5 Beauty Stores You Must Visit in New York

#1 Birchbox Soho

In case you're unfamiliar with the concept of Birchbox, it's a monthly beauty subscription service where you get a box of beauty samples to try out. The idea was really well received – enough for Birchbox to open a physical store in Soho, New York where you can buy full sized beauty products.

True to its beauty sampling roots, there's even a BYOB section where you can build your own Birchbox with five beauty samples of your choice. The men aren't left out from the fun either; there's a lower level with products catering to men's grooming and skincare.

Birchbox Soho is located at 433 W Broadway, New York, NY 10012.

#2 Bite Lip Lab

Lip junkies would have already heard of this lipstick brand hailing from Toronto, but the best thing about the brand is the Lip Lab. Just a stone's throw away from the Birchbox store, the Bite Lip Lab allows you to customise your own lip colour.

A Lip Lab Artist will have a short consultation session to find out the kind of shade you are looking for and mix them on the spot for you to try out. Once you're happy with the shade, you'll get to choose the flavour and packaging. Then, they'll use a bunch of cool equipment to mix the pigments and pour the mixture into a mold to be cooled down. The price is quite hefty for a lipstick (US$45 for one, or US$60 for two lipsticks of the same shade), but it's really about the experience and the ability to finally get a lipstick shade that's right for you.

They do entertain walk-ins although your best bet is to book an appointment with them online.

Bite Lip Lab is located at 174 Prince St, New York, NY 10012.

#3 Sephora 5th Avenue

You haven't really been to New York if you haven't paid a visit to the Sephora store on 5th Avenue. This mega two-storey store houses an extensive range of skincare, hair care and makeup under one roof – including brands like Anastasia Beverly Hills, Kevyn Aucoin and Milk Cosmetics that are not available in Sephora Singapore stores (yet).

Sephora 5th Avenue is located at 597 5th Ave, New York, NY 10017.

#4 Duane Reade Wall Street

You can probably spot a Duane Reade store on every block in New York, but some of the Duane Reade outlets are like Watsons on steroids. There is an amazing array of drugstore beauty brands with aisles and aisles of products at pocket-friendly prices. It doesn't offer the same shopping experience at Sephora where you can try out everything, but some of the classics (like the Maybelline Lash Discovery Mascara) really don't need further introductions.

Duane Reade is located at 40 Wall St, New York, NY 10005.

#5 Ricky's NYC

At first glance, Ricky's NYC might come off as a dodgy looking but it's really a treasure trove waiting to be discovered. It specialises in hair care and nail care products and even has its own in-house nail polish label, RickyColor. You can find crazy coloured hair dyes from Manic Panic, to salon grade products from KMS and Keratase.

Ricky's NYC is located at 111 3rd Ave, New York, NY 10003.