the shopping nightmare (in Berkshire particularly)

Hi All,

Well, I've now arrived and have so far managed to avoid destroying my rental car etc.!

More later (I'm at work), but for now just a quick question: Where is a good place to shop for dress clothes which is not stodgy or cheap but not insanely expensive? Can I find such a place in the Oracle in Reading?

How about for casual junk like shorts, t-shirts, etc.?

Thanks so much,

Sun King

Congratulations on your arrival!  :-)

As for the basic items (t-shirts, shorts, etc.0), if you're looking for very inexpensive stuff, head straight to PRIMARK.  They have the most inexpensive stuff I've seen.  Burton's is also good for menswear. 

Dress clothes....Marks and Spencer, of course.  Littlewoods has a nice selection of shirts and ties...haven't really looked at their suits, etc. 

Also, ASDA has some decent stuff as well.  And definitely not expensive!  I get my husband's dress shirts and ties from there fairly often and they hold up very very well.

Casual junk - Matalan or Primark.

Maybe try Allders or Debenhams for dress/work clothes?

Sorry, don't know where any of those might be in relation to you!

Oh - and you might try Burtons for both casual and dress clothing, depending on the size of the one(s) near you.  The one on our high street does suits as well as t-shirts.

I've picked up a lot of Burton's stuff over the years. It's reasonably priced and wears well.....nice store.

SunKing,

Im a big fan of H&M. Some classic, some trendy, VERY cheap- huge MENS department in London.

www.hm.com

 

For my husband's work clothes-we shop at Debenhams or Marks and Spencers.  For play clothes, it' usually the Gap sale or Primark for trousers.  And occasionally TKMaxx. 

Hi Sunking

Lots of good suggestions so far. I would add Next as another store that's not too expensive.

I am familiar with the Oracle. Most of the shops mentioned are there--along with a Gap, which is found on the Broad Street mall. It's a load of shops right outside the Oracle on Broad Street. I would say just go to the Oracle/Broad street and have a look around. There are loads of shops that fit your criteria.

Hope that helps. I would try to avoid the place on a Saturday. It's hell. I think they are open until 8 during the week. That's when I would go.

Jenny

Thanks all,

As usual you've been a huge help. My first initiation to the pricing differential was walking into a shop to search for a $50 electric razor and finding them selling for around $250.

Amazing what you can live without...   

SunKing

Thanks all,

As usual you've been a huge help. My first initiation to the pricing differential was walking into a shop to search for a $50 electric razor and finding them selling for around $250.

Amazing what you can live without...   

SunKing

 Yeah, thats quite a difference in price............for electrics and electronics why not try e-bay? There's a lot of brand new stuff there that you can buy outright and it does'nt cost anything to join.

eBay!!

And might I suggest Argos for electronic items such as razors and personal CD players and the like?

eBay!!

And might I suggest Argos for electronic items such as razors and personal CD players and the like?

 I've actually been checking them out for a car to run around in when I get there in June.  I find a lot of the used cars over there have high mileage even from dealers but I think as long as the oil's been changed and they've been serviced regularly there's a deal or two there.

eBay is great for cars - I have a friend who sold his on eBay, so there ARE honest people on there!   

 I've actually been checking them out for a car to run around in when I get there in June.  I find a lot of the used cars over there have high mileage even from dealers but I think as long as the oil's been changed and they've been serviced regularly there's a deal or two there.

Don't worry--even if you don't find one before you get here there'll still be a HUGE selection.  I was looking through the classifieds recently and there are sooooo many used cars here--and they're all really inexpensive (at least compared to what I'm used to paying for used cars in the US).