Shopping for Clothes in Ho Chi Minh: My Haul for Under $100

Shopping for clothes in Ho Chi Minh city was never on my travel plan. We were too busy picking all the best spots to eat (like these delicious foods in Hanoi). But when I was in Hoi An, I noticed a few cute boutiques and started doing some research on shopping in Ho Chi Minh City, our next destination. Little did I know, there were so many affordable and trendy pieces to be found! I’ll show you the pieces I bought as well as links to many more boutiques you can visit.

What to Expect

In North America, I find that shopping is dominated by huge chain brands like H&M, Zara, Aritzia etc. What I loved about shopping in Vietnam is that they are all small boutiques that release new designs very frequently. They are not carrying a lot of stock and each design might only have a few sizes available.

While I visited the stores in early September, the designs are mostly for summer or resort wear as the temperature is still over 30 degrees every day. I find the fabric feel thinner than those in North America. But so far, I’ve found the quality to be good.

You can expect to pay $15-$20 for a top, $20-$40 for a dress. Many of them use Facebook and Instagram instead of a website. Use 20,000 VND to $1 as an approximate conversion in this post.

Happy Zoo Store

I bought the most items from the Happy Zoo Store. They had a 30% and a 50% off section from which I grabbed a few items.

Lovely white blouse with square neckline. This is not see through if you wear a nude bra. On sale for 220,500 VND

Brown and neutrals are so popular and surprisingly I don’t have a lot of clothes in this shade. On sale for 155,000 VND.

Similar to the white top, this linen striped shirt has a square neckline. Perfect for casual days! On sale for 217,000 VND.

Happy Zoo Store is one of the cheaper options I found on Nguyen Trai street. It also helps that they were having a sale at the time as well. There’s some loose threads but the fabric feels nice against the skin. The fit is amazing! Usually square necklines don’t work for me. I bought a size S in all 3 of these tops. They have S, M, L.

I also bought two pairs of pants. If you are shorter, shopping in Asia is a great idea! I normally have to roll up my jeans or get them hemmed. But these pants I bought fit perfectly! These were full price at 420,000 VND each.

Tu By Catu

The very first store I visited in Ho Chi Minh was Tu by Catu. The store stocks a lot of dresses and that’s what I ended up buying.

I’ll have to save this for next summer or my next vacation. 400,000 VND

This is the only purchase I regret. I wanted to pair these with thigh high boots but I didn’t realize there were slits on the slide that just open up too high. 400,000 VND

This is the most flattering dress and I’ve been loving wearing it with my leather jacket! 330,000 VND

Stores on Nguyen Trai Street

As a tourist to Ho Chi Minh city, it’s not realistic that you can go around the city to different boutiques. That’s why I suggest you to visit Nguyen Trai which is only a 2 minute car ride or 11 minute walk from Ben Thanh Market. That is where I found the Happy Zoo Store and Tu by Catu. I also have 7 more recommendations below!

Nosbyn – Website: Higher quality classic pieces. Mostly solid and neutral colors.

Libe Workshop – Instagram: Leans towards casual and minimalistic

Ceci Cela – Instagram: Trendy casual and work pieces

Tinfour – Instagram: More streetstyle than most other boutiques

Mieu – Website: Trendy and good prices. I didn’t make it this far but they have so much good stuff!

Edini – Instagram: This shop is really popular but for some reason nothing fit for me. Slightly more expensive as well

Dottie – Instagram: More work appropriate designs

I didn’t get the chance to visit but there is an apartment building called The New Playground located just a few blocks away from the opera house. This is a really central location as well and has many of these boutiques in one spot.

Hope this guide inspires you to do a little shopping in Ho Chi Minh city. To see what else there is to do in the city, take a read through my Ho Chi Minh City Travel Guide! It was a lovely ending to our 2 weeks in Vietnam.