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AIBU?

Share your dilemmas and get honest opinions from other Mumsnetters.

Original poster

Next is for grannies

179 replies

Tliev · 26/10/2016 07:36

Is this true? I buy 95% of my clothes from next and my son has always laughed saying it's a granny shop. I always thought it was quite trendy but then my trendy radar has always malfunctioned 😄 Anyway at work yesterday everyone was saying how they can't understand the appeal of Next and I noticed on a thread on here just now, hardly

AIBU to predominantly shop at Next at 35 years old?

OP posts:
Hassled · 26/10/2016 09:58

For me Next is a bizarre combination of things I love and things you'd have to pay me to wear. There's never anything in the middle - it's a shop of extremes. Actually M&S is a bit like that too.

DavidPuddy · 26/10/2016 09:58

The baby stuff is great. The adult stuff is total frumpsville and has been for at least the last 15 years. Not sure before that as I was too young to shop.

BadToTheBone · 26/10/2016 10:02

I always thought next was too old/square for me until I was about 30, since then I've bought a few bits from there but certainly not everything. I'm 49.

galaxygirl45 · 26/10/2016 10:04

I used to get most of my clothes at Next, but over the last 3 years the quality has really tanked and I'm tired of buying things that fade or bobble in the wash. I spent the best part of £45 on a really nice loungewear top and bottoms that look like they're ready for the charity bag when they've been washed about 8 times. Their trousers shrink beyond wear, knitwear bobbles and cotton tops lose their shape. I like their designs, just not the quality and I've started shopping at John Lewis instead, the range and customer service is far better.

Fortitudine · 26/10/2016 10:06

I used to get things from there years ago, but very little recently apart from the odd work clothes item. They were great for kids clothes, but the women's clothes are rather bland and overpriced -priced so they can be reduced in the sales (who ARE the idiots who queue for their sales at 4am?!)
The last thing I bought from Next was a mattress - surprisingly good quality and value.

ShebaShimmyShake · 26/10/2016 10:09

Thornrose, I had to opt out three times before they actually stopped sending the fucking thing. To be fair, they dropped the charge each time when I rang to complain, but I am pretty sure it was because I was speaking to a very tired call centre worker in Delhi.

Next used to be smart and chic and now it's just a mess. I heard they got a new CEO....

Dozer · 26/10/2016 10:10

The womens clothes in store and online are drab IMO, unless you're really slim in which case there are some short dresses etc, and the patterns generally sludgy.

Workwear is shiny, or labelled "luxe" and v expensive.

Dozer · 26/10/2016 10:11

Their delivery is v fast, but expensive.

I think of it in similar terms to M&S but not as bad.

UntilTheCowsComeHome · 26/10/2016 10:12

I used to like the kids stuff when my DC were little and the home stuff looks nice but I'd never buy it as it's too expensive.

The ladies clothes are pretty awful IMO. There are some OK basics but they're no better than H&M or Tesco which are a damn site cheaper. The tops and shoes are definitely frumpy.

My mum was a huge fan of theirs so yep, definitely for grannies.

BalthazarImpresario · 26/10/2016 10:14

I only buy leggings, occasional superdry purchase and the odd gem from there, most of it is stuffy, formal and over priced.
But if you like it then it is perfect doesn't matter what other think. Embrace your style.

furryminkymoo · 26/10/2016 10:18

I have been shopping at Next for 20 years! I am 41, I am stuggling to find stuff currently but am about to check out their maternity range. Last time I was pregnant my entire business wardrobe was from there.

Their last sale was weird though, I ordered some holiday stuff, all reduced and it was on a massive lead time, I ended up cancelling entire order.

SausageDogGeorge · 26/10/2016 10:28

I'm 41 - my friends and I would use the term "its a bit Next" to describe something that is bland/boring/square - there are some great bits in there for the kids but I wouldn't buy anything from there for myself.

MadamDrag0n · 26/10/2016 10:30

I'm too fat for topshop, although I love their clothes and too young for most of m&s. I think that makes me the target Next customer. I hate all the extra buts of crap they stick on, I dont need sequined appliqué on a checked shirt thanks. I do buy a lot of stuff in their sales because i like their Tall dresses and their delivery is second to none, if the item is in stock. I like h&m but hate their sizing. Warehouse and Oasis are good if I can make the budget stretch

chocolatebiscuit123 · 26/10/2016 10:33

When it first opened in our town (about 1986 I think) it was quite a posh, boutique-style shop.
My mum bought me a school coat from there and it was much admired by my friends because everyone knew it was from Next and deemed expensive.
The shop had wooden floors, nice glass counters, and they only seemed to have maybe six of each item on display - not everything all crammed up. If you bought something it was put in a 'posh' bag. You'd walk round town swinging the bag just to make sure everyone saw it, at the time you just wouldn't be seen dead in Primark - to actually carry a Primark bag was unthinkable.

I occasionally buy something in Next but it would be a plain cardigan or jumper, the patterns are so identifiable and you definitely see half a dozen or more women wearing them as you walk about town.

formerbabe · 26/10/2016 10:34

I hate all the extra buts of crap they stick on, I dont need sequined appliqué on a checked shirt thanks

I find lots of shops do this. You see something and think it's nice and then you see some ridiculous embellishment on it...it's why I like Zara and h&m, much easier to find something plain.

spiderlight · 26/10/2016 10:36

I buy my jeans there and the odd thing for DS (school trousers and polo shirts, mostly) but that's about it these days. I used to get lots of tops there but I haven't seen anything I'd actually wear for years. Their next-day delivery is the only attraction, really.

TheEmojiFormerlyKnownAsPrince · 26/10/2016 10:38

Next is just awful. Old fashioned, unflattering crap. I did liken it on here once to Matalan, but double the price. Except Matalan is better, but the fabrics are the same horrible plastic.

And their sales! I'm not going to queue from 5 am to buy a half price shit thin viscose dress.

I'm 52, and l hate it..

Ihateithere · 26/10/2016 10:38

I like their petite range as it means I don't have to take things up ( got short arms as well as short legs😗😗) Also have things delivered, try them on in privacy of own home and can return without spending any money until my account is due.

TrickyD · 26/10/2016 10:40

I am a 72 year old granny and find Next very dull. I never bother to go in.

Eliza22 · 26/10/2016 10:51

I associate NEXT women's clothing with "don't stand too near a naked flame" cheap material. That said, most of the high street is that way now. My DS, until recently, lived in NEXT jeans. They do some great kids stuff.

SimplyNigella · 26/10/2016 10:52

I have a couple of trouser suits from Next but that's it. I agree with the unnecessary details, especially horrid big pockets on trousers that flap about like elephant ears.

The quality is poor, the majority of their clothes are frumpy (excluding the odd gem) and I'm not a huge fan of the politics of their owner or how they treat their staff either.

Ketsby · 26/10/2016 11:00

Next is like Marks and Spencers to me. For the over 50s and 60s. It's all so beige and drab and loose cut and 'sensible'.

They also want to charge very high prices for very low quality. Basically, if I wanted a £50 dress, I wouldn't be spending that money in Next.

Jmangel · 26/10/2016 11:05

Well I'm 44 and would never shop there apart from for my girls. I usually shudder whilst walking through the womenswear section.

clumsyduck · 26/10/2016 11:13

A pp has summed it up some gems hidden amongst the dross !!

I love the kids clothes and have to walk through the women's section to get to the kids bit the odd thing will catch my eye to the point I am shocked the item is in next . So have bought a few really lovely things from here but genrally speaking I find it boring / sensible and a bit dare I say ... Frumpy
Normally shop in top shop h n m etc

TooExtraImmatureCheddar · 26/10/2016 11:14

I'm 33 and think Next is too frumpy. Mum used to pore over the Next catalogue when I was a kid and ordered heaps of things from there, but not now. (To be fair, she has a lot more disposable income now and shops in Whistles/Coast/Karen Millen/French Connection etc - she's 50 and a granny)

I have bought two things from there in the last 10 years - one when I was pregnant and one immediately after giving birth when I needed a smartish dress.

I am also looking for shops that have trendy clothes, well-made, nice materials, quirky, but are cut flatteringly - some Topshop stuff works on me and I like a lot of their styles, but I'm short and have a tummy so Zara looks ridiculous on me, and H&M tends to have an odd cut - jeans and trousers from there never work, although I get a lot of basic vests etc from there. Also, their jumpers and cardigans always feel rough and inflexible. I tried Oasis recently and got some really nice things that seemed better cut for me. Zara seems to be cut for very tall women with thin thighs and arms; H&M for apple shapes. Topshop seems to be aimed at more pear-shaped women but not for women with larger boobs. I think a lot of shopping is about identifying shops that cut to suit your type of figure.