Popped back to see how everyone is doing. Only been on the site for 5 mins and am already frustrated...
Popped back to see how everyone is doing. Only been on the site for 5 mins and am already frustrated with how slow it STILL is! Hope everyone is well. x
Member since:15.07.2005
Reviews:81
Members who trust:113
I've never been much of a bags and shoes girl. That's not to say I don't harbour a secret desire to spend lots of money on nice clothes, but I just don't feel the need for the labels.
Quite a lot of my friends are designer brand freaks, but I've never got too excited about the prospect of spending £100+ on a pair of jeans when I'm expected to throw them out with the arrival of next season's stuff. They'd kill me for saying so but, most of the time when they show off their latest buy, I couldn't tell you if it was Versace or Asda George and, if I can't tell the difference, I really can't see the point in spending so much money on something for the sake of a usually hidden label.
This attitude is probably partly to do with my lifestyle and the ignorance which comes with it. I spend the vast quantity of my time up ladders painting, peeling wallpaper or walking the dog (who has a fondness for rolling through mud and then jumping up on me at regular intervals). It's hard to keep spick and span if you're me and therefore, the limited fancy items I own are saved for the special, dirt free occasions!
Therefore, the invention of Primark helped me no end.
THE ADVANTAGES
I no longer look like someone who nobody loves, but like a person who has a vested interest in their appearance. I have recently managed to develop a reasonable,
but affordable wardrobe without feeling guilty when I need to bin stuff which has become tatty.
I used to resent spending so much money on clothes which I felt were not all that. I particularly hated buying expensive, smart clothes for the office from M & S or Next and looking like every other 20 something office worker every day. Whilst Primark stuff has never been of the highest quality, I've never felt that it is scruffy and who cares when you're going to work anyway? Unless I get a stupidly big promotion and start getting paid ridiculous amounts of money, it's not really something which concerns me. I just need to make sure I don't look untidy and I never heard of anyone who couldn't do a decent day's work in an office if they weren't wearing expensive clothes, despite what the boss thinks.
Primark is also excellent for holiday clothes, which are so cheap they could almost be regarded as disposable. Women will also be aware that lingerie from Primark is an absolute bargain and is usually fairly well made. Occasionally the sizing has been questionable but not very often.
Bedding, towels and general house stuff from Primark is great and I've stopped buying stuff like this anywhere else.
I tend to buy all my plain t-shirts from Primark. At £3 a pop, it's not such a great concern if they don't last very long, nor is it a worry for fashion followers who want to keep up with the latest trends. Primark is so affordable that entire outfits can be bought for less than half the price of highstreet stores. It has challenged other places to justify their prices and, I imagine, has posed quite a threat to a number of more expensive places.
THE DISADVANTAGES
This may be a big shop with plenty of variety, but it has got a little too big for its boots. There are too many customers and too few staff. Queues are a massive issue in this busy department store and, whilst some things are cheap enough for people to risk them not fitting, you can be waiting for up to an hour in busy periods at the Customer Service desk to return items if you don't put in half an hour's queuing for the fitting rooms.
Sizing at Primark is particularly dubious. Often you can pick up items for women that are sized 8-10, 12-14, 16-18 etc. but there is nothing in between, so if you're a 10-12, a 14-16 or an 18-20 for example, you're a bit stuffed. Often the sizes stated are completely inaccurate, being either very small or far too big!
The quality, as expected in such a cheap place, is often a little on the poor side. This is fine for t-shirts and other items which you would regularly replace, but don't expect anything to last for a long period of time.
Primark tends to have a jumble sale/marketplace style environment. The excitement of the bargains on offer tend to cause people to lose any manners which they may have come in with and I pity the poor staff who are expected to keep the displays neat and tidy as it's a virtually impossible task. Expect to be shoved and your path to be blocked regularly. If shopping in your lunch hour, you may need to dedicate at least 15 minutes to queueing.
So, what's my final verdict?
I love shopping at Primark and it's great if you're in the last week before payday and need to find a posh outfit for £10 for a work night out. I regularly find myself asking someone where they got a nice top, skirt, or pair of trousers and cannot count the number of times they've whispered "Primark" in hushed tones, at the risk of their colleagues overhearing. We all seem to be drawn there, despite what we may say.
Due to its size and variety, you're less likely to see the entire world wearing the same thing as you are and the quality is not bad considering the price. My only concern is for the poor buggers who make the stock for Primark. To be able to sell stuff at such a low price, they must be earning next to nothing, but unfortunately that doesn't seem to stop me shopping there.
I'd give it a 6 out of 10 rating, but for the really special occasions, I would definitely splash out for the sake of quality. Having said that, I still wouldn't opt for the ludicrously priced designer stuff!
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Great review! I agree with your comments, although our local branch doesn't seem to have been discovered by that many people yet and it's relatively quiet with shorter queues.
( Not saying where this is in case everyone else pops in..)
mum52 08.12.2005 12:53
Our son bought a suit from there, he was asked how much it cost because it looked so good on him. :-)
Advantages: Cheap, quick stock rotation, does an interpretation on each season's key pieces Disadvantages: Long queues, messy shopfloor and occasional customer scraps
Frayed 25.07.2005 ·
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