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AIBU?

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Original poster

To think queues outside uniforms shops aren't needed?

65 replies

Elouera · 30/08/2020 20:06

Not just this year, but every single year, there is a massive queue outside a uniform shop near me. Help me understand why? I've seen uniforms in supermarkets and department stores, so why the uniform shop?

  • Are they the only place that sell branded/logo school clothes?
  • Why queue the week before school starts and not a few weeks beforehand?
  • Does the shop only get stock a week before school starts again?

YABU- queues are needed due to.....
YANBU- queues aren't needed at all due to .....

OP posts:
MrsElijahMikaelson1 · 30/08/2020 20:07

Who the fuck knows? Probably a combination of logo only uniform and parents leaving it till the last minute in case the kids didn’t go back to school so it wasn’t needed?

gingganggooleywotsit · 30/08/2020 20:08

At my dad's school you cannot wear supermarket uniform, you have to buy branded blazers and jumpers and skirts. It's a state secondary school and I'm sure many more are the same!

Wholeholes · 30/08/2020 20:08

Yes they are the only place that sells logo uniform
People like to wait for the last minute in case the kids grow over the summer

gingganggooleywotsit · 30/08/2020 20:09

Dd that should have read, not dad!

ChanklyBore · 30/08/2020 20:09

They are often the only places that sell the branded items the school insists upon, so many people literally cannot go anywhere else.
Children grow quickly. Buying even a few weeks in advance can reduce the span the item will fit significantly. I wouldn’t dare buy anything in advance for my teenager who is growing 1-2cm in height and half a shoe size in a month at the moment. Many school shops have an appointment system in busy times. The uncertainty this year will have made it worse I expect. That and the kids haven’t been in school uniform for half a year, there will be more to buy.

Goslowlysideways · 30/08/2020 20:10

I have three children all in one secondary school. The only place I can buy uniform for them is one small shop! So if you want it you need to queue or get it earlier in the summer. The shop I need to go to is the only seller for uniform for most of the secondary schools in my area.

Goslowlysideways · 30/08/2020 20:11

There is also the chance that some people need to wait until they’re paid! Which is around about now.

Castoreum · 30/08/2020 20:11

What they all said. Children grow really fast and for some school-specific items there is only one outlet.

AuntyPasta · 30/08/2020 20:12

You’ve got all the reasons Confused The queue is probably the day the stuff parents have ordered arrives at the shop.

Piggyhoolier · 30/08/2020 20:12

Why do you need to understand why?

But given you want to know, can you really not think of reasonable explanations?

Let me help you out. Logo items are standard for many schools. Can’t be bought in a supermarket. So that funnels a lot of people to one shop.

And kids grow fast. Many people don’t want to find their child has outgrown an item they purchased in July once September rolls round. So that funnels more people into a small window of time to shop.

Not really so hard to figure out.

worldweary45 · 30/08/2020 20:12

My local uniform shop sells uniform for 30 different schools

Wonder why there are queues....?

gingganggooleywotsit · 30/08/2020 20:13

yes no big mystery.

Witchend · 30/08/2020 20:16

In our area we have 1 shop which is the only shop that sells new uniform for around 20 schools. It's a very small shop over 2 floors.

This year they have gone online only as they said they can't guarantee safety.

Goslowlysideways · 30/08/2020 20:16

I’d like to add that it’s ridiculous and incredibly annoying that you can only go to one shop.

GeorgieTheGorgeousGoat · 30/08/2020 20:18

Most shops serve thousands of pupils so even if even is going during days evenly spread throughout the holidays, there is still going to be a need for many to visit in the last two weeks.

Incidentally I ordered my dds uniform on 17th June and it still isn’t ready....

PontiacBandit · 30/08/2020 20:18

I left until last week which is unusual for me. A combination of working through summer, not entirely sure IF they were going back and only the one shop for logo'd uniform.

ChicCroissant · 30/08/2020 20:19

You don't understand your own reasons?!

Florencenotflo · 30/08/2020 20:21

The uniform shop in my town is always busy through the summer holidays. I ordered DD's a few weeks back but I will need to queue on Tuesday to collect it! Luckily a lot of the schools go back on Tuesday here, Dd doesn't start until the following week so I'm hoping it will be a bit quieter. But in answer to your question, they are the only shop that sells the logo stuff. DD's school day that logo'd uniform is not compulsory but I've got Dd 2 jumpers and book bag.

megletthesecond · 30/08/2020 20:21

Logo only stuff in my experience.

Although I bought the DC's the next size up in June so I've avoided the mayhem this year.

Itstartedinbarcelona · 30/08/2020 20:22

As above plus schools keep updating their uniform so even if everything fits ok you have to buy slightly different versions of the same thing Hmm

formerbabe · 30/08/2020 20:22

Its definitely worse this year...I think people often buy bits throughout the school year but haven't done that with lockdown and suddenly realised that schools are actually going back and their kids have had a growth spurt.

Our uniform shop had a queue all down the high street. I tried their website to buy online and it crashed due to volume of traffic.

I've left it quite late as I didn't want to waste my money if they didn't reopen schools in September

MondeoFan · 30/08/2020 20:22

Yep logo uniform
And the only shop that sells it is a 35 minute drive away.
I ordered online this time 2 weeks ago, feeling rather pleased with myself but it still hasn't arrived or even had an email to say it's been dispatched.

MaureenMLove · 30/08/2020 20:22

Funnily enough DD said the school shop near her was queuing down the road yesterday.

I know there's only 2 shops in this borough that sells year and school specific ties and there's about 15 secondary schools here.

I suspect along with new year 7 needing everything, there'll be an awful lot of other years that suddenly can't find a tie that hasn't been worn since March! Grin

AriettyHomily · 30/08/2020 20:24

Because logos. It's not that hard to extrapolate.

RedskyAtnight · 30/08/2020 20:24

It's not always people leaving it to the last minute either. Our local uniform shop encourages ordering online and then click and collect. But it can take up to 3 weeks for them to fulfil orders, and you still have to queue to pick up your order.