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Original poster

Shops you are surprised are still going

782 replies

fajitaaaa · 03/01/2023 21:59

WHSMITHS - who is buying from them? Anything other than a emergency magazine for the train and maybe a bottle of water? But some of their stores are HUGE!

FAT FACE - always a massive sale on!

OP posts:
Iamthewombat · 04/01/2023 11:40

Goodread1 · 04/01/2023 11:38

Sports Direct store policy is no Customer is allowed a refund at all, !
Just make sure policy of no refund is implemented at all times No excuses allowed for whatever reason...

Just make sure Customers are fobbed off to have exchange item

They don’t have to refund you if you change your mind. Other shops do it as a goodwill gesture, not because they have to, but you shouldn’t expect goodwill from any of Mike Ashley’s businesses!

GonnaGetGoingReturns · 04/01/2023 11:42

Imgoingslightlymadd · 03/01/2023 22:07

Shoezone! To be honest I went in peacocks the other day on the never ending search for perfect jeans 🙄 and they actually have some quite nice things in

Last autumn I went to Peacocks when it was warm to buy a top/summer shirt. It’s not my usual choice of shop. They didn’t have that in but a SA was wearing a lovely dress, £18. I got 10% off as the button clasp at the back had come loose. I got loads of compliments on the dress, looks more expensive than it was. I bought a similar dress for SIL and before had picked up a rucksack there.

Was in just before Christmas and didn’t buy anything but was surprised how nice their stock was.

GonnaGetGoingReturns · 04/01/2023 11:44

IsThePopeCatholic · 03/01/2023 22:13

White stuff - ridiculous prices.
seasalt - boring and pricey

I got DM a lovely top from White Stuff for Christmas and when I went away for a weekend and needed a wash bag, knickers, picked up 2 of those, nice quality in their too.

Oneborneverydecade · 04/01/2023 11:45

Cuppasoupmonster · 03/01/2023 23:11

Genuine question but where else do you buy calpol, toiletries and piles cream all in one fell swoop?!

Show quote history

Are you me?

orbitalcrisis · 04/01/2023 11:45

Timpson. They're two/three ties the price of local key cutters, same for passport photos, batteries, etc. Why do people use them?

Needmorelego · 04/01/2023 11:46

I get a lot from Peacocks and my husband gets a lot from there too. It's one of those shops that when you talk to people about it they seem surprised that they sell men's and children's clothes.
Most of my daughter's baby/toddler clothes came from Peacocks.
Even now (she's 14 now) if I go in there I think the baby and toddler stuff is lovely.

xogossipgirlxo · 04/01/2023 11:47

Card Factory- I thought everyone buys cards and wrapping paper in supermarket 😂

Isthisreasonable · 04/01/2023 11:49

lieselotte · 04/01/2023 11:14

I like Fat Face and Sea Salt and used to like Dash. I don't wear hideous colours though!

I agree WH Smith is a shadow of it's 80s self, but it does have nice cards.

Next has been rubbish for years now. I used to get all my clothes there, but haven't bought anything since about 2005!

Boots is awful. No stock and poor customer service, although some of the big city centre stores are ok.

We don't have Argos anymore, I used to actually buy quite a lot of stuff there but just order on Amazon now as there's no point driving 5 miles to the Sainsburys to collect things when I used to be able to walk.

Morrisons. It's rubbish. It is neither Lidl/Aldi nor Sainsburys/Tesco. What is the point of it. We don't have a Lidl in my town, I wish they'd take over the Morrisons unit.

Dash was lovely

GonnaGetGoingReturns · 04/01/2023 11:50

Mañanarama · 03/01/2023 22:13

I thought WHSmiths too. The ones near me always look like there are no lights on.

Fatface in our city has just closed down.

I miss proper department stores with concessions. Surely it’d have been better for defunct stores to all be under one roof like the olden days (like, 3 years ago)

Agreed re department stores needed. In my local town/city (Bromley) both HOF and Debenhams closed down and me and some friends were berating their loss before Christmas as Debenhams was handy with the concessions.

I still use eg Morley’s in Wimbledon and Brixton and Bentalls in Kingston and if they’re ran/stocked well, they’re invaluable and both seem to still be very popular.

My friend was also saying she’d liked Arding and Hobbs (after It closed was Debenhams, she liked it then) and was sure it was still there. It’s not..:

Fizbosshoes · 04/01/2023 11:50

orbitalcrisis · 04/01/2023 11:45

Timpson. They're two/three ties the price of local key cutters, same for passport photos, batteries, etc. Why do people use them?

Timpsons I think are franchises, and can vary. I took a pair of boots to be reheeled at one branch and they virtually laughed me out of the shop saying it couldn't be done. Took to my local branch and they did them no problem. AFAIK there's no other key cutters in our town so there's not a lot of choice anyway.

BradfordGirl · 04/01/2023 11:54

orbitalcrisis · 04/01/2023 11:45

Timpson. They're two/three ties the price of local key cutters, same for passport photos, batteries, etc. Why do people use them?

Because they are the only key cutters that are close by.

EileenAdler · 04/01/2023 11:54

Is it the same person who keeps posting the same this and slagging Smith's off ?.

EileenAdler · 04/01/2023 11:54

same thing

Itschristmastimeinthecity · 04/01/2023 11:55

xogossipgirlxo · 04/01/2023 11:47

Card Factory- I thought everyone buys cards and wrapping paper in supermarket 😂

Nope, I always go to the card factory for things like that and they're always busy!

BradfordGirl · 04/01/2023 11:55

Morrisons has cheaper cuts of meat and varieties of fish that none of the other supermarkets I have. Unless you have a local fishmonger or butcher, they are often the only place selling certain cuts or certain fish.

BradfordGirl · 04/01/2023 11:57

I buy cards at supermarkets but also go to Card Factory. Supermarkets have a very limited choice. So limited when I get birthday cards I always recognise some and know where they have come from.

Original poster
fajitaaaa · 04/01/2023 11:58

orbitalcrisis · 04/01/2023 11:45

Timpson. They're two/three ties the price of local key cutters, same for passport photos, batteries, etc. Why do people use them?

They have them in handy locations and are very quick

OP posts:
KimberleyClark · 04/01/2023 12:01

The WH Smith’s in my city centre actually has a very good selection of greetings cards - better than Clinton’s really. It also houses the Post Office.

BradfordGirl · 04/01/2023 12:04

If I need a key cut I will pay nearly double for a one off key if I can just pop in somewhere, rather than having to go out of my way. I get one key cut about every 10 years. It is not worth stressing over.

ReformedWaywardTeen · 04/01/2023 12:05

fajitaaaa · 04/01/2023 10:13

Where do the yoof of today like to shop ?

DD shops on Vinted and in charity shops. They dress alternative so nothing on the High Street is for them now.

DS just pinches his dad's (DH) Fred Perry tops and old Diesel jeans. He also loves a charity shop.

They both got love2shop gift vouchers this Christmas from family, both have asked me to take them off their hands and give them the money for Vinted.

Badbadbunny · 04/01/2023 12:06

orbitalcrisis · 04/01/2023 11:45

Timpson. They're two/three ties the price of local key cutters, same for passport photos, batteries, etc. Why do people use them?

We've a brilliant Timpsons. Lovely guy. Never let us down. Yes, they are independent franchises. Not really noticed key cutting was expensive - maybe a bit more I suppose, but not noticed any significant difference to the other shop I sometimes use when I'm in a different part of town, maybe a pound different but certainly nothing noticable.

Took a couple of new belts in last week for an extra hole to be made and he didn't even charge! Replaced an iphone battery a few weeks ago for only £20 (fitting and battery) - that's hardly expensive! Last year, he charged £3 for adjusting the strap on a shoulder bag by removing the old rivets, cutting and restitching the end and then inserting a couple of new rivets!

A couple of years ago, DS's ipad died. Timpson guy checked it with some kind of electrical gadget, confirmed the battery was fine and that it was a circuit board problem, which he couldn't do, but could send it away to a different Timpson guy who specialised in them, which we agreed to. It came back within the week, fully operational, cost just a tenner as it was apparently a very minor issue! It's worked fine ever since! A tenner barely covers the cost of the postage both ways! Our other quote from an authorised/accredited Apple repairer was minimum £150 just to look at it and diagnose, paid in advance!

I've said many times to OH that I can't understand how the Timpson guy makes a living, but he's literally always busy, so I suppose a constant stream of a few pounds every couple of minutes does add up!

DanseAvecLesLoups · 04/01/2023 12:09

Argos

Sleepinggreyhounds · 04/01/2023 12:10

Edinburgh Woollen Mills. Like going back in time.

MadisonAvenue · 04/01/2023 12:13

gogohmm · 03/01/2023 22:24

@penguims

Homebase are in towns that don't have large numbers of diy stores like mine, we do also have screwfix but usually you have to wait until the next day for stock there. Consequently small town Homebase stores do well especially those without cars/dislike driving on the motorway.

B&q is 9 miles away, Homebase 600 yards!

We have a Homebase, B&Q, Wickes and Screwfix all within a mile of each other. We’re just a small town in the Midlands.

DameHelena · 04/01/2023 12:14

I love Lakeland!
I'm always surprised about the Body Shop too. I buy body scrubs if they're on offer, but otherwise nothing is that nice and it's expensive. It used to have a niche as the only cruelty-free high street place, but that's long gone.

I also keep expecting Holland and Barratt to go under; they seem to hava permanent sale/offers going on. Although having said that, I buy my (many) supplements there precisely BECAUSE at least one of them always seems to be on special offer Grin