what is with Mumsnetters and DEBENHAMS?

[KarlWrenbury]

This is a shop that to me is eminently forgettable and is only useful for buying branded make up, department store style.

What am I missing that so many S and B threads look there first?!

they do, but the very notion that it is better for anything than Vitalumiere intrigues me.

My local Debenhams has Oasis, Warehouse, good lingerie, all the usual makeup stuff, Faith, Nine West, good house stuff, kids clothes ...

It's only a shop, I can't get myself too bothered about where other people shop.

The one near me is over 3 floors, often I'll go in and spend ages browsing but come out with nothing. I have had the odd real nice thing but it's few and far between.

My Debenhams seems to struggle to have tills open and staff working at them.

Linerunner that's true. I have effectively banned myself from Debenhams because I can't stand the frustration of trying to get someone to serve you

I don't really like Debenhams but I have to say I recently went on a quest for a strapless bra that actually fit and did the job. I tried on just about every bra on Oxford St and the only one that did the trick was the Debenhams own brand "Gorgeous" range. It was cheaper than lots of the others too.

Oh and they've had a big refurb at the Oxford St one and the lingerie changing rooms were very nice indeed. Lots of little rooms with lockable doors and plenty of space.

It's true - the brands are dire - I don't WANT John Rocha knockoffs or Floozy underwear that doesn't touch the sides of my larger boobs.

to be fair the brands like Mantaray etc are OK (see my OK) and if you want an evening dress the Star by Julien MacDonald seems nice enough.

but it just looks tatty, overcrowded and the mens ranges (like someone else said) seem far better.

Stores that seem better are the newer Bath one and the Oxford Street branch is nice (good selection - beauty, shoes etc). but then in Oxford Street I could name more I'd go in.

Website is rubbish too. Directed there in search for ben and holly pants. Loads of items out of stock and sale so won't be restocked. Just take the line off! Makes shopping frustrating.

Ordered two tankinis the other day that came today- fab as they're from gorgeous range so underwired bra in them! They're lovely, although maybe slightly thin material. But did take me ages to find in my size because even when every size out of stock they still had it on website!

I wonder why so many stores are crowded and jumble saley? The one I go to most definitely isn't like that at all.

Can't say I've noticed a particular fondness for Debenhams on MN. It's a shop. As dull as any other shop. Sometimes it has something that would suit, mostly not, same as any other shop.

waffly It's the opposite. MN posters seem to hate Debenhams and M & S. Debenhams is like most shops I go into - hit and miss. It was a hit when I bought a dinner service and a bikini earlier this year and a miss when I was trying on strapless bras at the weekend.

M & S is more often than not a miss these days, except on Saturday when I found a strapless bra and this jacket which is brilliant for light summer wear and is actually a bit more dressy than it looks in the picture. It sizes up big, in spite of the comments on their website and I ended up having to buy a size 8 (and I am most definitley not an 8)

I have noticed the mands hate. I just don't go in shops I don't like.

the one local to me is great, has nails inc, urban decay, topshop, miss selfridge, oasis, warehouse and has quite a good home section. other stores are a bit sad but i think they're probably aimed at the 'older'lady .

Bunbaker - yes that's the strange thing about the Debenhams - admittedly the Wimbledon and Croydon ones are in slightly dated 80's developments and the Oxford Street one has to be bang on target as in centre of London.

The Bath one is great too but that's a in past 5 years development. It has the tendency to get crowded and messy too but is a vast improvement on the other 2 stores mentioned above.

They really need to look at House of Fraser, even Primark - for how to better lay out the stores. A while ago I was looking for a perfume there - no tester bottle but also no-one willing to get one, say when one was due etc... I went to Boots! The more times I have experiences like that the more times I'll just go elsewhere.

The one at Liverpool One is bright and airy but the one in Warrington is dire, the women's wear is like a jumble sale.

They vary really. The ones nearest to me are pretty rubbish. These are Wimbledon and Guildford. I would only go in there for discounted good lingerie. And maybe a beauty item if it was out of stock elsewhere.

Note to Debenhams management reading this ... focus on brand consistency ... raise the overall standard to that of your better stores.

SuprFlyHigh I remember when the Croydon store was Kennards (I'm originally from Croydon). My best friend and I continued to call it Kennards for ages after Debenhams took it over in the 1970s.

The women's section in my local one is an absolute nightmare! They have that many boxed off concessions that they have turned it into Hampton Court Maze! We lost DD2 in there one day and we could hear her crying and shouting "mummy I've lost you". I was talking back to her but could I hell as find her, I just kept going deeper and deeper into concession hell! Eventually a store assistant must have clocked what was happening and brought her back, she admitted that it happens a lot!

If you go upstairs to menswear it's very well laid out. DH gets quite a lot from there, it's his go to shop, especially for workwear. I think it's mainly the woman swear dept that has lost it's way and has lost sight of who it's market is.

Woman swear? Probably, damn auto correct!

Bunbaker - I was either not around Croydon much in 70's or maybe before my time...

I was born in area, moved away moved back etc but when I was a child my mum always used to go to Pratts in Streatham (dearly departed....) as nearer and she loved their haberdashery dept. We rarely went to Croydon, maybe to the Allders there. So hence me not remembering Kennards! I'm going to ask some good friends who've lived in Croydon for decades if they recall Kennards though!