HARVEY NICHOLLS

It is several years now since Harvey Nichs opened in Leeds, much to the delight of us northerners. At last a posh upmarket store in our city!

I often pop in there, usually just for a browse and to ooh and aah at some of the prices they charge for things that don’t look as if they cost a fortune!

As you approach the main door a uniformed commissionaire opens the glass doors for you and you already feel as if you are worth a million dollars!

I love to look at the handbags first of all, there are some very elegant designs on offer – at some very elegant prices too!!!! I once picked up a bag and thought the price was 78 pounds, which I though was rather a lot for a basic black handbag, but when my friend pointed out that I had looked at the decimal point incorrectly and it was in fact 780 pounds, I hastily returned it to the shelf!!!

However, on a more recent visit during the sales I did buy a bag which had been reduced from a couple of hundred to just over 75 pounds, now that is what I call a good buy! It will last for years – but of course, I know I will have got fed up of it long before then! Maybe I can sell it on E Bay when I get fed up with it – after all, I did buy it at Harvey Nichs.

I also love to browse in the fashion departments. Last year when I was invited to a posh wedding I wandered along to Harvey Nichs to see if there was anything I could buy. Oh yes, there were lots of outfits I would have loved, but unfortunately most of them were way above my price bracket, it seemed as if there was nothing that cost under a couple of hundred pounds! Even a modest blouse cost more than 150 quid!

If you feel like having a cup of coffee or a snack there is a lovely restaurant in the store, but again this is very pricey! I have been there for a drink and a cake but even this gave me little change out of a tenner. If you choose to have a full meal then you are looking at nearer a hundred pounds for two of you, especially if you have wine.

So as not to make this review all negative and to give you the impression that Harvey Nichs is out of my league completely, then I have to say that I just love their food section. This is one area where I do spend quite a lot, but they have such a wide choice of goods I always stock up. They stock foods from all over the world and they do have some unusual things in stock which I have not found elsewhere in Leeds or other cities, except perhaps London.

Even if you only buy a box of tea bags you will be given them in a Harvey Nicholls carrier bag, which looks impressive to anyone who sees you after your visit!They are not to know that you have only spent a few quid are they!

It does amaze me that stores such as Harvey Nicholls do such a good trade, I am sure they must have lots of wealthy customers, but they also have a store card and I am not convinced that all the customers who have one of these can afford to shop there! Perhaps they just have it as a status symbol?

If I was a millionaire maybe I would shop more often at this store, but even then I am not sure I could justify paying hundreds of pounds for something that I am sure I could buy elsewhere for a fraction of the price.

Do call into the store if you are in Leeds, if only to wander around and look at the goods on display. I am not sure the store itself is as sumptuous as you would expect from such a prestigious name, to me it is not unlike most other department stores – apart from the prices!