Shopping

Nepal has two retail worlds operating side by side. In the old bazaars the price is the opening position; in supermarkets and malls it is the price. Knowing which one you are standing in saves both money and embarrassment, and most residents move between them weekly without thinking about it.

The markets

Kathmandu's old commercial heart is Asan and Indra Chowk - a dense grid of lanes selling spices, textiles, brass, grain and almost everything a household needs. It is chaotic, cheap and the best shopping in the country if you have patience. New Road is the traditional destination for electronics, gold and formal clothing.

Every city has its equivalent, and most neighbourhoods have a weekly or daily vegetable market where produce is fresher and cheaper than anywhere indoors.

Supermarkets and malls

Organised retail has grown fast. Bhatbhateni is the dominant chain and functions as a department store - groceries, household goods, electronics, clothing - with branches across the valley and beyond. Smaller chains and independent supermarkets cover most neighbourhoods.

Malls in Kathmandu combine retail with cinemas and food courts, and serve as weekend destinations as much as shopping trips. Prices are fixed, cards and QR payments are accepted everywhere, and the stock is predictable - which is exactly why people use them.

Online

Online shopping is established and reliable for mainstream goods. The large regional platforms deliver nationally, cash on delivery remains popular, and classified sites handle the enormous second-hand market - furniture, phones, vehicles, everything that comes with people leaving the country.

For a newly arrived household, the second-hand market is the fastest way to furnish a flat. Living and housing covers what an unfurnished flat actually lacks.

Where to buy what

	Best place
Fresh produce	Neighbourhood vegetable market
Spices, grain, household basics	Asan and the old bazaars
Groceries, imported food	Supermarket chains
Electronics	New Road, or an authorised dealer
Furniture, appliances, second-hand	Classified sites and resale shops
Clothing, everyday	Markets and malls
Gold and jewellery	New Road and established jewellers
Handicrafts and gifts	Workshops and fair-trade outlets, not tourist strips

Returns, warranties and what you are actually buying

Consumer protection exists in law but return culture is weak in practice. In markets and small shops, assume the sale is final - check the item properly before paying, and test anything electrical at the counter.

Chain supermarkets and authorised dealers are different and will handle genuine faults. For electronics specifically, the question that matters is whether the warranty is valid in Nepal: grey imports are widespread, cheaper, and unsupported when something fails. Ask, and get the warranty card filled in.

How bargaining works

In markets, small shops and with street vendors, negotiating is normal and expected. It is not adversarial - it is the pricing mechanism.

• Ask the price, then pause. The second number is often better than the first.
• Name a figure you would genuinely pay, not an insulting one. Roughly two-thirds of the opening price is a common starting point in tourist areas, much less of a gap in local markets.
• Be prepared to walk. Politely. It is the only real leverage.
• Stop when it is close. Grinding out the last fifty rupees costs goodwill worth more than the money.

In supermarkets, malls, chain stores and restaurants, do not bargain. The price is the price.

Why imports cost so much

Nepal is landlocked and imports almost all manufactured goods, mostly overland. Customs duty, transport and several intermediaries sit between a factory abroad and a shelf here. Electronics, branded clothing, cosmetics and packaged foreign food carry a premium that surprises people - often substantially above the price in the country of origin.

The practical response is the one residents reach anyway: buy local produce, local textiles and local services generously, and bring the specific imported things you care about in a suitcase.

Handicrafts, and what is real

Pashmina, thangka paintings, singing bowls, khukuri knives, felt and handmade paper are the classic purchases, and quality varies enormously. Genuine pashmina is soft, light and expensive; most of what is sold under the name is a blend. Thangka painting is a serious discipline and the price difference between a tourist print and a painted work reflects months of labour.

The rule that works: buy from a shop that can tell you who made it. If nobody can answer that question, you are buying a souvenir, which is fine - just pay souvenir prices.

Where this goes wrong

• Bargaining in a supermarket. It marks you out instantly and achieves nothing.
• Accepting the first price in Thamel. The opening number there assumes a tourist.
• Buying electronics without checking the warranty is valid in Nepal. Grey imports are common and support is not.
• Paying pashmina prices for a blend. Ask about composition, and feel the difference between two of them before deciding.

Where to go next

For festival season, when the retail calendar peaks and prices and crowds both rise, see events and festivals. For paying for any of it, banking and finance covers the QR systems now accepted almost everywhere.

Bargaining, where it applies and where it does not

Worth getting right, because doing it in the wrong place is awkward and not doing it in the right place is expensive.

Bargain in traditional markets for non-food goods, with street vendors, for handicrafts and souvenirs, and for taxi fares and services where no meter applies.

Do not bargain in shops with marked prices, supermarkets, pharmacies, or for food staples in a market, where the margin is thin and the price is the price.

How it works in practice: ask the price, pause, make a lower offer without theatre, and settle in the middle. Walking away politely is part of the mechanism rather than an insult. And being quoted a higher opening price as an obvious foreigner is normal, not personal.