I don’t know about you, but my shopping experiences have seriously been lacking as of late….instead turning into frustrating & annoying excursions. Now, I must preface my forthcoming rant by stating that about 90% of my retail therapy is carried out at mid to bargain-priced stores (i.e. Gap, Target, Old Navy, etc.) and the rest is done in places more toward the higher-end of the spectrum like Nordstrom, or with brands such as Juicy and Seven For All Mankind. Of course, it goes without saying that my distress comes not from the latter, but from those that fall into that 90% realm.
Now, what I’m talking about here revolves around two main complaints:
1. a lack of inventory/size availability
2. a significant decline in quality.
Over the last couple of years, I’ve noticed both of these issues all over the place and I gotta’ tell you, it’s starting to piss me off. It seems no matter when I go, the styles I like are barely stocked and not available in my size….the few pieces left dangling from the rack are either a size “0” or a size “16”, with not much in-between. And if I do come across something in my size, you bet your tushie I’m buying it, because chances are excellent I will never find it again. I mean seriously, is it me or are these stores totally not re-stocking items once they sell out?? Whereas before a shopper could afford to come back weeks later to buy an item, now there really is no such freedom of time. In addition, I’ve seriously noticed the quality of many clothes has taken a nosedive. Of course, with bargain stores you can’t set your expectations too high to begin with and should be happy if a shirt lasts longer than a season or two. But this is getting ridiculous, that even here they’ve managed to lower their standards and sell some flat-out crap!
All of this was none the more evident than during my weekend trip to our local Old Navy. Now, they’ve recently renovated this location and the fact that the new layout is freakin horrendous certainly didn’t help matters. Add to that that the store was completely DESTROYED (at about 2pm in the afternoon no less) and I was already ticked off before I even got started. But, I had high hopes, especially since it was the first day of their “stuff & save” promotion and I was looking to find some great deals. Alas, my dreams were dashed once I started walking around. I was specifically looking for some new capris for summer. However, there was hardly any selection whatsoever, certainly not what they should have had on the first day of a sale and for this time of year. And what little availability they did have, of course wasn’t at hand in my size. In fact, almost nothing I liked was! GRRRRR! Then there was the quality of some items, or rather the lack thereof. Especially their standard t-shirts….they were way too thin and the fit was just really off, not flattering in any way. Honestly, I can find better t-shirts at Target (and cheaper too). And did I mention the inconsistent sizing?? One size definitely did not fit all, that’s for sure.
Needless to say, I spent like an hour and a half in that Godforsaken store, trying on everything in 3 different sizes and desperately wanting to make something work! I ended up with this shirred, short sleeved shirt for a measly $6.99 and 4 items for my TODDLER. Again, GRRRRR! Dare I say that I think my long standing love affair with Old Navy might be coming to a sad & tragic end?!
Ok, enough whining & complaining (for now). But, I must ask, does anyone else feel the same way?? Are you guys experiencing the same frustrations?? CAN I GET AN AMEN??
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I know, I know…we’re just talking about freekin’ furniture here. BUT, it’s what the much anticipated ‘Big Girl Bed” represents as a whole – that time is flying by at the speed of sound, just like everyone says. That our firstborn will be a teenager before we know it (and I’ll look fondly back at the days where I was able to call myself a 30-something), just like everyone says. That a day will come where my little snuggle bunny, who calls me her best friend and is attached to my hip through sheer devotion & adoration, will push as hard as she can to get away from her overbearing parents….just like everyone says! 
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