Upscale Shopping in Denver

Kylie Fitts

A mix between a bazaar and a modern mall, Free Market is a fun addition to Denver’s downtown shopping experience. On the corner of the Dairy Block at 18th and Blake, the 12,000-square-foot space is an evolving collective of stores. Owners Raan and Lindsay Parton look for brands that haven’t had a strong presence in Colorado, such as Aesop, Clare V., Alchemy Works, Beautycounter, Westerlind and The Vintage Label.

Tenants aren’t charged rent but instead pay the owners 10 percent of their sales. “I’m kind of like a hipster chamber of commerce,” Raan explains. As for food and beverage offerings, chef Kelly Whitaker (a James Beard finalist and owner of Basta, The Wolf’s Tailor and Dry Storage) has opened BRUTØ (11 a.m. to 9 p.m.), which specializes in heritage grains, while Little Owl Coffee holds court in the “back of house.”