Shops that we miss

[Pikafuckingwho]

On the back of the Past Times thread. What shops do you miss:

I miss

Coast (I know it’s online but it’s gone a bit shit)
Ravel
Morgan ( well my youthful self misses it)
Disney Store I know there is one in London but there used to be one in almost every town
Bay Trading (always good for a nice top to go with jeans)

Woolworths, T G Allan's (not sure if this was a chain or just in my town but the range of Parker pens was immense to 7 year old me), Tammy Girl (13 year old me misses this), Debenhams for my bras.

I was literally talking to DC about this yesterday as they complained about nowhere to look for clothes in town except Primark which has always been crap but now is expensive and crap

I miss:
Kookai,
Pilot (best jeans, ever)
Bay Trading
Etam
Mark One
Our Price
La Sensa (comfiest bra tops and underwear)
Miss Selfridge ( in the nineties it was the alt girl shop)
C&A (their sale was the best)
New Look when it first started as it for cheaper and nastier as time went on
And I miss my Duffer, Hussy Threads, Firetrap and Stussy clothes and hats

And what I miss most of all was sizes actually being sizes. And no sodding cut outs. And Disney and kid logos being confined to Woolies ladybird section and Adams Kids. Why is everything in Primark either cut funny, ridiculously smaller than the listed sizing, or covered in Disney or some such nonsense.

I hated Toys R Us. For a toy shop it had zero atmosphere. Horrible place.

Culpepper
Cullens
Foyles

I was thinking about Knickerbox the other day, I used to buy all sorts of things on my way to work at the one at Liverpool Street station as I had to wait for 15 mins or so between trains.

New Look when it first started as it for cheaper and nastier as time went on Yes! It used to be so much better.

Only @ReformedWaywardTeen has mentioned Etam!

Nearly my entire wardrobe was from there at one time, late 90s/Early 00s

I remember pilot! Many teenage years spent there.

I also remember the first time I treated myself to underwear from La Senza and it came with smelts beads and boxed! Felt so special!

I also used to enjoy Mark One and Tammy Girl

@Qik do you mean Foyles bookshop? That's still going. Owned by Waterstones these days but still called Foyles.

East and Liz Claiborne concessions and Dickens and Jones

@VioletCharlotte La Senza was my favourite place for underwear!

Every few years I'd throw out all my old knickers and bras and spend a good amount buying new ones (this is when I had disposable income before my kids came)
I loved the paper and perfume in the cardboard bag

@ohthatsgreatnews I loved La Senza! There’s a bra in my drawer that I got from
there, beautiful, about 5+ cup sizes too small these days, but I just can’t bring
myself to throw it 😳

I miss being about to buy maternity clothes in shops, I hate buying online

@buzz91 I got my maternity clothes from H&M. But this was in 2020. Don't they do them in store anymore?

What was the place that sold just handbags ?
Possibly had a small amount of jewellry but otherwise bags?

This would've been late 80s onwards , don't know when I last saw them.
e e

And prior to Primark:

WEWW (What Every Woman Wants ) which then became What Everyone Wants

And -not sure how widespread these were - Razzle Dazzle

Me too, and tie rack. I bought my spe ial clothes from Austin Reed and Laura ashley.

Clockhouse at c&a
Etam and Tammy girl -. There seems to be a big gap in the teen market at the moment.

BHS for towels, lighting and other homeware
They did good swimwear too

Debenhams
Oasis
Morgan

And Snob and Chelsea Girl. YY to Etam and Principles.
A PP mentioned Lewis’s in Bristol. I’m of an age to remember the wonderful Christmas windows, and the Easter Fair on the Roof Garden, lunch in the restaurant with models showing off the clothing range.
Its a pity, but people now want to shop from home, work from home and exercise from home. Pretty soon we will have no need of any sort of clothing other than thermal onesies! ( Keeping warm). No one will see us. 🙁

BHS for their homeware and 100% cotton, underwired bras!
Woolworths for everything. It used to sell cheese when I was a child.

Clas Ohlson took over the Woolworths space in the nearest shopping town to us, and then they went ( they have an online presence via Amazon but it’s not the same ) - there is a Wilkinsons, which has its uses but it’s nothing like as good.

My DD loved TopShop , jeans , tops , coats
Now it's Urban Outfitters (though some clothes are WTF and very £) and the odd gem at Primark.
As she has a load of clothes still hanging in her wardrobe from studying at home , she's ok.

TopMan had really nice TShirts for DS , good smooth thick
cotton, good necklines , hold their shape well.
He's moved over to H&M but I cannot abide their website .

C&A - they used to sell the perfect shade of sheer tights for dark skin back in the day

Woolworths - Two words: Pick and Mix

Jane Norman - only for nostalgia value, I lived in there as a late teen/early 20's

Debenhams - that was my local department store; always dependable if I needed a last minute gift

Surely the point is that with Woolies you could get it all in one place? I loved it. I really dislike trawling lots of shops for bits and bobs.

Surely the point is that with Woolies you could get it all in one place? I loved it. I really dislike trawling lots of shops for bits and bobs.

I think shops like Wilko and The Range now sell everything that Woollies did. With maybe the exception of childrens' clothing.

Topshop and John Lewis. The John Lewis here never re-opened after lockdown and I miss it so much.

@Starseeking probably 90% of what Woolworths sold is sold in B&M so you can still pretty much "get it all in one place".
I mean there are things Woolworths sold that B&M don't but that's because they are products that simply don't sell anymore. Woolworths big thing was the 'entertaiment' department - CDs, DVDs etc. When Woolworths closed down that department was struggling and had been cut down in size. I think they had stopped selling the Top 40 singles by then.
So B&M (or Wilko's or whatever) aren't exactly the same but if Woolies was still around I think the 'entertaiment' department would be long gone or reduced to a couple of shelves of discount DVDs.