QS - affordable clothing for tighter budgets (QS Group)

Member Name: katew

Product:	QS Group
Date:	25/11/08 (353 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: Reasonably good range, helpful staff

Disadvantages: Underwear not good quality; not much for middle age ranges

In these tough economic times, most of us are looking for ways to cut costs, and QS is one way to do this.

QS is a nationwide chain selling mainly clothing, although I understand that some stores sell homewares as well. The branch I use is in Bath, and does not have a homewares section.

There are ranges for men, women and children. The prices are very low - cheaper than M&S but not as cheap as Primark.

**Men's range**
This includes casual wear, underwear and nightwear. The casual wear consists mainly of jeans, sweatshirts and tshirts, and tracksuits. The style is fairly young generally, and the quality seems reasonable, although their jeans are not as hardwearing as the label would suggest (but what can you expect for £6??). I bought a sweatshirt today which cost £4 and is a good length and very warm.

**Women's range**
This seems to fall into two types - young and old. There is very little for those who want something in-between - the young section consists mainly of tops and jeans, and the 'old' section has things like trousers with permanent creases. They also sell shoes, nightwear and underwear in the women's range.

**Children's range**
There is quite a good children's range, although I have never bought from this, so can't comment on the quality. The styles look pretty modern to me, and there are quite a few novelty items, such as socks with 3d faces on.

**The quality**
Generally, I have found the quality of QS clothing to be very good for the price. The underwear doesn't wash too well, but then I bung everything in the machine, and again, for the price, you wouldn't expect a lot. I have a lot of QS garments which have lasted me several years, including trousers and tops.

**The sizing**
This is the weak point of the store. Presumably they buy in from different sources, and the sizes vary enormously. I am usually a size 16, but I have stuff from QS ranging from size 12 to size 20! You really do have to try everything on.

**The store**
The layout of the store is fairly good, with a fair bit of room to manoeuvre. However, there are few mirrors, and the ones in Bath are hidden behind pillars! Another good argument for trying things on! Also, there are only two changing cubicles, so you can end up in a long queue. The store is generally kept pretty tidy, and items are pretty easy to find. There is a reasonable amount of space between fixtures - important if you are shopping with a pram or wheelchair.

**The staff**
I have found most of the staff very helpful, and they do seem to be able to deal with quite long queues without fuss, leading to more satisfied customers.

**Overall impressions**
I would like to see more clothing in the middle age range - I often feel I have the choice between 'mutton dressed as lamb', or 'old dear'! It would also be useful to have mirrors that are accessible, especially when there are long queues for the changing rooms. The sizing variations annoy me a little, but I don't suppose they can do much about that. Generally, if you're shopping on a pretty tight budget, you could do a lot worse, although I think Bonnmarché have a better range for my age group.

Summary: Good for the budget-conscious shopper