SimonC
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A forum member sent me a message about my thrifting in West London (England) some time ago, and as a belated reply I sent the following.
The route describes roughly what I'll do if I fancy a half-day or so thrifting locally. In total it's 10 miles or so, more than is walkable (I generally cycle) but you can always use the bus or (in some parts) tube.
It's a semi-linear route. I don't have names for all the shops - if I get really bored one day I might take a camera with me and take snaps to make a route on Google Maps. Comments in round brackets are some of the finds I've made over the couple of years I've been doing the route, square brackets are pricing guidelines. Pricing and stock are both variable, but as a rule of thumb you'll pay £8-10 [££] for a decent shirt (something like an Emmett, Thomas Pink or Hilditch & Key). Anywhere charging £5-7 is cheap [£], £11-15 is expensive [£££]. For reasonable suits (upper-end Zegna, MTM or bespoke) you'd be looking at £25-30 normally, though I've seen prices as low as £5 and as high as £150. Shoe pricing is very variable - I've paid £10 for Lobb / EG-level shoes, and today I saw a worn old pair of Church's in an Oxfam for £95!
My usual route starts at the West end of Kensington High Street with the Notting Hill Housing Trust [££](usually lots of bespoke, often fairly priced but expensive designer labels), then a quick right down Earls Court Road to the shop opposite Waitrose [£] (some lovely bespoke shirts and suits), then back down the High Street to Oxfam (mostly designer, the odd decent pair of shoes or cashmere jumper - upper-end pricing) [£££]. At the other end, cut through Kensington Church Walk to Hornets. Right turn then left up Kensington Church Street - there's another shop on your left (a couple of Hermes ties) [£-££], and another NH Housing Trust (used to be very good, now variable) [££-£££] as you follow the road as it curves.
Straight on up to Notting Hill - there's a shop if you go right up Notting Hill Gate toward Hyde Park (nice bespoke tux, but pricing at gouging levels on some items - had some huge size 15 or so bespoke shoes brand new last time I was in there) [£££], and it's always worth a look in the secondhand clothing shops. Double back and head down Notting Hill Gate toward Holland Park - there's a fairly decent Oxfam (some nice Church's and Todds loafers, used to be better than it is now) [££] down the other end.
It's then a bit of a trek down Holland Park Avenue to Shepherds Bush where the finds are variable - I've found some nice bespoke and a pair of Lobbs, all very reasonably priced, but there's more cheap tat there too. There are three shops along the Uxbridge Road side of Shepherds Bush Common - the 'best' is Traid [£-££](Gieves & Hawkes bespoke, bespoke cashmere overcoat, Lobbs) at the far end, but the other two are worth a look (various Jermyn St shirts and a few second-class bespoke suits) [£].
Head across the Green and down Shepherds Bush Road to Hammersmith. In Brook Green there are a couple of good shops on the right hand side (good shirts) [£-££].
When you get to Hammersmith Roundabout, turn right down King Street - the first shop is Oxfam a couple of hundred yards down on the left (usually hardly any menswear, but I've found Brioni in there before so worth a look) [£] and then Traid [££-£££] (overpriced for most of the time, but have occasional £5 / £2 sales - I've also got good shoes there and some cashmere jumpers), Cancer Research (a lovely Billingham bag and a large number of bespoke shoes I had to pass up as they were too small) [£-££] and British Heart Foundation (some Dunhill shirts) [££ becoming £££] in rapid succession.
It's then a deadzone until you hit Chiswick, where there's a fair few shops. Turn right up Turnham Green Terrace and you'll find a shop on the left [£] (some great MTM Paul Smith shirts) and a NH Housing Trust a little further up on the right [££-£££] (a bespoke safari suit, some shoes, great overcoats). There's an Oxfam bookshop at the top end too if you like that, and a pre-owned designer shop further back down (expensive, but you can find something interesting if you look) [£££].
Back down onto Chiswick High Road, there's an Oxfam just a little along on your right as you head toward Gunnersbury [£££] (I got some great Gieves & Hawkes bespoke suits here, and some lovely brand new Trickers shoes, but they've done it up as a 'designer Oxfam' now and the prices are extortionate.
Further along is a Cancer Research [£££] (usually very expensive but I got some nice Edward Green there for a good price) and even further along opposite the Green is another Cancer Research focussed on designer stuff [£££] (I've never brought anything, but the prices seem upper-end fair).
That's you mostly done - sit down at Carluccios for a coffee before heading back to your starting point.
If you're hanging around West London, then the only other place of note that I'm familiar with is Putney, which you get to by getting to Old Hat and then heading across the bridge - there are a string of shops up the High Street - BHF at the bottom near the bridge [£-££], Cancer Research [££-£££], an independent (nice shoes) [££] and Oxfam (some nice bespoke DB suits, brand new Pink shirts) [££] at the top.
If you find yourself in Richmond the pickings are slim - coming out of the station up The Quadrant there's an independent shop [£-££] on the right hand side (some mid-level suede brogues), an Oxfam next door [£££] (home of the £95 Church's) and a Cancer Research a lot further up George St as it turns into Hill St [££-£££].
Turning to Fulham, there are a few shops down the North End Road (which is a bit of a dive). Off the top of my head you've got a Cancer Research, a FARA, a BHF and one or two indies. Pricing is all at the [£] level, and you can get some nice items (Church's shoes, Todds loafers, bespoke suits and lots of shirts).
The route describes roughly what I'll do if I fancy a half-day or so thrifting locally. In total it's 10 miles or so, more than is walkable (I generally cycle) but you can always use the bus or (in some parts) tube.
It's a semi-linear route. I don't have names for all the shops - if I get really bored one day I might take a camera with me and take snaps to make a route on Google Maps. Comments in round brackets are some of the finds I've made over the couple of years I've been doing the route, square brackets are pricing guidelines. Pricing and stock are both variable, but as a rule of thumb you'll pay £8-10 [££] for a decent shirt (something like an Emmett, Thomas Pink or Hilditch & Key). Anywhere charging £5-7 is cheap [£], £11-15 is expensive [£££]. For reasonable suits (upper-end Zegna, MTM or bespoke) you'd be looking at £25-30 normally, though I've seen prices as low as £5 and as high as £150. Shoe pricing is very variable - I've paid £10 for Lobb / EG-level shoes, and today I saw a worn old pair of Church's in an Oxfam for £95!
My usual route starts at the West end of Kensington High Street with the Notting Hill Housing Trust [££](usually lots of bespoke, often fairly priced but expensive designer labels), then a quick right down Earls Court Road to the shop opposite Waitrose [£] (some lovely bespoke shirts and suits), then back down the High Street to Oxfam (mostly designer, the odd decent pair of shoes or cashmere jumper - upper-end pricing) [£££]. At the other end, cut through Kensington Church Walk to Hornets. Right turn then left up Kensington Church Street - there's another shop on your left (a couple of Hermes ties) [£-££], and another NH Housing Trust (used to be very good, now variable) [££-£££] as you follow the road as it curves.
Straight on up to Notting Hill - there's a shop if you go right up Notting Hill Gate toward Hyde Park (nice bespoke tux, but pricing at gouging levels on some items - had some huge size 15 or so bespoke shoes brand new last time I was in there) [£££], and it's always worth a look in the secondhand clothing shops. Double back and head down Notting Hill Gate toward Holland Park - there's a fairly decent Oxfam (some nice Church's and Todds loafers, used to be better than it is now) [££] down the other end.
It's then a bit of a trek down Holland Park Avenue to Shepherds Bush where the finds are variable - I've found some nice bespoke and a pair of Lobbs, all very reasonably priced, but there's more cheap tat there too. There are three shops along the Uxbridge Road side of Shepherds Bush Common - the 'best' is Traid [£-££](Gieves & Hawkes bespoke, bespoke cashmere overcoat, Lobbs) at the far end, but the other two are worth a look (various Jermyn St shirts and a few second-class bespoke suits) [£].
Head across the Green and down Shepherds Bush Road to Hammersmith. In Brook Green there are a couple of good shops on the right hand side (good shirts) [£-££].
When you get to Hammersmith Roundabout, turn right down King Street - the first shop is Oxfam a couple of hundred yards down on the left (usually hardly any menswear, but I've found Brioni in there before so worth a look) [£] and then Traid [££-£££] (overpriced for most of the time, but have occasional £5 / £2 sales - I've also got good shoes there and some cashmere jumpers), Cancer Research (a lovely Billingham bag and a large number of bespoke shoes I had to pass up as they were too small) [£-££] and British Heart Foundation (some Dunhill shirts) [££ becoming £££] in rapid succession.
It's then a deadzone until you hit Chiswick, where there's a fair few shops. Turn right up Turnham Green Terrace and you'll find a shop on the left [£] (some great MTM Paul Smith shirts) and a NH Housing Trust a little further up on the right [££-£££] (a bespoke safari suit, some shoes, great overcoats). There's an Oxfam bookshop at the top end too if you like that, and a pre-owned designer shop further back down (expensive, but you can find something interesting if you look) [£££].
Back down onto Chiswick High Road, there's an Oxfam just a little along on your right as you head toward Gunnersbury [£££] (I got some great Gieves & Hawkes bespoke suits here, and some lovely brand new Trickers shoes, but they've done it up as a 'designer Oxfam' now and the prices are extortionate.
Further along is a Cancer Research [£££] (usually very expensive but I got some nice Edward Green there for a good price) and even further along opposite the Green is another Cancer Research focussed on designer stuff [£££] (I've never brought anything, but the prices seem upper-end fair).
That's you mostly done - sit down at Carluccios for a coffee before heading back to your starting point.
If you're hanging around West London, then the only other place of note that I'm familiar with is Putney, which you get to by getting to Old Hat and then heading across the bridge - there are a string of shops up the High Street - BHF at the bottom near the bridge [£-££], Cancer Research [££-£££], an independent (nice shoes) [££] and Oxfam (some nice bespoke DB suits, brand new Pink shirts) [££] at the top.
If you find yourself in Richmond the pickings are slim - coming out of the station up The Quadrant there's an independent shop [£-££] on the right hand side (some mid-level suede brogues), an Oxfam next door [£££] (home of the £95 Church's) and a Cancer Research a lot further up George St as it turns into Hill St [££-£££].
Turning to Fulham, there are a few shops down the North End Road (which is a bit of a dive). Off the top of my head you've got a Cancer Research, a FARA, a BHF and one or two indies. Pricing is all at the [£] level, and you can get some nice items (Church's shoes, Todds loafers, bespoke suits and lots of shirts).
