A real gem in Berkeley. Great styles and excellent location! I've been coming here for years.

As I was walking near Campus and around Telegraph Avenue, it's interesting how many store front changes there have been over the 25+ years that my eyes have seen. Larry Blake's just closed and the old Cody's still makes that end of the street fairly lonely and even a bit creepy at night. And yet, Bancroft Clothing is still here, albeit as Store #15 in the Mccaulou's Department Store Chain. In past years, this store has been named as the "Best place to purchase Cal gear" per the Daily Californian Newspaper. And sure enough, when my sports-minded brother or my Dad comes to town, this is where they immediately go to buy a little Blue and Gold. They love the selection and the prices and I do too. The store itself is full and somewhat complex to navigate. While I'm here, I sometimes pick up a Clinque product for Mom or Gayle, and maybe look at the shoes upstairs. And for that, you might also want to stop in at the nearby Bill's Footwear on Telegraph, another South Side Survivor. read more

Woohoo! That's right! Service was as good as it gets! I bought rain boots on a whim here due to unexpected downpour (I was visiting from out of town). I bought them without properly trying them on, and walked out wearing them. I walked up to the law school and realized the boots were too small on me and it hurt my feet. I studied at the law school for a few hours and decided to see if they would do an exchange for me. I went in and told them the situation, and asked if I can possibly do an exchange. They looked at the bottom of the boots and said sure, I think we can do that for you. It really made my day. I found rain boots that fit me well and I was able to walk back with dry feet. :) Thanks! read more

With the boyfriend's family in town, we headed over to the telegraph area for a little window shopping. Turns out this store is a pretty good source for finding deals. As soon as we entered the store, the pack spread out with some of looking to buy shoes, jeans, shirts or makeup - they have a Clinique counter inside the store. My guy found a few pairs of fresh new levis, his nephew got a whole new outfit and I got some cute new flip flops. The flip flops were so inexpensive that I bought a couple pairs, which came in handy when a friend needed a pair. read more

Bancroft Clothing Company ("BCC")--I knew this establishment as McCalou's a thousand years ago. I recently discovered a friend of mine works here, and I was able to finally pay a visit while she was at work. She told me the store is still owned by the McCalou Family. The McCalou Family changed the name to Bancroft Clothing Store because a lot of their merchandise is Cal/UC Berkeley gear. And what an abundance of UC Berkeley and Cal gear they have here. Oh my! A whole lot more styles and designs than Cal Student Store. A lot more styles to choose from in the form of hats. T-shirts, sweatshirts, and accessories. For a lot more in terms of more designs and styles to choose from, Bancroft Clothing Company is the place to go to for supplemental UC Berkeley/Cal gear. I saw a lot of UC Berkeley and Cal T-shirts to boggle the mind. There is a whole wall devoted to those T-shirts. Wowza! I see they still have a Clinique cosmetics counter with the associate wearing the requisite uniform and metal Clinique "C." Still only carrying Clinique cosmetics. The windows are still the same. Just lined up with no space in-between the merchandise. Could use a makeover and some artistic insight. Never made it upstairs to the shoe department. NTS: they carry Vans, Chucks, Uggs, and TOMS. Must take a look up there since I practically live in Uggs, TOMS and Chucks these days. I was informed a while back that this is the place to get TOMS when I was scoping out UC. Berkeley. And many shoes on people's feet were TOMS and this is where they were procured. The store is still the same as I remember it, still dimly lit with a cave-like atmosphere. Not very warm and inviting for shopping. If the customer knows what they want and BCC has it, it is just best to get in, grab it, pay it, and go. read more

Bancroft Clothing Company - Got me an Oski Bear cap! Go Bears! Allons-y ours! Vamos Los Osos! - Shoe Stores Near Me - Berkeley, California

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It's been awhile since I've bought a Cal T-shirt. Fifteen years to be exact! Wow. How time flies... Anyhow, I had no idea that Bancroft Clothing had such a large selection of Cal memorabilia. Last time I was here back in the day, they just had pretty average clothing. I used to come in here for the Clinique stuff when they had their gift with purchase going on and I was a college student. A good client of mine - Cal alumni - requested a T-shirt and so after doing my research online, thought this would be the best place! I don't like fighting the aggressive panhandlers and crowds looking at jewelry vendors on Telegraph. So this location is pretty convenient for me. The prices are very reasonable. I bought meself a Cal T-shirt that says (you'll never guess) "Cal". It was a kid's extra large (I think children must be bigger these days than when I was a kid) and it was marked down to $7! Sold. Also got a coffee mug too. I guess I really AM getting old because I feel a bit put off by those presumptuous signs that state: Check in all bags and backpacks at the counter. I'm assuming those signs must thwart off the amateur shoplifter otherwise they still wouldn't be posting them. (On a side note, this was an idea I came up with when I was a teenager. I thought one day it would be funny to throw in a mannequin hand and cover it with ketchup and then check the bag in....) read more

No Cal gear anymore, after how many years I have been coming here for decades to get my Cal gear, I now live in Visalia and thought I'd stop by after a game. Much to my chagrin the side of the store was closed off and empty where there used to be tons of merch. read more

I've always liked Bancroft Clothing company. They have a good selection of Toms and great prices on clearance shoes. Quality good on the top floor. Clothing wise it can be a little hit or miss. You might find a great item that it appropriately priced, or a cute item that is over priced. It's a catch 22. I did visit recently though and got some Cal gear for my bf who was visiting with me. Reasonably prices tank top with the Cal Bear on it. They have a good selection of it too. Overall, it's not the best retail shop on the block but whenever I am on Telegraph I always find myself stopping in. read more

Bancroft Clothing Company - My favorite Toms! - Shoe Stores Near Me - Berkeley, California

(+) An abundance of Cal gear available here. If you can fit a Cal script logo on it, they probably have it. A nice alternative to the student store. (+) Prime location on Bancroft Way (duh), across from campus / Sproul plaza (+) They have a lot of inventory and non-Cal clothes, shoes, and accessories. (-) Prices are too damn high! read more

Don't sleep on this store because of its proximity to Cal. A GREAT selection of shoes and sunglasses. Trendy, but at good prices you don't mind experimenting. The sales gals are also sweet and helpful. The clothes can leave something to be desired for women, with mostly tiny sizes, but it's great for males, including your Cal alum dad and the Cal gear in general here is a much better deal than on campus. read more

I love this place solely for the 75%-off racks at the back of the store. Last year, I came across two shirts I really liked here. Nothing fancy--your basic v-neck t-shirt. One of them apparently had a hole in it, so it was $1.98. I looked high and low for the hole (it took a very long time to locate; that thing was miniscule), and asked my friend to find it. She took a good five minutes, and I was sold. $2 shirt? Awesome. The other shirt was $3. read more

Aside from the Student Store, this is the next best place to get Cal gear due to its variety and quality. But I love their general clothing and shoe area the best when they have sales. Always check the clearance racks in the back! At the end of every season they usually have lots of sales on items (i.e. 50-75% off on winter coats in February). I've occasionally picked up a nice coat or sweater here during sales. Shoe dept: wide range of shoes--from Vans, Chucks, rain boots, normal boots, flats, sandals, etc. Again, take a look at the sale racks. I've gotten cute flats for ~$7 - $10 when they were normally retailed at $40. Their most recent sale is 20% off of flip flops, so I got a pair of Rainbows for $35 instead of $45. This is a good place to do some general clothing shopping (for girls) if you don't have time to go to SF or Emeryville. But I really wouldn't pay full retail price on their items unless I was in a fashion emergency. Its convenient location on Bancroft allows for a little retail therapy after a harsh round of midterms! read more

I'm oddly obsessed with this place. I love to go in, yet often don't come out with much. Not sure exactly why. Cute dressy things in the front, casual in the middle, lingerie in the back....all on one side. Other side is Cal gear and men's stuff. Upstairs is shoes - Converse, Tom's, etc. I'll keep trying.... read more

The Bancroft Clothing Company is a fabulous store. Jeans and cosmetics for UC Berkeley girls, and Football jersey's for men. Lot's of friendly people that work here. You'll feel like a college student. read more

You know what the three stars are for? The shoe selection and a VERY nice manager. Thank you to Eve for taking the time to speak to me tonight. My boyfriend already knew where he wanted to get his shoes and that was at Bancroft. We walked up and went our separate ways. Me to the women section with my daughter in toll and him to the men section. The female assistant only spoke to my boyfriend in terms of assisting him if he needed her. The male assistant did not acknowledge me as he was assisting someone else. I did my own thing by browsing and admiring the TOMS shoes as I waited for my boyfriend to find his new pair of shoes, I sat around or looked around. I noticed the assistants had nothing to do but to just socialize with each other, and even getting a photo together on the female assistant's cell phone. And you know what that didn't bother me, but it was not something I would do when customers are around. And their personality wasn't spectacular, just enough to scrape the surface of basic customer service. Now my daughter who is growing a lot wanted to check out her shoe size. So we went over to the women section to find out her size. And sure me, my boyfriend and my daughter were the only people there aside from the two sales assistant ... so when I found out my daughter was a size 7, I used my corny little expression of saying "Holy Moly" out loud to my amazement. Now this was a public outburst but this is who I am. I say "geez", "golly", and yes, "Holy Moly" with my 10 year old. We left and started to walk down the stairs and I hear the female assistant say, "did she say "Holy Moly"?" (and further commentary) to the guy assistant and laugh. The guy assistant says, ""the look expression on my face says it all." Then they laugh again. You cannot imagine how hurt and upset I was to hear someone make fun of me. These sales assistants had the balls to do it and I was only eight feet away. My boyfriend just dropped $80 on shoes and was happy with his purchase, but it soon turned into him wanting to go back and share his dissatisfaction of the employees actions. I told him that I'm a firm believer in karma, so I said whatever with it. Yet, their actions still bothered me. So I called the store and asked for the sales assistant name, then asked to speak to the manager, who happened to be the lady I was speaking to. I didn't yell or come on strong, but explained in detail what happened. Eve was generally sincere and embarrassed at my complaint. And she explained that though the assistants actions were unacceptable, they would care about what happened. Well I hope so. I hope they feel genuinely bad about how they treated another human being. And I could GO there. I could give my opinions about these assistants, but you know what I won't. We'll see if I'll ever set foot in there again. I'll ask for Eve and know I'll be treated in the way I'm suppose to be treated. read more

Yes, they might have a large clothing selection, but the customer service is nonexistent. I have lived in Berkeley for almost four years now and the closest I've come to service is half a smile I got while checking in my bag. Over the years I've been ignored and forced to throw myself in front a sales clerk in order to be noticed. My worst experience has been trying to exchange a pair of sandals I received as a gift. The sales person had no idea how to do an exchange, which was fine, but he told me to leave my sandals with them while they special ordered my size. I realize now that I definitely should not have trusted the store to call me back and actually keep my merchandise, but I was naive. Instead, I got a bashing on my incompetency as a person when I tried to reclaim my shoes. They basically stole merchandise and accused me of trying to steal from them. I know that losing the shoes was my fault, but I didn't really expect the public humiliation. In actuality their prices really aren't that great. I have a feeling that they mark everything up then cross it out with red pen to give the impression that they always have sales (i.e. the "shoe sale" banner that never seems to come down). I know I'm being harsh, but I feel demoralized coming out of that store and somehow I don't think that's how business should run. read more

This shop offers a fair range of affordable merchandise, but the staff needs to clean things up. I've gotten some Cal gear here that I really like, but a scarf that I picked up smells strongly of rat. I'm very disappointed to discover this, especially since I noticed when it was already around my neck. I hope they can deal with the source of this as soon as possible, whether it's internal or a supplier. read more

"Toto, we're not in Nordies Land anymore..." :: cue green-faced witch swooping in, wearing a CAL Sweatshirt and drinking a $3 latte, cackling :: "No, you're not, my pretty!!!!!!!!" :: more cackling....cackle cackle cackle :: I haven't been smoking green. I promise. Bancroft Clothing Company, the one stop shop for Cal students - where else can you get your poopy-pant sweats (for boys) and your Juicified "Cal" watch my ass sweat-tights (for girls) AND your department store Clinique AND your 75% off socks and trendy accessories AND your classic converse hightops? BANCROFT CLOTHING COMPANY, that's where. Home of the one stop clothing shop for many students, I happen to think this place is bitchin'! ....and I am not a nerd. This place has great deals, and I often visit for accessories (trendzzzzz) and 75% off sales racks in the back. Although I have yet to buy anything ridiculously cheap, they have some pretty consistent deals here such as their 10$ scarves, 25$ Converse hightops in BLACK (do Cal students live in Converse hightops???) And trendy accessories and funny "recycle" themed bags and angry little girls bags, complete with all sorts of biznatchy slogans. PERFECT! Again, hit or miss,! This is not Nordies, but seriously, what do you expect? When in Rome, do as Romans do. When in a college town, do as college students do! Four stars and a 40 of bud light (cuz it's the cheapest I could find!) and SALUT! to college life! read more

Despite starting grad school at Berkeley in August, I never gave this place the time of day because it looked grungy on the outside and the "Cal Gear" sign gave me the impression it was just another merchant in the soulless college gear store wasteland. But, turns out this place is awesome. I live in SF and love Ambiance, and it appears that a lot of the same stuff is sold here, but for much, much cheaper (and geared more for a teenage crowd). Their back section has things on super sale, and it isn't all stuff that you'll find at some Goodwill in 20 years when you go to ironic parties about the twenty-teens. Cute shirts for $10, dresses for $15-25. I got a coat for $20. Even their regularly priced items aren't too pricey. I spoke to someone who might have been a manager, and she says they get new stuff every day (apparently a bunch of other stores unload unsold items here), so this is definitely going to be my guilty pleasure until I graduate! read more

I actually really like this place. Yes the non-clearance items are overpriced but here are the reasons why I will continue to shop here: -clearance items go up to 70% off and if you dig around long enough you'll find a few stylish items -need Cal gear? This place has an abundance of t-shirts, hats and hoodies. They're reasonably priced too (~$20 or so) -they play awesome upbeat music -they have shoes! Expensive but there's always the sale rack -last but not least this is kind of the only place to buy clothing near campus so that might explain why I think so highly of this place read more

Bancroft Clothing Company - Shoe Stores Near Me - Berkeley, California

This is basically a department store for Bear attire and lots of other assorted clothing and shwag. The left side of the store is where most of the Bear rah rah stuff is. If you ever wanted a pair of Cal boxer shorts, this is the place to find them. The entire upstairs is devoted to shoes, and the right side of the store is basically various ladieswear including tons of jeans and dresses. There's even a mini Clinique cosmetic counter. read more

Bancroft Clothing Company - Shoe Stores Near Me - Berkeley, California

I have weird mixed feelings about this place. They did have some cute clothing, and I did manage to find a few things...but they have little to no customer service skills (as in smile at your customers when they walk in instead of looking at them like they're from some strange universe far far away). It's weird that you have to buy shoes upstairs...is it a different store? How am I supposed to pay if I'm not allowed to bring my bag up there? Why can't I bring my bag into the fitting room if you have ink tags on the merchandise and you're hanging a number on my door? May I go upstairs now? Is it ok if I try this on? May I look at the jewelry? Am I allowed to touch the merchandise? I've never had to ask permission so many times in a store. I felt like a little kid. I almost bought something by this brand: http://www.algstore.com/index.html ...until I was offended by this (am I oversensitive?): http://us.st11.yimg.com/us.st.yimg.com/I/yhst-48655173025862_1951_5526714 read more

I think I have some sort of affliction/disease/whatever that necessitates my being in a store surrounded by racks upon racks of clothing at least once every few days, or I start feeling like something is missing in my life. Maybe we can call it SAD. Instead of Seasonal Affective Disorder, I have Shopping Affective Disorder. Does that make sense? Maybe not. Anyway, Berkeley is fairly lacking in stores, so to address SAD (or my version of it, anyway), I make more stops in Bancroft Clothing than I'd like to. I think in my three years at Berkeley, I've bought one pair of Reef flip flops, 1 green shirt for a stoplight party, a handful of Clinique products, aaaaand...oh, I think a pair of black tights. That is not a lot. I could do that amount of damage within 30 minutes in the right store. For the most part, Bancroft Clothing's clothing is not really great and more often than not borders on cheap looking/tacky/trashy. As one friend astutely observed, it's trendy in an 18 months ago kind of way. It does carry a few good brands (Free People, Puma, etc), has a random assortment of designer jeans at very low prices (I've seen JBrands for $50, for example, but the jeans are usually a brand's weirder styles), and for awhile they had Lacoste polos at 50% off. The store also has a good tote bag selection and a wide selection of Reef and Rainbow flip flops. Finally, the Clinique counter's service is mediocre, but the gift bag w/ minimum purchase promotions are a good deal. (protip: sell the stuff you're not going to use on ebay) happy shopping kids! read more

3.5 stars. Bancroft Clothing Company is sectioned into three parts: Cal Clothing, Girl Clothing, and Shoes (upstairs). Never got any of their shoes, but I've been able to find some cute girl-clothing once in a while. Annoying part of BCC is checking in your bags and purses. You get what you pay for here--most items are moderately priced. The more "expensive" stuff is good quality--soft, yummy fabrics. I love the 2 for $10 Soffe shorts though...these rock my world and I really should get another 2 rather than wearing them every other day. The variety at BCC is great: you'll find cute cocktail dresses, summer dresses, flowy skirts, business wear, all sorts of jeans, sports wear, bras, panties, swimwear... Clearance stuff is pretty ugh though. There are also very cute accessories: Knee socks, leggings, fuzzy hats, convertible gloves, Angry girl tote bags, and the like. It's one of the few solid clothing stores near campus. read more

Wow, what an interesting store! Definitely a fun and unique mix of things within but I like it! Seems like one of the better Cal student stores in the area because it's fully stocked with just about anything and everything Cal related for awesome prices. They also have an entire shoe department upstairs where you can score some dope kicks. Whether you are looking for some Nike's, Tom's, heels, boots, flip flops, or sandals, they have it all. Downstairs, you can find a bunch of Cal and non-Cal clothes and there is a random, but nice to have Clinique counter right in the middle of the store. Their sale racks are also worth taking a look at, there are LOTS of good deals on them! read more

First, I must say they have a broad selection of Cal gear, which is really fun to shop through as a student. I mean they have nearly everything from every department; cold weather gear, to summer tank tops and shorts. I think I got two of my favorite shirts here. As for the rest of the store, it is definitely worth 3 or less stars. Primarily because of their ridiculous " discounts." The oldest and most obnoxious trick in the book is to double a price, and then discount 50% off. They generally have these beautiful cold weather jackets on display in the window marked, "clearance sale!" But once you wander inside, the clearance price is $175, discounted from $300. I mean come on. That is just one example, but a majority of their attire is distinguish in this manner. I don't really remember the staff other than there being a sense of apathy. I don't know...great for some school stuff, but overall it's frustrating to shop there. read more

Love this place for shoes! Have only bought shoes here. The shoe department is upstairs in the back. Have been back for shoes three or four times and it's always been a great experience. The manager lady is super sweet and everyone is helpful. They have everything from quality brands to cheap knockoffs, trendy styles to classics. I can be pretty indecisive and waver over a decision for a long time but they are very accommodating and never make me feel rushed. read more

I'm writing this review simply because I can't believe so many Yelpers think that this place deserves 4 or 5 stars. I'm all for non-franchised locally owned businesses, but this is a perfect example of retailing gone awry. The store itself is not organized at all, sells clothing that looks like the stuff my parents would DONATE to Goodwill, and prices them like they're brand names. Granted, their Cal gear department is on top of things, but I've realized that they sometimes sell them for more than what ASUC asks for, which makes no sense at all. There's a decent shoe section on the (wheelchair inaccessible) balcony, which is the only reason why they get 2 stars instead of 1. My feeling is that this store only survives b/c there's a large student population supporting it; if this were located anywhere else, it would have shuttered already. Staff is worse than what I encounter at Best Buy; they almost gave away my backpack that I checked in to another customer, but (luckily) caught them before. I won't be back. read more

Love that there is a Clinique counter in the shop but everything else about this place falls short. On the outside it doesn't look like much. The exterior is a little worn down and the displays look a little cluttered and confusing since they sell everything. I went in the first time because I needed to restock on my Clinique products and this was so close to campus. I was surprised by the variety of things that Bancroft Clothing sold since it seemed like they really try to push their cheap Cal gear. Clothing-wise, Bancroft CLothing seems like a mix of Forever 21 and Francesca in the type of clothing and accessories they stock Pros: - Good selection of clothing for every season. Now they are stocking a variety of dresses, skirts, and tops for spring/summer as well as bathing suits. - Sell bags, shoes, makeup, and accessories as well. They stock TOMS! - Close to Campus - The amazing Clinique counter they have - Good selection of work out gear from nice brands such as Nike. Cons: - The price of the their things. For the quality and type of clothes they sell, there seems to be a pretty high markup on almost everything. - Limited variety of shoes. They get their shoes restocked once every few months so I always have trouble finding my size or the style/color I was looking for. - It seems pretty unorganized and there is a lack of customer service. You have to really look around to find someone to help you out. I had to literally wave down more than one person before I finally got helped out at the checkout counter. Overall it is a great place to come and pick up something last minute since it is so conveniently located. However, because of the price and variety issue (concerning shoes), I would much rather head over to Emeryville or SF to go to Forever 21, H&M, or Francesca to get the same type of clothing for a much better price/greater selection. read more

Heeeeeelllla Cal gear (GO BURRRRRS!). The other 3/4 of the store has 'normal' clothes too, with an outdoors and (oddly enough) skater trend. A limited collection of shoes up stairs. I've only bought Cal stuff here during sale season and it's a pretty good bargain. My best catch was Mesh Cal Men's Basketball shorts for $15. Customer service was giggity: had to return a few gifts but they handled it swiftly. There was one instance where an issue came up with my credit card and their manager resolved it for me. + Lots of Cal clothing options, cheaper and competitive to the surrounding stores selling similar stuff + Good customer service, yayeah! + Clean store, clothes are where they're supposed to be Final Call: When there's a sale and I need Cal gear, I'mma swing by. If I wore more outdoorsy and skaterish stuff, I'd shop here more. read more

I can't speak for any of the 'regular' clothing options, as I shop for my clothes at Walmart and Eddie Bauer outlet, but for getting Cal souvenirs and Cal shirts, Bancroft Clothing is hard to beat. They have good selection of affordable Cal shirts, nice hoodies for people higher on your list, and some neat trinket-type Cal souvies too. Plus, it's right next to campus, so for you undergrads who are scrambling to buy some 1st year Christmas gifts for your buddies back home, this is the place to get it. Word. read more

This used to be THE place for me to get Cal gear (had as much selection as the Student Store but at a slightly cheaper price), but not anymore. Checked in here multiple times from when they were first reopening from COVID to now, and they have slowly decreased the Cal merchandise they carry to the point where they barely have any now. Seems like they're transitioning away from selling Cal/UC Berkeley stuff to just being a general clothing store. The only Cal stuff they have now are a small selection of hats, which are currently at a discount (guess they're just trying to get rid of the last bit of Cal gear as fast as they can lol). The clothes they have here are fairly basic yet expensive, so I really wouldn't go here anymore since you can buy those types of clothes anywhere. But they do have a decent shoe collection. So if you're in need of shoes, this store would be worth checking out. But if you're looking for Cal gear, you're not going to find much. read more

AHHH love this store. First of all, the prices are great. If you go down a block to American Apparel, you see t-shirts and tanks 2-3 times the prices of the 'basics' they have here! Glad I held out to restock on some black tees and tanks for work. The clothing here is all very trendy, and the quality seems pretty nice for many of the items and they carry good brands. I was a tad overwhelmed--it is a very large store with so much to see! I didn't even get a chance to look at the accessories. All in all, I loved this place and can't wait to come back when I need to freshen up my closet! read more

This place is somewhere between a campus store and a swamp meet. I went in and they have a ton of moderately priced but slightly lower quality Cal stuff. The place was organized well but still gave the dingy old garage vibe. The workers weren't very helpful or pleasant. The non-Cal stuff was all kind of funky leftover tacky stuff. My husband found some good deals luckily but I don't see what the hype is. It was kind of like PicNSave for Cal... read more

This place has a lot of stylish clothing, but it is very overpriced. Today I went in to their shoe section to see if they had any water-proof spray and they didn't...that's why I went to another shoes store and I found just what I needed. read more

This store is right off campus, and pretty much has it all. There is a wide selection of merchandise for men, women and children. I loved all the different t-shirt designs. There were a limited amount of sale/clearance items, but I'm sure there will be much more in the Spring. Most of the items are Cal items, but there were also many Oakland branded items. Most of the the Cal items are licensed items, so you know that there is some quality and authenticity to the items you are purchasing. The only disappointing feature was the pricing. I had hoped to score some better deals than the Cal Student Store, but the prices were pretty close. read more

Besides the student store this is THE place to get Cal gear. Go Bears!

I placed the following ad in the Daily Cal: "Single, budget-minded undergraduate seeks store to clothe her and offer her a few necessary extras on the side (Cal Nalgene? Clinique lipstick? Cal cowgirl hat? Obviously)." Bancroft Clothing responded, and we embarked on a five year, mostly-exclusive relationship! Ask and ye shall receive. Cal Tees for less then the price of a notebook at ASUC, swimsuits for last minute trips up to Tilden Park for the lake, umbrellas for the ungodly February storms and even wholly inappropriate party wear for Greek Invitationals. And all of it affordable. Now that I'm steadily employed, our relationship has fallen by the wayside, but I hope we can still be friends! read more

I've learned to kinda hate this place.... When I was younger in high school, I would go in there and marvel at all the really cool clothes and hope that one day I would be able to afford some of it... then I grew up... had money to spend.. but they changed the store and I didn't ever want to buy anything from them.... mostly because I coudlnt' justify the prices that they charged, and the style seemed to have changed. Bummer... the staff was always nice and the place was clean though... so there's a star for each. read more

I travel to Cal about once a year for business, and make it a point to stop by here. Mostly for the amazing shoe selection, but also for the wide variety of moderately-priced clothes and great sales. The back half of the womens' section seems to almost always consist of all clearance racks, and I've found some great deals that I always leave extra room in my carry-on for. Name-brand stuff as well as basics, accessories, jeans, and lower-priced Cal gear. Hopefully I'll be back soon! read more