Debenhams Browns of Chester is the only Debenhams store to retain its' original branding, Browns of…read moreChester. It has been owned by Debenhams since 1976, yet the store is fairly old being founded in 1780, while it doesn't seem to compare to the older department stores in London, it still is a fairly nice branch, you can enter the store through street-level or through the Grosvenor Shopping Centre. The store is pretty old and you can tell that through shopping inside, they have random sets of steps and ramps all over, so it isn't just one straight/flat level, so do be careful where you're walking to avoid tripping. They had a huge clearance sale on my visit, due to Debenhams' facing difficulties and having to close many of their stores, including this one, I still found many of their prices to be high even after the discount, I found the promotional offers to be inconsistent and it was hard to tell what item costs what as each part of the store/product range would have a different % off. The store did seem a little messy, but it did have some good products overall and it is nice to see they haven't ignored the history, it's a shame to see this store earmarked for closure as although it isn't perfect, it is and remains a nice addition to the town centre. 3*

This is a large department store where you can find really gorgeous bags, shoes, make up and…read moreperfume on the first floor and loads and loads of clothes on the second floor. This place really is fantastic for womens clothes - like debenhams it has all the usual brands such as Jane Norman and Oasis, and it has a great underwear section with huge variety of pretty knickers. It also has a wedding section with loads of higher quality dresses. Of course these come with a higher price tag that the high street stuff that can be found there but this is where I would come to look for something to wear for a special occasion.

I like this branch of John Lewis which is located at the Trafford Centre with plenty of parking,…read moremaking it super easy to pull up and head straight in. It's also very neat and tidy which is pretty important to me as I hate it when a shop is in total disarray (think the hellhole that is Primark) as it just makes the whole shopping experience more stressful than it should be. I've always found the staff to be approachable and friendly and will happily dispense advice on the best toaster or coffee machine for your buck, if you so desire. John Lewis is definitely one of the more premium department stores (not quite Harvey Nics but definitely not Debenhams) so the products and prices obviously mirror this but if you are after gifts or items that are of a higher quality then it's a brilliant option. Another major plus point for John Lewis is that if you sign up for their loyalty card online they send you vouchers for free coffee and cake every month - this sweetens the shopping experience no end!

This is just for the Cafe, Not for the Shop…read more We ordered a couple of coffees and come cake while browsing through John Lewis. I'm gonna keep this short as there isn't a lot to say really. The Cafe is drab and so is the food. I don't know why it's so busy. The staff eren't very friendly either, I can think of 10 places much better only a few minutes walk away. No second chances on this one i'm afraid.

The store is grim, more than half the overhead lights not switched on..walking from aisle to aisle…read morein The darkness we wondered why the lights were not on? Is this a cost cutting exercise or are they all just not working. Tried to buy two lamps that we picked off a shelf full of the same item only to be told at the till they have been recalled? Why haven't they been removed from the shelf then? Larger than average wait time at the tills and one member of staff on at the coffee shop( said opening time 5pm) but they wouldn't serve any food after 4 even sandwiches and had started to turn all the lights off and only serve drinks..even the lift lights in store were dim. On the whole I would stay away from this store lots of spaces with no stock, with lots of untidy little areas of the store. Staff are up against it in her not enough for a Saturday afternoon and some were quite lazy and unfriendly.

I'd like to start by pointing out how strange it was for me to find a branch of House of Fraser in…read moreAltrincham, House of Fraser have never appeared to me to be a brand that put stores in small towns like this one, especially so close to a much larger store on Deansgate in the city centre of Manchester. This store however is okay, but does have a really old fashioned feel to it, it is over around two or three stores and it is really old fashioned, it was the old Rackhams Department store, before being taken over and HOF have seem to followed in the footsteps of many branches by keeping signs from the old building, and the old name as they did in the Manchester branch, which was formerly called Kendall's. I came in this branch for two reasons, the first of which was to check if their was any fragrance samples, the staff members I spoke to were really unhelpful and slightly rude, and told me they had nothing and didn't even offer the use of any testers or try to recommend any best sellers, which was a shame. Especially on the Upper part of the store, it just felt deserted, it really wasn't a nice place to shop. or in general which was a real shame. Unfortunately, my pictures of the decor and feel and looks of the store were no longer on my Iphone, due to an issue with Apple which basically deleted most of my photo's from the day beyond recovery which was a real shame, but overall this store is really poor due to the selection and range of products as well as feel of the store, it feels too old-fashioned and not a nice place to shop and in a way this store is irrelevant with Altrincham being such a small town just around a half hour drive from a much larger branch in Manchester, a much larger city.

Despite what my husband may think I'm not a big fan of shopping and spending time in mammoth…read moreshopping centres and hot, stuffy department stores where the exit is nowhere to be seen (think the Father Ted lingerie department episode) puts the fear of God into me. However, needs must and sometimes shopping can't be avoided so if this is the case I want somewhere that will make it as easy as possible. I like this branch of John Lewis as it's easily accessible by road (just off the M60 and Handforth bypass) with plenty of parking, making it super easy to pull up and head straight in. It's pretty big, spread over 3 floors, but still doesn't feel like it swallows you up and everything is very easy to find. It's also very neat and tidy which is pretty important to me as I hate it when a shop is in total disarray (think the hellhole that is Primark) as it just makes the whole shopping experience more stressful than it should be. I've always found the staff to be approachable and friendly and will happily dispense advice on the best toaster or coffee machine for your buck, if you so desire. John Lewis is definitely one of the more premium department stores (not quite Harvey Nics but definitely not Debenhams) so the products and prices obviously mirror this but if you are after gifts or items that are of a higher quality then it's a brilliant option. Another major plus point for JL is that if you sign up for their loyalty card online they send you vouchers for free coffee and cake every month - this sweetens the shopping experience no end!

Love the convenience of the café. John Lewis has always provided the best and delivery services and…read moreinstallation for all the appliances. This particular visit was for curtains. One star off because while there are many sizes and styles listed online, the stores usually only carry one or two of each variety leading you to have to purchase them online and have arranged for either pick up in store, or home delivery. So it is best to use the store to inspect the individual items first before purchasing, but you might end up going online to order them anyway. Prices were excellent as always and delivery was free and of course John Lewis has a wonderfully large parking lot. That is also free of charge. For online pick up or Customer Service head around to the parking behind the store and enter from the rear entrance.

Founded in 1888 and now in its 4th generation of family ownership, Tyrer's is dubbed by some as…read more"the Harrods of the North". Quality and service are two good words that sum up what Tyrer's is all about. They provide a range of top class fashions for men and women, together with beauty products and their own restaurant and hairdressing salon. It is a department store that has retained a little bit of tradition. You shouldn't have any problem finding it as it is in the town centre. They have a 'genuine' sale on at the minute, declaring that you could save 70% - it all sounds very good! I am not the best when it comes to sales and tend to have a brief filter through the sale items and then get totally put off and then swiftly move onto the full priced stuff! I am just no good. I need to be sent to sale buying training school!

A quality family owned business that has been here in St Helens for a very long time. There…read morecosmetics dept is great all the best names and free make-overs for men and women. As you would expect the fashion is a bit out there, but the quality is wonderful especially if your shopping for a night out or an occasion, Wedding, party, job interview. You can even get your hair done or have a cake and coffee. One of the best if not the best shop in town. Down side it's not cheap but you always get what you pay for.

For what it is you know the M&S cafe in Handforth dean is alright!…read more Short and sweet from me; it's reasonably priced, the staff are cheerful and the self-help system actually works well for soft drinks and other snacks. It cost me £15 for a chicken Tagine, chocolate lolly, a tea, flat white and a Diet Coke - now I think that's value for money! And the Tagine was absolutely delicious! I would definitely eat there again whilst shopping in Marks and Spencer. I go there regularly for my weekly shop, so it's nice to know I can trust that the food & drink is up to scratch, in case I need to stop for a bite once again!

This branch of Marks and Spencer is quite a big store located in Handsforth Dean, and is in a big…read moreretail complex with quite a large Tesco store. This store can be a nightmare to get to, as it is situated on a large number of roundabout, coming from Manchester for a conference here, they must of been a good 5 roundabouts along the Handforth Bypass, but other than that it is easy to get to, get the motorway towards Birmingham (M60) and just follow the A34, hence coming off the motorway at J3. The car park is quite big as well, with the regular Tesco car park and just one for the standard retail park. This is quite a big store, with a good sized food and clothing section, it can be actually quite hard to find everything in away, especially due to the lack of organization with certain people sending me the wrong way, left right and centre, even the co-ordinator for the event, and I actually had to phone the store to get someone to assist me as they was no staff about - which is totally unacceptable. The event co-ordinatior works for Marks and Spencer, and did make false promises and taken her time to do everything. They is 2 cafes in this store, and they are quite nice cafes, they is one big one, where the event tasted place, and it even has trackers on the tables so the server knows where you are. The cafe isn't great, although some of the staff were good, running around to get me a gluten free sandwich, to the shop floor and the other cafe. The cafe still wasn't great as my iced tea was quite expensive costing about £2.50, and it did taste home made but absolutely awful, and very watery. The store has a good sized free from range, compared to other stores, for example the branch at Bury, where it is a struggle to even grab a sandwich, however they are far too expensive, and as the event co-ordinator is a coeliac, she should do something about it, she even admitted to me in private she knows the range is expensive, but I know she told a few white lies in the presentation. Overall, this isn't the greatest Marks and Spencer's store, even though it is huge, considering issues with the lack of knowledge from staff and staff in general, pricing, lack of organization and simply being a nightmare to get to, roundabout after roundabout, as it is located off a slip road from one, they are unavoidable really and this makes the store, one to not visit rather than to go through all the kerfuffles of the many, confusing roundabouts to visits. I can't give this store any more than 2 stars.

House of Fraser is one of Manchester's oldest and most iconic department stores, it was founded in…read more1836 and the huge, impressive building on the heart of Deansgate is still going strong to its' day, despite being part of the House of Fraser group since the 1950s, and having its' current name since 2005, I like how they've stayed true to the roots and history of the store, by having its old name "Kendal, Milne and Co", still being clearly visible at the store's entrances, or Kendalls as it was known to locals. At Christmas, the decorations help light up and add to all of Deansgate, bringing a festive feel which even a Scrouge like myself can appreciate (but come on, just not in November - that's too early!) The facilities inside the store are good, for me with the fragrances, and high-end brands, as well as multiple lifts in the lobby, this feels like one of the Big American department stores, which I've only ever seen before in NYC, and London. The store isn't as good as it used to be, with some facilities/businesses located inside here closed, including a whole floor. With The Restaurant at House of Fraser gone, all that remains is a San Carlo Cichetti, which strangely is located directly opposite their main location in the city on King Street West. 4* - Pretty cool department store, it is sad to see the store deteriorating up until the inevitable closure which has been talked about for the past couple of years. This is currently one of the few branches remaining with many HOF stores closing down.

There's a touch of 1970s sitcom Are You Being Served? about House of Fraser. It's not just the fact…read moreit's the oldest and grandest department store in the city, it's the slow elevators, the confusing floor layouts and the fact you have to buy your clothes from the area you picked them up rather than any till. Trust me, I've tried and failed on different occasions! The thing that really makes me feel I'm wandering around Grace Brothers department store however, is the staff. They're not quite as camp or witty as Captain Peacock, Mrs Slocombe or Mr Humphries but there's definitely an element of disdain and snootiness when you approach them. This might infuriate some people but it always tickles me and makes me wonder if it's part of the staff training! There's beauty products on the ground floor, furniture and electronics on the top floors and lots of men, womens and childrenswear inbetween. Some of it I wouldn't be seen dead in but I usually see at least half a dozen things I like from one of their emerging or established designers. The only problem is, is there anyone to serve me?!

I am quite simply a fan of TJ Hughes, always have been and always will be because its your store in…read moreone apart from selling food. They might fall short of selling food but they do have a basic cafe/restaurant where you can have a hearty lunch for cheap prices. Its the nature of their departments that makes them so popular with people of all ages. I can't think of anything they don't sell, especially when it comes to domestic requirements. Their crockery ranges from low to high standards similarly with their electronic appliances so whatever you are seeking, there should be an item that wins you over 9 out of 10 times. Not to mention, the same goes with shoes; the place is packed with them! And clothes too, the list is endless. If you're looking to treat yourself or find a gift, then TJ's is probably your first port of call.

To me this is the archetypal nan shop. My nan doesn't go much further than the bottom of her…read morestreet for her weekly shop these days but when she does venture into the city centre it will be to hunt out a bargain at TJ's. These bargains usually end up as my birthday or christmas presents. Like the much lamented Lewis' which has closed down on Renshaw Street, TJ's is a landmark store within the city. It is a much more modest department store than Lewis' was and can be seen as more of a front runner to the now universal pound shops. The key to TJ's is the bargains. It covers all sorts of quality products and ranges - although nothing exclusive or top of the range - and at the cheapest possible prices.