La Rinascente is the oldest and most elegant Italian department store, with 8 floors of multi-label articles, from underwear to perfumery, make up, beauty, sports and home-collections. Its history, strictly connected to national custom and economy, hides some fascinating details: wonderful advertising posters were conceived by Marcello Dudovich and the shop-windows were set up by the famous designer, Bruno Munari. Giorgio Armani made his first creative steps as a window-dresser here and the early prêt-à-porter items, such as the first American fridges and miniskirts passed through La Rinascente’s corridors.

La Rinascente has a new “design supermarket” in the basement floor, with the most important Italian and international labels, such as Alessi, Cappellini, Danese, Kartell, Established & Sons and Royal Copenhagen. After all this shopping and a new haircut at the fancy Coppola beauty saloon, the best is found on the 7th floor; the gourmand market—oil, salt, tea, caviar, biscuits, wine—and having a Negroni cocktail on the terrace bar with the dizziest view of Milan’s Duomo church spires.