How do you bring back a souvenir that is beautiful, well made and, above all, genuinely local? I have already recommended five great shops. Here are three more.
La Postalera, The Espanista and Gnomo sell souvenirs made by local artists and designers. Each shop has its own speciality: La Postalera grew out of a postcard collection, The Espanista brings together design and food, and Gnomo puts a lot of weight on local makers and things with a sense of humour.
La Postalera — original postcards, and much more
La Postalera began with a small collection of postcards released in 2018 by illustrator David van der Veen and photographer Adolfo López. They worked in the centre of Valencia, full of souvenir shops, but the things on sale there seemed far too samey to them. Having decided to make their own postcards, David and Adolfo first supplied them to other shops, and in March 2019 opened their own on Calle Danzas, next to the Silk Exchange.
Their drawings start from familiar Valencian themes — oranges, paella, Las Fallas and the city's architecture — often played for laughs. That is how a fallera with orange tattoos and a family sitting inside a giant paella came about. Besides their own work, La Postalera sells postcards by other artists, so the same city appears here in many different styles.
Over time posters, textiles, jewellery and ceramics joined the postcards, again with local motifs. One example is a brooch shaped like a gilda — the classic Spanish snack on a skewer.
There is also a large collection of gifts for children: soft toys, funny accessories and games.
Postcards remain the heart of the project, and they come with one of the shop's best features: you can write the card you've chosen and send it straight away. The Danzas and Correjería shops have a writing desk, sell stamps and have their own postboxes.
La Postalera: Calle de las Danzas, 3 and Calle Correjería, 4. La Postalera Gallery is at Calle Concordia, 4.
The Espanista — vermouth and T-shirts with clever prints
The Espanista was created by Daniel Martínez and Aida Musabaeva, who put books, illustration, clothing and food gifts under one roof. The mix goes back to how the project started: after many years in China, India and the US, Daniel returned to Valencia and began hosting meetups where Spanish lessons came with tapas. In his words, it was first a way to meet people, but over time he decided to open a space of his own for these events.
So food and drink were part of The Espanista from the very beginning: the shop sold wine, vermouth, craft beer and tinned fish. Today the catalogue has ready-made boxes of Valencian wine, beer, vermouth and Agua de Valencia, and if you would rather pick the contents yourself, the website lets you put together your own box.
The shop's mascot, drawn by Valencian illustrator Lawerta, also reflects the owners' tastes. He was given a character and habits: he loves craft beer, alternative music and travel. Lawerta's drawings appear on the shop sign, postcards and gift boxes.
Food and drink carry on into the clothing collections, with illustrations of vermouth and the Agua de Valencia cocktail. Next to them are works by Cachetejack and other local artists, plus T-shirts with typical Valencian sayings: Pensat i fet, A la marxeta and De categoria — roughly “No sooner said than done”, “Little by little, at your own pace” and “Top class”.
The collaboration with Lawerta continued in the official collection for the Valencia Marathon, which The Espanista released with the organisers of the 2026 race. The artist drew the finish line at the City of Arts and Sciences, and the drawing went onto posters, notebooks and tote bags.
The Espanista: Calle Reina Doña María, 9 and Calle Caballeros, 8.
Gnomo — everything from caps to earrings by Valencian designers
Gnomo was opened in Ruzafa in 2010 by Ester Martín and Álvaro Sarsuela, carrying on a family history of selling gifts. Álvaro's parents ran a shop of the same name in Castellón, and his grandparents sold ceramics under the sign Artesanías Pilarín. The owners have said that on the counter of the Valencia Gnomo, under the current sign, the old sign of his grandparents' business is still there.
From the start Ester and Álvaro worked with local designers and illustrators. The well-known artist Paula Bonet, for example, sold her work here early in her career, and for things designed and made in the Valencian Community the owners came up with the label FAV — Fet a València, “Made in Valencia”. Today the range includes illustrations, books, jewellery, stationery, fans, clothing and homeware.
The owners also choose with a sense of humour in mind, including jokes about local habits. One example is the Esmorzadors T-shirts, devoted to Valencia's second breakfast (almuerzo in Spanish, esmorzaret in Valencian). One shows a walking peanut with the words Més esmorzar, menys drama — “More almuerzo, less drama”; another shows a bar receipt and the phrase Això ho pague jo — “This one's on me”. The same collection has a T-shirt with a “certified professional almuerzo lover” badge.
Gnomo: Calle Cuba, 32 and Calle Alta, 24.
