Milford Mall has come a long way over the years and it isn't just for the oldies anymore. I go…read moremainly to Witchery and there are a few other higher end shops like Kimberlys and Storm. The Japanese restaurant in the food court is really good (but not cheap) and BNZ has moved inside from it's old place on Kitchener Road. You still see a lot of seniors at Coffee Club & Muffin Break but the mall has more of a 'Mums with Bubs' sort of place. Heaps of parking undercover!

Milford is kind of a weird one. While growing up I always thought of it as very sleepy and rather…read moreboring, but it is now one of the most popular (and expensive) places to live in Auckland. It is pretty inundated with old people, but this makes it super peaceful, and is probably what adds to the appeal. Of course the whole of Milford is no more than 3 minutes drive to a beautiful beach and it is just up the road form the very popular Takapuna. The Mall itself is not in my top list. I don't really like malls full stop, but Milford Mall feels constantly out of date, despite having had a small makeover recently. There are some cool shops like Moochi and Witchery, but I feel even these places seems almost cheapened by being there. The main reason I got to Milford Mall is for the great supermarket and the Warehouse. Both of which do exactly what you'd expect and both are pretty big. There is also really good sushi and a BNZ that is open on Saturdays. It's a nice mellow vibe, but it's not very exciting - just lots of older people having scones at midday on a weekday.

Shore City is hands-down the best shopping centre on the North Shore, which I've been frequenting…read moresince about the age of 11 when just loitering around the shops and buying sparkly pens was a fun day out. Shore City is compact but seems to have a shop for nearly everything you might need; there's a sportswear shop, a stationery shop, a big Farmers, a healthfood shop, a pharmacy and loads of popular clothing and footwear shops. Oh and there's a Les Mills gym so not forgetting health and fitness. Unlike some other malls you have to drive miles to get to, I always find a park within the first minute of arriving and there are never queues of people in the stores either, possibly not so great for business but makes for a good shopping experience though!

From the owner: Shore City is Auckland's iconic beachside shopping destination for boutique fashion & style in…read moreTakapuna. 3 hours free parking. 74 stores.

I may be bias because I am from the shore but this is hands down the coolest department store I…read morehave ever been to! Home to Stephen Marr, Lucy and the Powder Room, Karen Walker, Black Box, TopShop as well as a myriad of rotating NZ designers, this place is nothing short of brilliant. Expensive, but brilliant nonetheless. On my last visit I was delighted to see they now also have a wonderful range of quirky terraniums and indoor plants. Definitely well worth checking out if you are looking to add some greenery to your office or home!

Quite a special place, for a morning coffee, quick lunch and afternoon relax, with greens and…read moreflowers. You wouldn't notice that you are actually in paradise. Yes, Paradise has the meaning of 'Garden'. Top Quality coffee, good cheese scone, caramel chocolate slice. Menu is not too complicated, ease for mind when you just into the sunny mood and some inner peace. Or you can choose just grab a coffee and have a stroll in the department store, finely selected fashion there waiting for the right person. Choose a beautiful day, and amaze yourself here. There is nothing more beautiful with a nice coffee I the warm sun.

You may think that Farmers are always the same, but there is something about this one that makes it…read moremy favourite. Maybe it's because it's been my local since I was born, I'm not sure. It is situated on the bottom level at the main entrance of Westfield Shore City in the middle of Takapuna. Because of this, you pretty much have to walk through it to get anywhere in the mall. I don't mind this though. There are always perfume and underwear specials and other dangerous things to distract me from what I was doing. The girls behind the makeup places are really friendly and don't push me to buy anything which I appreciate. There kids, men and womens clothing, make up, perfume, homewares and toys. I do like Farmers when shopping for dad because they have nice t-shirts and hoodies that aren't expensive. Farmers has been around for as long as it has for a reason - it is reliable, affordable and caters to many people.

I like you, am more than excited to welcome the return of The Last Place Store in its new residence…read moreat 62 Hurstmere Road, Takapuna! They've got some awesome new winter gear in stock, so make sure you come down to check it out.

I am not often in need of expensive jewellery (ok, never) but this time I'm willing to spend a…read morelittle bit more than I would usually (still not a fortune though) as hopefully I will only ever wear one wedding ring in my life-time! After having dragged my husband-to-be to around 5 jewellery stores in the Albany Mall trying to source the best deal and getting increasingly annoyed with all those oh-so-friendly and could-they-possibly-be-even-pushier sales people I thought I should give the Takapuna Michael Hill branch one last go (by myself) as it is after all just one block from the beach where me and my daughter run around daily. It's a small, narrow store that doesn't look particularly inviting but I have to say that my shopping experience was definitely and by far the best out of them all. Maybe the fact that this is the only store where I was consulted by someone male helped (namely by a middle-aged and genuinely helpful chap called Peter) or the fact that my screaming and running-around toddler was taken care of by the other friendly shop assistants (even behind the other side of the counter). In any case, I felt very comfortable here and was impressed with their service and knowledge on diamonds etc. Price-wise this store worked out a bit better for us than the competitors even though GST can only be exempted if you spend at least $2000 (it's $500 with Walker&Hall). Tip: It's probably safe to assume that you will always be given a discount (at any time of the year) on any higher priced items.

My father in law has a jewellery business and he says a lot of the jewellery at Michael Hill is of…read morepoor quality. I am no expert but I have browsed in their shops and it looks fairly decent to me. I bought a nice silver heart necklace as gift three years ago and it has lasted well. On that occasion the staff were friendly and put it in a nice gift box. I went back there recently and it was a different story - a rather pushy woman was trying to sell me a bracelet even though I just told her I was just browsing. She started talking about the good credit terms she could give me and in the end I just left. I guess it's good they offer credit if you don't have much money to spend but I found it all rather pushy and I ended up buying my gift somewhere else.

I think the days of shopping at surf shops are behind me. Whenever I walk into one I get a wave of…read moreform 1 socials and trying wy to hard to impress boys. Still, for the odd thing, it doesn't help to look. I really like Amazon Takapuna because it's on the road, meaning not in a mall, meaning 100x better. I often waltz into here when i'm walking down this street, just to have a wee lookie. The staff are super friendly and chilled in the way you'd expect from a surf shop and leave you alone until you start to look like you might need some assistance, which i really like. There is a good range of boys and girls surf stuff in the fron and a pretty massive surfboard selection out the back. Theer are also wetsuits, shoes, sunnies, beanies and other surf and skate stuff. plus a few gears for the snow. The store is fun and vibrant and is perfect for the products. Being just up the road from Takapuna beach, it always feels pretty summery and relaxed in here which sets the scene nicely for the place.

This is a decent opportunity shop if you are more interested in the furniture and home-ware kind of…read moreside of things, as I am. I wouldn't take a second look at most of the clothing in here, it looks like it could have clothed Madonna back in the 80s. While this shop can be a bit hit and miss like most places of the thrift store variety, if you are lucky or wearing your lucky pair of knickers for the day you could find something worth the time it took you to search, which is always a good pay off. When I was in here the other day, I managed to find a really good almost new kettle for like $5 and a throw for my bed for even less than the kettle, so It must have been a good day. When I was in there I also saw a pretty serviceable little couch for a measly $100 bucks which I told one of my friends about who is shifting flats at the moment so she went in to snap that up and also found a sweet rocking chair for a minimal price too! (Disclaimer: this day of shopping was a REALLY good day, this may not happen for you but I wish you all the luck in the world in your own search)