vinyl Records, an indie music outlet in the back of the shop — doubling the appeal of dropping by. Formerly known as Fancy Tiger Clothing, the business rebranded and expanded in 2019, offering more house-brand and higher-end goods side-by-side “to change people’s expectations about what a retail store can be to a city.”

The business is owned by celebrated local DJ Matthew Brown. “Start your second life in your forties with the same excitement you went into young adulthood with,” advises Brown. “I only started djing seriously about 10 years ago when I was 40.”

The Most Loved Independent Accessories Stores Overall Are Located in Oakland

Finally, we identified the best indie stores across America to pick up accessories. The top five are based in California, led by Philippa Roberts (4.45) on Piedmont Ave in Oakland. The boutique offers “simple, timeless, elegant women’s jewelry,” with a career-spanning collection of Roberts’ own designs alongside the work of dozens of other artists.

The most valuable lesson Roberts learned was that a “woman making jewelry in a garage IS a business,” Roberts explains. “Business doesn’t have to look like a big name on the outside of a building, it can be anything. This took away a lot of the stress, and that gave me the freedom to start my own thing. I could be a woman making jewelry and that was a business.”

Outside of California, Omoi Life Goods (4.26) in Philadelphia is the top-rated indie accessories store. The staff creates online playlists dubbed “OMOI Radio,” reinforcing the brand’s indie-cool sensibility and scenester community vibe.

“The original store was born out of my love for the retail scene in Japan. I was lucky enough to spend semesters in the 90s and early 2000s when I studied in Osaka and hung out in Shinsaibashi on weekends,” says founder Liz Sieber on the inspiration behind her enticing store. “It really awakened something in me to see how creating a retail space and curating a unique combination of sights, sounds, and smells could be a way to express my creativity and also satisfy my personal preference for working in a business-related field.”

Think Local, Act Professional

Opening a successful boutique requires balancing the human spirit of the indie store with the strategic business sense required to turn a profit.

Just take the counterintuitive phenomenon whereby the social aspect of book reading has led to a resurgence of independent bookstores. The collective spirit of Instagram fandoms and IRL book clubs has generated a powerful currency of love and loyalty.

“I don’t know that I could have prepared myself for what a shrewd business person you have to be to making a living out of this,” bookshop owner Nikki High told The Associated Press. On the other hand, she notes: “It’s incredibly important to listen to your customers.”

Methodology

In this study, we ranked U.S. cities based on the highest average rating for their independent boutique stores on Yelp.com.

To achieve this, we started with a seed list of the 100 most populated U.S. cities and gathered the star ratings and review count for all stores in each city under the “boutique shopping” filter. This amounted to 17,411 stores across the 100 cities.

We then calculated a weighted average score for each city based on the individual store ratings and number of reviews. We repeated this process for independent stores in the “women’s clothing” and “accessories” categories.

Cities with fewer than 50 independent stores were omitted, as well as stores with fewer than 50 reviews. This data analysis was completed in August 2024.