To feel uncomfortable in Harrod’s?

[Chocolattay]

I went in with my mum and baby recently on a day trip to London. I obviously knew I wouldn’t get very far with my measly £200 spends but I thought I could at least get earrings or something for baby.

Goodness me, I was very quickly humbled. I immediately felt insecure. Staff buzzing around me constantly and when I said “Oh I’m just looking around” they stared me down and walked off.

I just felt very unwelcome and inadequate the whole time. We did have a meal in one of the restaurants which was nice but I couldn’t get away quick enough afterwards. It didn’t help that we ended up getting lost for half an hour trying to find the exit, and the area with the escalators etc made me claustrophobic.

I breathed a sigh of relief when we got out. Then I went and spent my money in the nearby Zara instead.

All my friends say they love snooping around Harrods but I hated it. Anybody else?

My old boss loves Harrods because "they greet you at the door by name"
They don't greet me at the door by name letttt me tell you

I used to live near Harrods in the early 80's when I was a child. I used to love going to the toy department and the food hall. Loved the massive fish display! I haven't been in years. Would love to go again for old times sake.

Oh what a shame, I worked in Harrods Children's dept (ages 2-9) in the early 80s before Al Fayed bought in. It was a great gang of girls from across the board - we had the best nights out and none of us would dare make the customers feel awkward, it's not the point of working in a shop.

Then the Room of Luxury
Ooh I remember the Room of Luxury, can't actually remember what was in there though (maybe I was too pissed from the champagne).

I haven't been in years but when I did go the staff were lovely, even with me looking like an extra from a Limp Bizkit music video. The food hall used to be great for a treat, and the beauty section was lovely.

me too! I remember being there on holiday with my family in the 80s i think and my brother wouldn't leave the pet section.

I'd have loved to have seen the Diana statue !

@LondonWolf

Goodness me, I was very quickly humbled. I immediately felt insecure. Staff buzzing around me constantly and when I said “Oh I’m just looking around” they stared me down and walked off.

I go to Harrods weekly. I often pass it when out and about and nip in for a sandwich or a bottle of water. I'm not rich, I am usually wearing muddy dog walking clothes or scruffy running gear. I've never once been treated snottily or "stared down". I'm surprised to hear of these negative experiences of the staff - I have never known them be anything but smiley and helpful. They pride themselves on their customer service, even to the plebs

I agree. I live in London and used to pop into Harrods all the time when I worked nearby. I've always had amazing service regardless of what I looked like (that includes sweaty cycling kit / muddy exercise kit).

Funny how people are claiming it's just for tourists and "full of tat" / "a dump" yet I know plenty of Londoners who shop there. You won't find us buying Harrods teddy bears but we're still in there buying food or make-up or shoes or lingerie etc. Actually they usually have excellent shoe sales at Harrods and I've got some really good deals in homeware.

Extremely disappointed by the lack of Baby Earring Handbags. She already has a special handbag especially for her designer earring collection but the amount of earrings has outgrown it now and she needs a bigger one. Fuming that I couldn’t find anything posh enough

They do have great display windows.

I don't go there much - live nowhere near London, but do buy the occasional thing when I go. Got a few pens and trinkets and pin badges, and the kids have a few toys (Harrod's Bear, Harrod's Bunny, etc) cost £15 to £25 each, and a few little things. But I have never spent a lot. It's just nice to have a look around.

I always loved my ds2's chutzpah when it came to Harrods when he was 14.

He'd get the Met Line up there after school, wearing his school blazer then go for a wander round the concessions trying stuff on for the hell of it.

On one trip he took a £1500 diamante-encrusted t shirt into the changing room, gazed at it for a few mins, stroked the fabric then handed it back to the sales assistant asking them to hold it for him as he had more shopping to do He did then leg it home...

To this day he still can't quite explain why he did it but he did work out where the sale stuff was and got his brothers some extremely good presents that Christmas for under £40...

The only good thing about Harrods is that if you are actually going to make an expensive purchase, the Harrods points add up. For instance, it makes sense to buy from the Boodles mini shop in there, than the one round the corner because you get the points! If they don’t have it in Harrods, get one of the other Boodles shops to take it round to Harrods for you so you can get the points! Same for anything else.

I have happy memories of Mum buying us banana milkshakes in Harrods one half term. It was so far from her normal taste in outings - like getting up early to go to Billingsgate market - that it was even more amazing.

@Chocolattay

Extremely disappointed by the lack of Baby Earring Handbags. She already has a special handbag especially for her designer earring collection but the amount of earrings has outgrown it now and she needs a bigger one. Fuming that I couldn’t find anything posh enough

You need to up your game my lovely. Bloomingdales, Macys, Madison Avenue. Fuck Harrods!

Book your flight to New York NOW. What are you waiting for?

@Maladicta.

This has made me laugh

The image of a spotty 14 year old in a school uniform bossing the staff about

Harrods at the end of the day is just another department store. I would disagree that a Breville toaster in Harrods would cost more than in Argos. The staff have always been helpful and friendly. Perhaps you misinterpreted their offer to help because you expected them to be snobbish and were feeling self conscious. If not it is a shame you experienced that because they have been genuinely nice whenever I have been in.

Half an hour to get out?!

Was it the Twilight Zone branch?

I gave up on Harrod's when I found they were charging a whole entire quid to use their rarified toilettes and that was way back when.

I went for the first time a few months ago, I felt really uncomfortable in there too, like all the staff were looking down their nose at us they prob were

The grotto used to be lovely. You used to be able to queue up to see FC. Then you needed to book, then you needed a Harrods loyalty card, then you needed the loyalty card AND to have spent X amount on it.

The staff in there are shop assistants. Nothing wrong with being a shop assistant, obviously, but they are the same as anyone who works in Superdrug or whatever. The items in stock hardly belong to them!

I don’t think it’s as snooty as it used to be. The only time I get the stinking attitude is from the beauty/perfume concessions people so I stopped buying those things from there but the food hall is my weakness, they recently got rid of the make your own salad bar which I was super cheesed off about. Even my eldest who really isn’t interested in fussy fancy food will polish off anything from Harrods, lol.

I can’t stand selfridges. I foolishly went back there last week after a self imposed ban due to their rude staff only to have the ladies on BOTH the macrons counters opposite each other on the LG floor either looked at me and just put their head down and get back on with tidying the stock and the other one literally did not look up from her phone. I ended going to Godiva, the sales man there at least acknowledged me!

Fortnums is nice if you want teas or crockery and a stop off at the ice cream parlour is a must ( that said the wait staff can be VERY snooty and selective, but the hosts are nice) however can get really cramped and claustrophobic especially on the ground floor.

I used to work in Harrods baby department and I hated it. Staff HAVE to greet every customer and try and help even when it is clear they are just browsing. You are trained to be pushy and up sell. They send round secret shoppers and if you haven't followed all the steps you get in serious sh*t. We received 1% commission on every sale so the jewellery department used to make serious dosh! The baby stuff was awful expensive flashy trash. I remember selling real fur coats for babies for £5k. It was disgusting. You might be able to get something reasonable in the sales but I'm afraid your £200 wouldn't go far on new season stuff.

Also totally normal to get lost! We were told to give directions confidently even if we weren't sure where something was. That way the customer would probably blame themselves if they lost their way and ask another staff member.

A big expensive dept.store. It's ok if you like that sort of thing. Sales can be good. Only reason I used to go. As an aside there was once story of Robert Smith of The Cure fame going to Harrods and being refused entry by the doorman as Robert was wearing ripped jeans. This is late 80s so ripped jeans were in and The Cure were big. Supposedly Smith produced his Harrods Gold Card and informed the doorman the offending clothing was a Harrods purchase and he was going in.

@2020in2020

A friend of mine worked in Harrod’s for a brief period of time. She quit when a small child CLICKED HIS FINGERS AT HER to summon her over

When I worked at another London department store beginning with an S, during a sale two customers were having a row about who got to buy something or other, and I was attempting to adjudicate, when another customer behind me pulled my hair to get my attention

I worked there for years and the main spenders were rich Russians and Arabs. There weren’t that many tourists tbh..at least not as many as you’d expect.
With 200 though..top floor womenswear there’s loads of good reasonably priced brands - all saints, see by Chloe etc