Grab a bargain! (The 99p Store)

Member Name: icklepickle

Product:	The 99p Store
Date:	18/01/09 (456 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: some great items even branded for 99p

Disadvantages: The smell and business!

The 99p store in EASTLEIGH swan centre, Hampshire.

** THE SHOP ITSELF **

To put it bluntly it stinks.. no really it does smell. I can not quite put my finger on it.. i think its sweat but its not pleasant lets put it that way.
The shop is so small.. and of course they cram in as much as they can. If there was a fire in there on a Saturday i wouldn't like to think about what would happen!!
The aisles just about fit one person down there, and most people take up a one way sort of system apart from that annoying person who has to go the other way.
There are 3 tills which always have queues.

** WHAT DOES IT OFFER **

To be honest it varies every single week, but there are main sections of items:
toiletries and baby stuff.. shampoos, conditioners, shower gels, bubble baths, tablets, body lotions, toothpaste, deodorants, perfumes.. lots of baby items
household goods: clothes, pegs, wash baskets, tools, cleaning products.
Stationary: paper, pens, pencils, cellotape etc..
Kids stuff: toys, colouring stuff
Food: biscuits, sweets, sauces, cereals.
So many different things..

** MY OPINION/BARGAINS **

Okay i can be a bit of a snob when it comes to most things.. but when it comes to grabbing a bargain well i am there with most people..
The shop drives me mad in busy periods because it literally is so small and cramped and everyone pushes and shoves, but if you can get there on a quiet time its perfect.
I picked up some brilliant bargains for christmas presents..

- First was this little set of smellies for ladies, they came in blue(blueberry), yellow(banana milk) and pink (candyfloss). They were in a little see through zippy bag with a bubble bath, little bath puffa and a loofah. I bought about 6 of them and gave them to my partners friends girlfriends as a little token presents and also my teacher at college. I also kept one of the yellow ones my self and the bubble bath was lovely it was so bubbly unlike some other cheap ones and the banana smelled lovely... I think they were brilliant bargains.. they were actually things they sold in newlook the year before about about a fiver and i got them for 99p each.

- Next was a rolling foot massager you lay it on the floor and rolls your foot over these rolling tubes with little nobbly bits in.. i gave one to my grandad and everyone loved it more than the £25 pressies i bought!

- My niece is obsessed with high school musical and Hannah Montana and the shop is filled with "last seasons" stuff but she was none the wiser and very happy! I got her a high school musical (unofficial): calender, chocolates, stickers, pencil case, bubble bath, shampoo and conditioner.
Hannah Montana: address book, diary, stickers, magnets, set with pencil ruler and rubber, picture frame and notepad. She had 15 presents for £15 rather than probably one official high school musical thing for the same price.

- They do some really nice picture frames in there as well.. i am a big fan of the brown leather picture frames to go in my living room and usually they cost me loads.. but they have been stocking these really nice fake leather ones sized 6 x 4" which is what all my photos are so they are perfect.
I purchased 3 brown ones for myself, a cream one for my best friend and put a lovely photo of us in it for christmas, and one for my mum in black. They look really expensive.. and even if they fall apart in a few months i don't care because they were only 99p. The one i brought from john lewis for £8.99 fell apart after 6 months..

- The other thing i always go there for is jiffy bags and parcel wrap! I am a big ebayer and always selling cds, dvds etc.. the cheapest i had found jiffy bags before was ASDA where they do 3 jiffy bags for 98p.. but in 99p store they do 6 x sizeD jiffy bags for 99p, and 8 x SizeE for 99p. Also a huge wrap of parcel wrap too. It makes ebaying so much cheaper.

- They stock a great range of kitchen wear... casserole dishes, baking trays, some real bargains.

- I always buy a pack of 30 glow sticks for my nights out too.. when on ebay they are a lot more.

- I always have to grab a 2 layer pack of cadburys chocolate fingers at the till too.. since they are over £2 in asda i am always happy to help them out by buying a box.. and of course i don't eat them all in one go when i get home! dum de dum!

To make your visit even better there is always one person who says to their wife/hubby "oh thats nice, how much is that dear...."

If you dont have a 99p store near you i hope they open one soon, because it truly is an amazing money saver.. especially at the moment when times are so hard!

Summary: A great place to grab a bargain and save some money!