Uniqlo > Rugby > J.Crew > H&M > BR > A&F > Gap ... - Page 8

I think the above is true to a good degree.... but Uniqlo really does rock. For example, if I want to buy a button-up and go to Uniqlo almost all their ones will be the perfect blend of simple and classic yet interesting/nice enough to wear. Various colors of gingham, subtle checks, thin stripe combos that work well together, mico-houndstooth, etc. Really I could go to uniqlo and walk away with a half-dozen button-ups I'd love every time and their

I can't say this about any of the other stores on the list. I go into gap sometimes and I'm lucky to find one or two button-ups that look nice to me, outside of plain solid color ones. Ditto for most of the rest here.

And people seem to think I'm wearing some really fancy brand when I have something like a Uniqlo shirt on. That may sound weird, but I've gotten tons of compliments on my uniqlo button-ups and I've never gotten a compliment on any of my J. Crew or Gap button-ups.

Toss in the fact that uniqlo is pretty damn cheap and the store is just perfect for me.

i wonder if anyone's tried the whole shirt and tie scheme under the rugby on a lot of the product images on the rugby site haha i've actually never seen it except on store websites and ads. SOME of it looks good actually. just wanted to see what others think or wanted to know if they've done it before. what do you think?

and sorry for going a little off tangent in advance

Remember guys that this is all personal preference.

I've never shopped a Rugby store so I can't rate them, A&F and AE to me pretty much triggers people who only follow trends have no style at all. But I'm sure underneath all of that, you can find one or two solid pieces here and there and topman hasn't come to the states yet so I can't rate them on their clothing but for one, they need to fix their shipping system...and pronto.

1) Banana- The reason why I'm putting them at #1 is that they of all of these brands listed balance casual and dressy better for my personal style (classic european from brooklyn). Its all in the pieces you find and the price points are solid. It sucks their trousers aren't slim enough and their shirts suck (saggy collars). Their shoes are either a hit or miss and for the most part being misses but their hits are spot on.

2) Uniqlo- I don't shop here too often but they do have very solid pieces at very affordable prices. When they had cashmere turtlenecks at $60 last month, I nearly fell out and this is the norm for them. I was told their jeans are very good (not suprised but I am married to levis 511 for now) and I'll do some research on their dressier items.

3) J Crew- I'll put their casual wear light years ahead of BR but their formal wear does not do it for me at all. They don't offer too much here with very little variation at that, in regards to their suits and shoes. They've been good to me as far as quality goes so I go in expecting pieces to last me for season upon season. This is my go to store these days b/c their deals/promos are too good to pass up. Their desert boot trumps BR anyday. J Crew's women line? Best of this list no doubt with Banana not too far in 2nd.

4) Club Monaco- I personally think their okay and can be better but when they are good casually, their as good as J Crew. Love their blazers (hate the single vents) and they offer a lot of variety that Banana certainly doesn't and J Crew won't...even at a ridiculous price point. I mean come on, $450 for a Tartan Blazer w/ shawl collar? You can go piss off....

5) H&M- The only reason I'm placing them in front of Zara is affordability. With that being said, I rarely shop there but I always do spot checks here and there and noticed their S/S '09 is as good as I've ever seen (still needs work though). In a supermarket analogy, they're like perishable foods, they do well for you in the short run and leave you having to buy, buy, buy again. In this ecomonoy, they should be doing well with the promos they throw out there. Their womens line? You can't find anything better at their price points and they'll be quality finds too!!

6) Zara- They offer the best suits to me as far as fit goes (banana, a bit pricey and not slim enough for me but good variety, H&M- too skinny and trendy) but that's about it for me. Their shoes remind me of shoes that Steve Madden/Aldo offer with the way too skinny square toe that slopes (I call em the "Aspens") and represent the ugly side of Europe we Americans would not like to know them for or like to see. With that being said, I bought some sick military inspired boots a month and a half ago which I love to death.

7) Gap- Poor gap. I saw Patrick Robinson about a month ago in the financial district and he's such a cool guy in general, but for his brand, not so much. Their F/W ads were awesome(!) and they usually are but their items still lack in quality. Aesthetically they don't look right and even worse when you try them on. They don't totally get it wrong, I love their cords from last season, and plan on getting a gray/green stripe cardigan very shortly. Wmns/gap kids/baby gap? They totally work.

I forgot Express which I'd place in front of Gap. This was my go to store back in '04 when I didn't know any better and for the last couple of years, held a nasty grudge against them. Gave them a chance a month or 2 ago ago, they still don't offer much for both men and women but I did pickup a really cool navy chalk stripe vest with a navy/white polka back. Even at a small and with the back cinched in, it's still a bit on loose but great find nontheless. They seriously need to step it up soon or be ready to fold

+1

What about Gant? Did we forget them for a reason. I popped into their 5th ave Flagship and they a few decent pieces as well for prices that were reasonable. Still needs work though.. on my list, I'd place them after CM

has anyone heard of ruehl? better than a&f quality with similar price and less logos

owned by abercrombie.

i know but they are quite cheap when on sale and quality isnt half bad, and it has less logos

Finally visited a few of these that I hadn't been to before:

Club Monaco reminds me of the flashier, clubbier side of Banana Republic. Only flashier and clubbier. Retail was unreasonable.

Zara - an even more Eurotrash Express. Struck me as an entire store of the kind of no-name designers you find at a Macy's.

Ruehl - I actually liked the look of a lot of their stuff and sale prices were reasonable, but the fits were absolutely bizarre. Chest, shoulders and body/lenght were fine, but the sleeves were several inches too long. They'd fit like belly shirts on anyone tall enough to need those sleeves. Also, worst store design ever. At least with Hollister, etc. there's a continuous path between rooms.

Took the words out of my mouth. Not sure what they are thinking. A new store opened very close to my house, the slim cut works very well for my build.. but I've only ever bought 2 shirts from them, across multiple vists. Most of the stuff is cheaply made euro-disco trash.. have you seen how atrocious their shoes are? They have a large selection of outwear, but they are way too ornamented, bad fabrics and crappy construction. The staff is also tries to pull off this high-end boutique pretentiousness.. pathetic. Personally I'm starting to gravitate towards Barneys CoOp, for nice core pieces. Then fill in the gaps with a mix between J.Crew, Rugby and Brooks Brothers... with rare visits to the fancy designer boutiques in LA (APC, Marc Jacobs, Paul Smith, etc). I've also noticed BR has stepped up their game a little for SS 09. Sport jackets are quite nice.

+1

I think some of us can remember many years ago when Gap was the only game in town. I don't know if it's just my perception, or if the quality has dipped so much. I find the styling and quality to be sorely lacking, but I still hope there will be something good in there one day.

This is a good thread for SF, so I will bump it. Not all of us can afford to dress from Saville Row.
Half of my closet comes from these "mall brands" so I have a bit of first hand experience with them.

In order of preference...

Uniqlo - Excellent, and further augmented with Jil Sander's input.

J. Crew - Wonky fits on me, great classic styling and decent pricing make up for it. Particularly like their sweaters.

Banana Republic - Terribly overpriced, but on a 50% discount (very frequent) they make great sweaters, scarves and gloves. I have items from here that have lasted 5 years. Their store is always a comfortable shopping experience.

H&M - Quality is dismal, loose threads and buttons are common but it's hard to complain given what I paid for them. Items are generally quite slim-fit.

Club Monaco - RIDICULOUS retail pricing, even moreso than BR. Nice store design, interesting use of color schemes; nowhere near worth the retail pricing. Their collared shirts are decent pickups for the slim & tall.

Zara - Quality and styling worse than H&M IMO... may find a couple of decent items on sale

A|X - They must have the biggest markups ever, because their sales can drop the price of collared shirts down to as low as $15. Logo-free materials are okay, but often not worth the time and effort to find on sale.


Never would shop at the following:

Gap
Old Navy
Guess (Horrendous! Douche-wear, buttons that fall out, ugly tacky garbage)
A&F
AE
Mexx (They went out of business in the US for a good reason)

I will never understand why so many people on this forum seem down on BR. I love the store. Great looking & fitting clothes at decent prices with frequent sales. Plus they cater to tall slender people with their Large-Tall sizes. It's one of the few places I can get a shirt or jacket that actually fits me properly.

On a side note I have fallen in love with JCrew this year and am going to be buying a lot of my clothes there from now on.