Shopping at Home Center

If you just got to Medellín or have been living here and feel like you need a little change of home décor, the Home Center is the place to go.  It has everything you need in one massive building from cups and plates to carpets and paint.

Seriously, I haven’t had this much fun shopping since I went to Ikea for my college dormitory furniture!  And, this stuff is nicer, and you don’t have to put it together.

The Home Center is the Home Depot of Colombia.

While its not as cheap as say, shopping in Centro, it saves you time, haggling and is much less chaotic.

They have an outdoor patio furniture area, nursery area, bathroom and kitchen area, and bedroom and living room area as well as tools, tiles, paints, and thats just the beginning.  Plus, everything can be exchanged if it doesn’t fit or look right.

They will also help you find a taxi or they can deliver things to your home.  And, it is cheaper then what you may find in the malls or boutique shops.

How to begin?

The first thing I did was to find someone who would be my shopping guide, since I had no idea where anything was.  Thank you Juan Carlos.

Juan Carlos was so patient with me as I tried to describe in Spanish what I was looking for and the measurements I needed in feet.  That was a bit more challenging.  He showed me the different sizes, styles and fabrics of curtains and then the variety of rods I could use to hang the curtains and how to actually hang them.

After some time he called over some of his co-workers to help me with my Spanish conversational skills.  When that was an obvious failure, we got back to work, and he took me through the many carpets, and then over to the paints.

And, when I didn’t buy anything after all that (I had to run back to Spanish class) he was still happy to have worked with me, and told me to find him next time I stop by!

So, the next day I did go back with a friend, and while Juan Carlos wasn’t there, one of the other guys I spoke with was. He remembered exactly what I came to get. Within minutes, I had a carpet cut, rolled, and wrapped and I was waiting for a taxi downstairs.

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There are several Home Centers located in Medellin, including one at San Juan Calle 44 #65-100, and another along Avenida Las Vegas, a few blocks north of the Poblado metro station.