Debenhams....do you use it?

Yes it is. We have a Debenhams nearby. I bought a lovely coat from there last week and my DH loves their clothes.

I do use it but must say the staff are not very customer friendly in my local one. They all seem very young and not keen on actually helping or serving.

When I eventually found a ‘worker’ she actually sighed when I said I wanted to pay and no one was on the tills. Not the first time either.

Also they’ve stopped stockimg all John Rocha and I loved his jeans.

Very sad to see folks lose jobs my nearest Debenhams is about 30 miles away and I ve never bought anything from there it’s a bit out of my league so I don’t look or else I might want to ?

My local one is mixed really. The perfumery and cosmetics department is quite smart, as is the menswear and the household stuff. But, the womenswear is a complete buggers muddle of brands, always rails of pulled over sale stuff, really untidy, smelly changing rooms. I have not bought anything in there (apart from a very nice set of suitcases) for about 10-15 years.

I like Debenhams. I have to travel to get to one but always make a point of going in and looking around, especially when there are sales.

I wonder if the days of departments stores are numbered? (This is by the by and sorry for diversion, but I went into our local WH Smiths last week. It was empty. The pen I wanted was dearer than anywhere else I'd seen it. Books were on sale at full price. I went down the road and The Works had exactly the same hard-backed cookery books selling for a third of the price. I predict WH Smith will be closing stores before long.)

Sadly, I have to agree about the staff. Quite rude.

I find W H Smith very expensive. I haven't been in there for years.

Staff? I'm amazed you have any in your Debenhams, rude or otherwise. It's like the Marie Celeste in my local Deb's, apart from the ground floor make up and perfume.

I did buy my MOTB outfit there several years ago but it was Phase Eight which I could have bought anywhere.

It's a shame as I used to like Debehams but it's tired and outdated nowadays. I suppose staff might be rude and unhelpful because of the culture coming from the top, not that that's going to help matters, of course.

It’s always sad when people loose their jobs.

Thing is I think you can get most of what you want in your local large supermarket and nice stuff from artisan shops. I get loads of stuff from my local charity shop as it’s a nice area.

Department stores are getting irrelevant

I like Debenhams both in store and on line, they are one of my go to stores.

I got a very nice handbag there recently , but I had to play "hunt the staff" to pay for it , was tempted to set it down and walk out

I'm not surprised that they are in dire straits. Visited the largest Debenhams in the locality to purchase a hat/fascinator. Plenty of choice but no mirror close by to see what you looked like. Later, went to queue to pay for another item, two sales people at the till, one had a long chat with the customers she was serving and then walked off with them and proceeded to have another conversation with them and another salesgirl. In the meantime there were 5 customers waiting to pay.
I know that I should have complained re the service that day but could not be bothered.
This for me sums up their attitude, although I am sorry that people will lose their jobs.

I only discovered Debenhams quite recently. I had always walked past thinking nothing in there for me but when I realised they, like Frasers and John Lewis, had shops within shops it was marginally more interesting. It's no worse than the other stores.
We, and by we I mean you the public ofcourse, have only ourselves to blame as we do all our shopping online.
I do miss the lingerie bra department in Frasers.

I have occasionally, but have to travel to other towns, my big nearby town has a John Lewis which is so much better in every way. I never understood why Debenhams never tried to emulate JL, just a little. I regret to see any business go down the tubes, but shopping in Debenhams was never a great experience. Having said that, I am sorry about the loss of jobs and of course the impact of another empty space on our high streets,

But grammaretto I don't shop online if I can help it. I want to go out to the shops and physically see and feel what I am buying. Looks as though there will be nowhere to go soon.

I am not a Debenhams fan, but have used it in the past. Nowadays our local store is much as gillt57 describes. However my daughter who lives many miles away from me, loves Debenhams and often buys stuff from there, but hers is a much larger and better run store.

Feel sorry for anyone losing their job...but not a fan of Debenhams

shandi6570 i was only being devil's advocate. I am also a fan of real life shopping and when I'm looking for something I expect to ask for it and be shown a selection and I want to be guided. Other times I want to browse and to be left alone. I expect sales staff to know the difference and to care!

I don't go into town that often, but usually pop into Debenhams when I do and have a look round the clothes department - often end up buying something as I quite like the Maine range, and Manteray.

I feel so very sorry for all who will be losing their jobs. There really won't be anything left in the high street soon apart from shoe shops, mobile phone shops and fast food outlets.

Nothing stays the same. The newspapers are saying most of Europe is heading for a recession.

Just let it die, if people actually wanted this store they would use it. They clearly don't and that's why its failing, stop artificially propping up these stores that have failed to adapt to people's shopping needs and allow the market to develop and shift by itself. Its so weird how people are desperate to retain stores that are clearly completely inviable as a business.

I don't go into our nearest branch very often as it is like a rabbit warren. John Lewis is purpose built and much better. Terrible for those losing their jobs.

Definitely feel for the staff but I bet the long game is a lot of these properties will be turned into flats...prime locations.

I haven't bought anything in Debenhams for years, possibly decades. I used to like it until it became like a market arcade, just lots and lots of concessions with minimal stock.

There is a clothes only Debenhams in my usual clothes shopping town and I always wander in, look round and wander out again without buying anything. I find their clothes dull and unexciting and if I do find something I like it is not available in my size because stock is so limited. I occasionally wander through the full sized store in another town I visit, but with the same results.

I do not buy clothes (or food) online. For both those commodities I want to finger the goods , and in the case of clothes, try them on and check for fit and quality.

Over-priced goods, what do they expect ? Just because of the name.

Have walked through as a short cut but never seen anything I want to buy. I think that, like House of Fraser and Boots, it hasn't moved on like John Lewis.

Shopping has changed and shops need to change as well. I find myself looking at shop chains and wondering if they will be next. Laura Ashley is on my list and Next was too until they started selling furniture. Boots seems to have ignored all the cheaper rivals which have been growing in the last few years.