Primark - great store with some moral and ethical issues. (Primark)

Member Name: Raisin

Product:	Primark
Date:	20/02/09 (135 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: Very low prices for fashionable clothing

Disadvantages: Moral and ethical issues, thin material used, uncomfortable shoes

Primark is a clothing store that provide for everyone - women, men and children alike. I'm one to never miss out on a bargain and so every time I'm in Primark I always end up spending a small amount of money and coming away with bagfuls of clothes, shoes and accessories. For that I can not fault them, fashionable clothes at affordable prices.

However, as many T.V documentaries have investigated the working conditions of some of the workers, living in a first world country I can't help but feel guilty for these people being paid pennies every day to sew for hours on end. So you'd think that this would stop me right? I'd stage a fight and surely never shop in Primark again? Well I'm sorry to say that this isn't true. Not only is Primark clothing heavily advertised in magazines making it desirable, you just can't beat the prices! I was in a store two days ago and they were selling vest tops for 89 pence which is crazy considering other competitors such as New Look, TopShop and River Island can charge up to £8 for a similar top. So wouldn't any person naturally chose the cheaper option?

The brings me to the lifetime of the clothes produced for Primark, most are considered to be "throw-away fashion" items and probably won't make it past a year of constant wear. Which is fine because you only paid £1 for it right? Well wrong. After we have all finished with our neon leggings that were in fashion last year, they will end up in landfill, only adding to the world's problems. For many of us though, this still isn't an issue. Many of us are trapped in a waste cult. Just because they are charging £5 for a handbag, we suddenly need one in every colour - then at the end of the season when the bag is no longer considered fashionable out it goes, perhaps to charity or to a friend, but it most cases it'll wind up in the bin.

Style wise Primark obviously puts a lot of work into replicating catwalk trends. A lot of their shoes can be traced back to a world famous designers; and many of the clothes can also be spotted in more expensive high street stores at 10 times the price! The only thing that causes the style to die from time to time in my opinion is the comfort of some items to wear. Many of their shoes have been made on a tight budget so that they are able to sell them to us consumers for low prices, this ultimately means that they will end up hurting so much they will be impossible to wear for any length of time.

Cedarwood State is the menswear collection at Primark and is a relatively new addition, as far as I have seen it looks pretty impressive, selling jeans and shirts at small prices. I purchased a set of ties from there for my dad one year and they seem to be long-lasting and wash very well.

Children's clothing is usually sold on the first floor of the shop and I see many women gathered around pulling out baby-grows and cutesy dresses for a fraction of the price they would pay at Mother-care for example. For those prices it doesn't matter if baby spits up all over it, because buying two is still cheaper than buying one from elsewhere!

Overall Primark is a good store that can provide for the masses because of its cheap pricing. Even though they have been accused of slave labour, child labour, using illegal immigrants to work in stores and paying under the minimum wage for some of it's staff - Primark still come off as winners. These shocking figures seem to have deterred very few people and I doubt that in the current economic climate people who have turned away will stay away for long!

Summary: A good allround store, with prices so low you can afford to buy two!