If you come to Buenos Aires and shopping is one of your favorite activities, Florida Street is the ideal place to visit. You can find hundreds of stores all along the traditional pedestrian Florida Street, from where it starts, right by Avenida de Mayo, to where it ends on Avenida Santa Fe, in front of San Martín Park. [caption id="attachment_5485" align="aligncenter" width="610"]Shops lining Florida Street Shops lining the busy Florida Street in Buenos Aires / Source[/caption] It is well known that Florida Street is an effervescent, busy, and attractive street for tourists in Buenos Aires and one can’t help but notice the dozens of pedlars that invade this popular area every day of the week, from morning ‘til midnight. It may seem that the problem is that there are so many of them that it’s difficult to walk but no, it’s not. The real problem is that travellers, because they’re distracted with the street artists and products laying on the floor, don’t realize that buying from them causes economic damage to local shops, that pay taxes among many other expenses in order to sell their products legally, contributing to a healthy economy. [caption id="attachment_5482" align="aligncenter" width="610"]A pedlar sells t-shirts and other goods on Florida Street Pedlars selling their goods on Florida Street / Source[/caption] We must mention that there's a difference from regular pedlars and artisans: the Buenos Aires city government allows and even encourages artisans & craft fairs since their products are hand-made but don't confuse them with regular pedlars who usually are goods re-sellers and they often not only affect the local shops but also sometimes represent a safety issue for casual shoppers. So even though travelers may find some great deals by buying from some of these pedlars you must bear in mind that by paying a little bit at regular stores, you will be helping the city’s economy and discouraging illegal business that feeds unfair competition and bad habits like pickpocketing and swindling. Bsas4u campaign for responsible and safe tourism in Buenos Aires.

If you're looking for guidance whilst out shopping in Buenos Aires, book a shopping tour or a tour to the San Telmo and Mataderos Markets with Bsas4u.