Tati was the discount store that Parisians with empty pockets turned to when they needed clothes, housewares, or just about anything else on the cheap. Founded in 1948 by Jules Ouaki in the Barbès-Rochechouart neighbourhood, it became one of the most recognisable institutions in Paris — its pink-and-white gingham carrier bags were as much a part of the city as the Eiffel Tower, and there was a time when the store drew more visitors than the tower itself.
The flagship on Boulevard Barbès closed in July 2020, a victim of the COVID-19 crisis and competition from fast fashion chains. The building itself — a faded Haussmann-era block rising above the Barbès-Rochechouart metro station — still stands. In early 2025 it briefly reopened as a pop-up cultural space by the fashion label Maison Château Rouge, but no longer functions as the bargain store that made it famous.
If you're in the neighbourhood, Barbès itself is worth exploring. The area has long been the heart of Paris's North African and West African communities, with street markets, spice shops, and cheap fabric stores still lining the surrounding streets.