Dog-friendly stores in Central London | Covent Garden & Fitzrovia

It is not infrequent to find restaurants and department stores having small-dogs-only policies in place, in some cases even requiring customers to carry them at all times. Luckily regular stores seem to be much more democratic in this respect, and all those we visited so far in London allowing dogs don’t make any distinctions on the ground of size. Good news for large dogs, isn’t it?

Last week, following a tip from a lovely reader who had read our department stores guide and us getting in touch with John Lewis to confirm, we posted about John Lewis’ department stores’ new dog-friendly policy on our Facebook page – yes, this does apply not only in London, but everywhere in the country! -. The post had an unexpected incredible success, with so many enthusiastic comments. Surprisingly, it also received few negative comments from people anticipating dramatic scenes of dogs trashing shops, pooing all over the place, attacking people and other dogs. It was sad to read certain misconceptions and expressions of intolerance towards canines, but there is definitely a key take away from those comments: it is essential that the whole dog community works together and is well conscious that even a single incident hinders dog-friendly policies for all and bring the potential suspension of dog access priviledge. It is also essential that everyone respects good dog etiquette.

My husband, Argo and I started sorting Christmas shopping visiting dog-friendly stores in town, a couple of weeks ago. After calling for dog helpers for a little shoot to collect photos to be featured in this post, I was lucky to be joined in a new dog-friendly stores tour in Central London by Zeus the Malamute (@london_malamute), Gustavito (@souviron – one previous adventure here) the rescue dog and Vulric the Wolfdog (@wolfdog_of_london who we interviewed and photographed  for the Office Dog Series before). I loved to have both large and small dogs on board, to show that and Gustavito and Vulric have a very similar fur colour too, so it was even more fun!

Without any further ado, contribute building a good reputation for dogs and enjoy dog-friendly shopping! You can find all reviews below the map!

1. Clothing
2. Shoes
3. Accessories
4. Furniture and homeware
5. Stationery
6. Bookstores
7. Other

Dog-friendly clothing stores

1. The North Face

If you love The North Face as much as we do, you will be delighted to hear that their store in Covent Garden is dog-friendly. It seems that this welcoming policy applies to all their stores (we are currently confirming this is the case) and we previously visited a few more shops with Argo, including their Edinburgh store (in Frederick Street).

30-32, Southampton St, WC2E 7HE Covent Garden

2. Paul Smith

The Paul Smith store in Floral Street, Covent Garden is the first Paul Smith store in London “and original template for Paul Smith retail globally”, not far from Camper and Radley stores (also dog-friendly, as we will tell you below). Dogs are welcome in the store and the staff seems to love them. We visited it with Zeus the Malamute, so we tested it for large dogs too! The brand also has a capsule dog collar and leash collection (althought I am not sure about whether it is available in their Covent Garden store), so you can combine human and canine fashion shopping.

40-44, Floral St, WC2E 9TB Covent Garden | hours and official store webpage here

3. Fred Perry

Fred Perry’s Covent Garden store is located on the corner at the cross of the Seven Dials. The staff is truly super dog-friendly and they told us that all other Fred Perry shops are too.

9 Henrietta St, WC2E 8PW Seven Dials, Covent Garden | hours and official store webpage here

4. Barbour

Barbour has a well-established dog-friendly policy and, wonderfully enough, at least in their Covent Garden store even have dog water bowls for four-legged shopping companion. Barbour also has some dog accessories, including collars, leashes, and coats you can shop, and a popular hashtag (#barbourdogs) for showing off your stuff. | St Martins Courtyard, 134 Long Acre, WC2E 9AA Covent Garden | store webpage here

5. Diesel

Diesel is a long- and well-established Italian retail clothing brand and one of the icons for denim in particular. Diesel’s store in Covent Garden is dog-friendly and we confirmed with the store manager that all their stores are. | 43 Earlham St, WC2H 9LX Seven Dials, Covent Garden | store webpage here

5. Lee

For more denim, there is also Lee, paces away from Diesel, and you can bring your dog along too. We did ask, but they were not sure whether all their stores are dog-friendly. | 35 Neal St, Covent Garden, WC2H 9PR

6. Carhartt WIP

If you like an easy-going style, Carhartt WIP (Work In Progress), the workwear-inspired streetwear retailer, has a dog-friendly store you will love to visit. Carhartt is super dog-friendly and the staff will love your dog. | 15-17 Earlham St, WC2H 9LL Seven Dials, Covent Garden

7. Intimissimi, Calzedonia, Tezenis

Intimissimi, Calzedonia and Tezenis are part of the same Italian group and lovely enough they are all dog-friendly. You can browse women’s underwear and stokings in Covent Garden or in Oxford Street, but if you go over the weekend definitely good to avoid the crowds of Oxford Street for your dog and head over to Covent Garden. Alternatively, Intimissimi also has a store in King’s Road, Chelsea.

Shoes stores allowing dogs

Looking for shoes? Then you have a range of choice in Covent Garden.

1. Camper

Camper has two stores in Covent Garden you can visit with your dog. One on Floral Street and one on Shelton Street, there you can find shoes designed by the Spanish brand to be contemporary, unconventional and comfortable. The staff was very welcoming all the times we visited and they loved Zeus when we popped by for a snap.

• 39 Floral Street, WC2E 9DG Covent Garden (hours here)
• 34 Shelton Street, WC2H 9PU Covent Garden (hours here)

2. Geox

Geox is a well-establishes Italian shoe brand, which uses breathable and hi-tech materials. They are very dog-friendly and you can visit both their Covent Garden and Oxford Street stores with your pooch. | 104-106 Long Acre, WC2E9NR Covent Garden

3. Vans

If you prefer a skateboarding style, you can find the right shoes at Vans, in Covent Garden, which is dog-friendly too (more about it here). | 42 Neal St, WC2H 9PR Covent Garden

4. Offspring

For a wider range of trainers and sneakers, on Neal Street there is Offspring. When I asked if it was fine to take a photo with a dog in the shop before visiting with Zeus the Malamute they were dying for it. | 60 Neal St, WC2H 9PP Covent Garden

5. Birkenstock

Finally, for those who are looking to invest in a pair of comfort slippers and sandals, Birkenstock’s store in Covent Garden is chilled out with both small and large dogs. | 48 Neal St, WC2H 9PA Covent Garden

Dog-friendly accessories stores

1. Radley

Radley is a London-based women’s accessories brand which specialises in handbags, purses and other accessories. Its logo is a black westie (Radley!) and their dog disposition is also demonstrated by their collaboration with the Dogs Trust. For the last few years they have partnered with them and donated part of the profits from the sale of selected items to the dog charity. This year is no exception and in their dog-friendly Covent Garden store, downstairs, you will find some fun purses with dog head shapes in their Dogs Trust collection. | 37 Floral St, London WC2E 9DJ | store webpage here

2. Cath Kidston

Cath Kidston is a dog-loving brand. Not just their have many patterns and items featuring dogs (they even have a crochet santa sausage dog), but their stores are all dog-friendly too.  You can find two in Covent Garden and on Tottenham Court Road respectively. They used to sell also dog collar and leash sets, which seem to have disappeared from their collections, though.

• 28-32 Shelton St, WC2H 9JE Covent Garden
• 251 Tottenham Court Rd, W1T 7RB Bloomsbury

3. Ace & Tate

For glasses, there is Ace & Tate in Covent Garden. Their other stores, namely one in Shoreditch and Soho are dog-friendly too. | 10 Earlham St, London WC2H 9LN | store webpage here

Dog-friendly furniture and homeware stores

If you need to shop for furniture, Tottenham Court Road is the to go place, with so many (dog-friendly!) stores, you can easily find what you are looking for. We visited them with Argo and went back to take some photos with Gustavito the Spanish rescue and Vulric the Wolfdog (who we also previously interviewed for the Office Dog Series). Together, they made an incredible duo.

1. Heal’s

Heal’s is super dog-friendly. When we visited with Argo, in the bedding department, they offered to bring him water and, not having a bowl, they gave him a plastic glass of water, which we found very sweet of them. Dogs are also allowed in the cafe, but will be asked to sit on some side tables there. | 196 Tottenham Court Rd, Bloomsbury W1T 7LQ | store webpage here

2. Habitat

Also Habitat, exactly next door Heal’s allows dogs on the premises. They even have a sign outside reading “Well behaved dogs allowed”. | 196-199, Tottenham Court Rd, Bloomsbury W1T 7PJ | store webpage here

3. West Elm

On Tottenham Court Road, also West Elm is super dog-friendly and we received a very warm welcome when we visited with Gus and Vulric! A place for home decor, accessories and modern furniture. | 209 Tottenham Court Rd, Fitzrovia W1T 7PN | hours and store webpage here

4. Lombok

Lombok store is somewhere I’d personally love to buy half the things they have. The staff loves dogs and we had a great response from them both when we visted with Argo and the second time with Vulric and Gus. | 204-208 Tottenham Court Rd, Bloomsbury W1T 7PL

5. Dwell

If your taste is more for modern furniture and eccentric pieces, you can visit Dwell with your dog. | 200 Tottenham Court Rd, Bloomsbury, W1T 7PL

Stationery stores

4. Paperchase

When a few years back I first discovered that Paperchase was dog-friendly, I considered it a blessing and it has been a pleasure to visit with Argo and buy stationery and cards (I had even found some lovely paper garlands for a wedding). They have a massive store on Tottenham Court Road, where you can shop from cards to notebooks, gifts, Christmas or seasonal items, drawing supplies, and more.

213-215 Tottenham Court Rd, Bloomsbury W1T 7PS | hours and store page here

5. Ryman

Did you know that Ryman is dog-friendly? How cool is this, especially if you bring your dog to work and need to run an errand? No pics to document this, due to their no-photographs policy unless pre-approved, but you can visit their store in Tottenham Court Road to test it yourself. We visited with Gus and Vulric the other weekend.

66 Tottenham Court Rd, W1T 2EX

7. Magma

Magma has a bit of everything, from books to gifts, crossing design, art and culture, and welcomes dogs. Their Covent Garden store is located at 29 Short’s Gardens, WC2H 9AP.

Dog-friendly bookstores

Around Covent Garden/Soho/Fitzrovia, you can find a number of dog-friendly bookstores. Stanfords in Covent Garden (which is soon to be relocating from its historical location), the paradise for book lovers that is Foyles on Tottenham Court Road, and Waterstones (there is a branch on Tottenham Court Road North of the tube station). We talked more about this in our previous blog post about bookstores allowing dogs.

Dog-friendly department stores

Check out our dog-friendly department stores guide to discover which department stores allow dogs and what restrictions apply.

Other dog-friendly stores in Central London

1. Apple

The icon of phones and electronics is dog-friendly. In Covent Garden you can visit the local Apple store just behind Covent Garden Market. | No. 1, 7 The Piazza, London WC2E 8HB | hours and official store page here

2. Muji

Muji has a shop on Tottenham Court Road and it is dog-friendly! They have a strict photography policy in the store, so we couldn’t snap a pic there, but they are tested. | 6-17 Tottenham Court Rd, Fitzrovia, W1T 1BF

6. Malin + Goetz

Fetch & Follow has previously teamed up with Malin + Goetz apothecary and organised some pampering parties at their store. | 6 Monmouth St, Covent Garden WC2H 9HB

3. Peloton

Peloton is an indoor exercise bike with online streaming classes, advertised/used by some big names. They have a very cool shop in Covent Garden and guess what, they welcome canines. I need to confirm whether dogs are welcome at classes at Peloton House too. | 11 Floral St, Covent Garden WC2E 9DH

4. Metrobank

Ok, not really a store, but on Tottenham Court Road there is a branch of Metrobank, which is reknown for being a very canine-friendly bank, offering furry visitors dog bowls and biscuits! A very different attitude compared to that of many other banks, we must note. If this is an enough good criterium to pick a bank we are not sure, but definitely will appeal to many furry customers!

We will add more dog-friendly stores as we continue with visits. In the meantime, if you wish to flag any other dog-friendly shop you feel we should add, leave a comment below (you need to scroll a bit further down) or email us at hello(at)thelondog.com.

Also, we are always keen to photograph new DOGS for blog features, so if you wish to participate, make sure you follow us on social media (links below) so you don’t miss our model calls!