Joules

[cremedelacardi]

I've read today that joules are getting advisors in to help boost profits. So where in your opinion is joules going wrong? I still buy pieces there but they often end up in my wardrobe unworn.

Joules has some great pieces but it's hit and miss.Their dresses, coats and scarves are often very good and many of their kids wear too. I'm not into their t-shirts or jumpers but prefer rain gear to sea salt in terms of style (sea salt is so drab) some of the dress prints are just too frumpy and ugly but you can find some gems.

Gosh, just reading the article. I didn't realise Jojo MB had also been bought by Next. I feel quite sad about that, I used to buy a lot of children's clothes in there (many years ago!)

Loved JOJO. It's also concerning that TUI are moving into our Next so I can buy clothes and book a holiday

I think some of the better quality clothing was labelled Tom Joule after the owner, unless I'm mistaken about how that worked, but I remember a particularly nice coat and some other things.

Is Tom Joule still involved with the business I wonder.

Our local Next has a Virgin holidays, Paperchase and I just noticed a Bath and Body Works in there! (quite excited about the last one!) It's getting more and more like a department store!

It's getting more like the old indoor markets I remember as a child. I'm really on the fence when brown's of Chester went all indoor concessions the result was a mess

I always find that their designs look a bit "horsey set meets BBC children's TV presenters"

Have a waterproof jacket which is ok for round town but I use a studier one if doing proper walking in rain. Would consider a gilet if rabbit logo not obvious.

Never found their clothes generally very flattering on me. Used to buy the odd present there (over 10+ years ago) but wouldn't now (too samey and brand generally feels like it is going downhill).

The old high street is terminally ill our high street not in a city 70k rent 80k rates for a small shop with two stories of flats above which are unlettable unless you put in all the updates, firescapes, fire doors, insulation etc which means a 1bedroomed rabbit hutches are £700 pcm which is extortion.

What does work is something like Cheshire oaks many little individual shops built on fields easy to enjoy or avoid rather like our old high streets. OH the irony

I have a couple of their sweatshirts from years ago that I still wear for dog walking, but I wouldn’t choose them for general day to day wear now. My favourite one is starting to fall to bits (it is very old) but I won’t replace it - they’re just overpriced now IMO and if I want one, I can probably get something similar elsewhere for less. Also, I am a bit fed up with all the stripes now (she says, wearing a stripy T-shirt as I type…!).

Also, I don’t think the price reflects the quality. I do live in the countryside with Labradors (well, one anyway) and I used to be horsey as well, but Joules just isn’t my thing any more. It’s a bit try-hard I think, and the quality isn’t there. I had a pair of wellies from them a few years ago that disintegrated in a couple of months (I got a refund) and their coats etc are cut more for style than warmth and practicality now. So they’re sort of trying to be ‘country’ but not actually up to the job of being ‘country’ for real - out in all weathers and wading through mud as opposed to choosing a nice day for an instagram shoot!

He says he's taken a step back to focus on family time as I believe he has young children, but you see him going to the office all the time. Surely he can't be happy with what this brand has become

Look at body shop Kath kidston, the big consortiums buy them up and destroy. Estée Lauder a vast purchasing machine that destroys everything it buys. Their products reduced so much. Their reasoning according to interview is that the Chinese market is the future. Well they pretty much own it now.

These consortiums are run by accountants not vision makers

Popped into a local Joules today. The staff where very attentive, i went in looking for pair of shorts for an upcoming holiday. The sales assistant put the shorts into the changing room for me. Whilst I looked for a top I could try them on with as I was wearing a dress. Didn't buy any of the shorts they fitted me but not what I was after. Brought the t-shirt though as it is something I would wear and it fitted me.

However it was the one t-shirt on the top which didn't have that very high neckline which doesn't do me any favours

The girls’ clothes used to be great quality. Shame. I suspect they have also just fallen victim, as pp have said above, to the private equity locusts who buy up companies, hollow them out by asset stripping and loading them up with debt to run at narrow margins, then abandon them when they inevitably lose market traction by doing so.

First step to doom is always turning the brand website into a third party broker for other brands. As soon as they started that “friends of Joules” stuff you could tell they were doomed. Of course they’d be bought out by Next — which is also chugging along the same path.

I do have a few bits and a coat, but they’re very expensive. I also find them a bit too floral/stripy and dated, plus my 70 year old mil wears a lot from there. She always looks well turned out, but at 40 I don’t want to turn up in the same outfit as her so it puts me off.

I was going to say this. Same with Seasalt and FatFace.

I don't think they are expensive, but they are compared to fast fashion.
They seem well made and I'd expect them to last.

The Joules clothes are too obviously identifiable for me. The few Fat Face and SeaSalt things I have (about 4 in total) have been really good, but I am put off by the idea of wearing the same styles as my DM. DM dresses young for her age and always very nicely, but YKWIM

I wear quite a bit of joules -
especially for work. However I buy all of it in the sale- I don’t think I’ve ever bought anything full price.

@KirstenBlest

Same here, all 3 brands say well dressed 70 year old to me. I don't want to look like a well dressed 70 year old yet.

They are a bit cutesy. And some stuff just screams: Got this from Joules (those striped tops with flowers on.) They need some more understated staples imo.

I purchased two items from joules online this spring, a wrap over striped dress( no flowers or vegetable thank goodness)that I've worn alot this summer and a sweatshirt which looked a lovely blush colour online but when it arrived was bright pink. Seemed good quality but far too loud in colour.

They are also quite generously sized so I think there's a bit of self flattery going on when buying from Joules, Seasalt and FatFace.

See I really like fat face. They're colours, and fit of my clothes really suit me compared to Joules.

I wear a lot of Fat Face at times my entire outfit is Fat Face. Ok they can be pricey but they always have a sale on and I have brought non sale items when it's something I really love or know I will wear to death