Anyone else not surprised by this?

[KitKat1985]

www.bbc.co.uk/news/business-38497998

For those who don't want to click the link, basically it's a BBC article stating that Next has reported disappointing profits recently. I'm not surprised. I really used to like their clothes 5-10 years ago, but recently I've found it all really drab and uninspiring. I'm not really sure who their target market even is anymore, whereas previously I would have thought I would have been a target customer for them (professional in their 30's).

I used to buy loads there and looked forward to their catalogue. Now, apart from their jeans it all looks tired and dated especially next to the revamped warehouse which has s similar price range.

I still get jeans from Next and the occasional top. I used to like their underwear but the last few times I've looked the designs have been dire.

I only really go there for the kids clothes and even then I find that some things are reasonably priced and other things are massively over priced. I don't understand how they work it out.

I quite like some of their more expensive jeans but only buy in the sale so I'm paying £22 rather than £45-50 for decent jeans.

Oh and a few weeks ago I bought a nice table cloth from their homeware section. Has been looking for one for ages so was glad to have finally found one I liked.

I would be sad to see next go, a massive store opened near me just a couple of years ago. But raising prices is NOT going to raise profits. They need a complete overhaul of they want to keep going.

I often wander round my nearest store thinking that surely there will be something that I like and fits but I rarely find anything. Last summer I tried on a heap of bikinis that looked rubbish on me and instead got one from New Look. Agree that dresses are are often designed for the rectangle woman rather than anyone with a hint of a waist.

I'm also often put off items because they give off that "Next" vibe that you just know everyone will know where it came from.

Having said this I bought some jeans in the sale reduced from£46 to £22 which I'' happy with.

Their clothes look terrible on me! I'm hourglass shaped and they just look wrong somehow. My two talk, thin friends who have more boyish figures look great in their clothes.

I worked for their head office. Horrible working culture.

But anyway. Their jersey products are awful. I have bought some party dresses for the kids over Xmas which are beautiful but they were very expensive for the quality level of next.

Always found next too mumsy for me and I'm 37! It's very watered down trends.

Their lift and shape jeans are worth the cash though I have 4 pairs going strong. I wear a 6 in next though because their sizes are huge - I think they aim to flatter.

I glance at their kids clothes now and then. There were lovely sparkly leggings this years and denim shirt dresses the dc liked but it's v hit and miss. Their clothes lean toward mini adult far too much for my liking and I dismiss the bulk of their range.

I much prefer marks who try to emulate Boden more these days but their range changes at age 7 and I like matchup clothes for my 4 and 7 year old - one of few reasons I even look in next.

We do but their uv swim suits every year though I love them -shorts and rash vests or all in ones. I kick the arse out of them on the beach every day in summer. They are about £11ish - and really bright and pretty.

Bedding is rubbish I went straight back to Debenhams.

Don't think we possess any homeward except a light shade!

I think my appraisal is - could do better!!!

whirlygirly Hush ain't all that - I sent back a jumper that was over £60 as the fabric was so thin yu could read a newspaper through it. They are just as guilty as using crap polyester/viscose fabrics and charging through the nose for it.

These days the quality and design is no better than, and sometimes worse than supermarket clothes but the prices are roughly double. The kind of thing I was buying in Next fifteen years ago I now get in Sainsburys. Also Sainsbury's Tu have 25% off events fairly regularly where you can actually buy stuff you want with a reduction, rather than the stupid Next sales where all I ever seem to find are polyester eyesores which I'm sure have been knocking around the sales since Tony Blair was in office.

It's the colours that I find odd in Next. It's almost like they think it's autumn all year round. I walk in and see a sea of mustards, burgundies etc. and wonder who the hell they're meant to suit. All so drab.

I will say that their school tights are excellent though.

"I wear a 6 in next though because their sizes are huge - I think they aim to flatter."

That isn't my experience. I wear a size 12 in jeans and their jeans are always more snug than in other shops.

Basically, I agree with everyone else. If I want Primark quality clothes I would rather buy at Primark prices. I bought some pyjamas just before Christmas. Knowing that pyjama trousers always shrink I bought the extra long leg ones. I washed them at 40 degrees and the legs shrunk by 2". They are now only just long enough. Grr!

As parent of a small stylish 11 year old, why do they sell the same clothes for three year olds up to sixteen year olds? It puts her off even looking in there.

Another one here who's not surprised by the drop in sales. I normally buy several outfits for each of my grandchildren from Next at birthdays, Christmas etc., This year I haven't been able to find anything in the store for any of them. All the children's clothes for last season were, in my opinion, totally depressing. Too much black and dark olive green. I didn't like anything. I never find anything for myself there either.

Well i think they have been greedy and disloyal to their customer base. I think that is why they are in trouble. That coupled by some poor sizing and quality of clothing. The patterns they offer are very often hiddeous.

I'm 52 and apart from their jeans find next too mumsy. I much rather shop at ZARA, Warehouse and other high street fashion stores. I was not surprised by them posting poor results.

I'm 38, size 18, not particularly fashion forward and need smartish clothes for work. You would have thought I'd be Next's ideal customer but I literally never even think of buying anything from there for myself - terrible quality and/or awful styles. Even their kids' stuff has gone downhill. Not surprised by their results at all.

I used to buy suits there ( I still have a fabulous 8yr old trouser suit in the wardrobe, new with tags, but I've dieted out of it).
I bought two pairs of jeans and 3 tops in the last 2yrs, the jeans were expensive, went really baggy after wearing them 5mins and the tops went short and shapeless after the first wash, I've given up on them now.

I stopped buying clothes there years ago, cheap fabrics and naff trims put me off.

Earlier this year we needed a new bed and decided to splash out on a Next bed thinking it would be a step up from our normal Ikea. It was a terrible experience - the flat pack bed had over 350 parts making it a nightmare to assemble. The quality was poor - we had to glue down peeling veneers and of course some parts were missing and had to be posted out to us. Some of the screws were faulty and we have had to glue those parts together. We intended to buy some matching cupboards but have changed our minds. We will never, ever buy furniture there again.