...... And this weeks busy body award goes to....... BOOTS, Byers Road…read more The store has a revolving door for shoplifters who frequently help themselves and leave the store unchallenged. This in part may be because the manager hides in the little office with the door closed rather than watching out for thieves. I made the mistake of coming in today to buy a razor. I produced my University work pass to redeem the 10% discount. The assistant took the ID to the little office where they excitedly looked over it and returned to decline the discount (with glee i might add.) At which point I produced a valid Totum card (Valid to November 2024) and again it was declined. They had judged me solely based on my age as not being a student. The staffs time would be better served challenging the many shoplifters rather than challenging over a 50p discount. a dreadful lack of judgement and customer service.

Over the past four years at uni I have been in here on average about twice a week (at least) to…read morepick up a tasty and - hopefully - fairly healthy lunch deal for £2.99. I prefer this branch for said meal deal because it is super handy and the food area is all of three steps away when you step through the door. Then there is an even handier counter right opposite the food fridges. Perfect. However, lately I have actually been in here to purchase other non-consumable (well, meal deal consumable) items such as tights, batteries, makeup remover wipes and travel sickness pills (I do realise these are consumable, hence the earlier brackets). Needless to say, I have not been as impressed as I had been on previous occasions. About two weekends before Christmas I was going down to Oxford with my friend for a secret weekend to escape Glasgow pre-Christmas madness. The day before heading off, I popped in here to quickly pick up travel sickness pills (we decided for some stupid reason to book the nine hour bus journey). It wasn't busy but it took me a good five minutes to attract the attention of a member of staff. She looked me up and down in a suspicious manner and informed me 'that medication' was kept behind the counter 'ONLY'. After following her and waiting till she was safely behind the counter, she then started asking questions about my 'usual brand'. I responded that this trip was a one off and I only needed a cheap packet. She seemed to visibly snort, shudder and give me another unpleasant look before finally finishing the transaction and leaving me to trot quickly to the nearest exit. Fair enough, this is the worst example but still the last few times haven't been entirely pleasant. So, the three stars are really only for grabbing a quick meal deal and getting toiletry supplies when need be. If you can, make a point of going elsewhere, even to another Boots branch.

There are quite a lot of chemists along Dumbarton Road (Boots included) but this one is my…read morefavourite. Painted deep green, it's reminiscent of traditional pharmacies - somehow this is a selling point for me. Always very friendly, I sometimes get the impression that they're really pleased you've chosen to go to them and not the Boots two doors up. The pharmacists are really helpful - and happy to talk to you about bee stings (I know that one from experience, but I assume they're happy to talk to you about other ailments as well!). They even have a tiny little room that you can go in to talk to them if you'd like a bit of privacy. It has a good selection of lotions and potions, and they've always had my prescription in. They also have all sorts of shampoos and hair products, including women's and men's hair colourant. They have quite a lot of things on sale to distract you while you're waiting for your prescription - including displays of Maxfactor and Rimmel make-up. They usually have a basket of reduced or even half price make-up items - and I can never resist a rummage. This is precisely why I am wearing bright red lipstick as I type - £3.99 for Maxfactor lipstick. Ladies, it doesn't get much better than that.

Often overlooked by the Boots store further along, the Superdrug store on Dumbarton Road is…read moreactually a really good one. It doesn't have it's own pharmacy, but this isn't a huge loss considering the ridiculous amount of other pharmacies to be found in the surrounding area. This Superdrug is a really big store and is well set out. As well as all the usual cosmetics, health and beauty items, medicinal items, perfumes, gifts and baby paraphenelia - here you will also find a large range of household cleaning items. No, that's not exactly what I expect to find when I head into a Superdrug - but once you know it's there, it is really useful. Especially as they often have two-for-one or half price deals on. They also have quite a good selection of magazines - although when I say "quite a good selection" I mean that they have a fuly stocked range of gossip magazines. Whether it's Heat, Star or Hello that you're after - you'll find them all here. They're also handily situated by the queue for the cash desks - so you can check out all the front covers while you wait and still pretend that you couldn't care less about Brad & Ange's split.

If you're looking for a good night and some 'super' drugs then this isn't the place to go my…read moreliteral and misguided friend (although I happen to think co-codamol is pretty darn super...) if you're in need of toiletries, household goods, make up, sun cream, hair products, pills (of the legal variety), perfume, etc... then this IS the place for you mon frere. This reasonably sized Superdrug has had a wee makeover and I have to say it's no' bad. At first confused was I as they had dared to MOVE items and such, what a cheek I thought, but then I got used to the layout and now I approve. They cram quite a lot in here and one thing I like the most about the new change is the make up section to the right as you walk in ~ it's much better than it was before and they've also introduced a few new make up ranges (Sleek, B., GOSH and the excellent MUA & Makeup Revolution brands) which gets a big foundation/blusher/lippy covered thumb(s) up from me. They've also added a new Brow Bar here that does threading and the like for your above-eye-hairy-caterpillar pals. Bright, fairly wide aisles, a lot of stock and also great deals on things like loo roll and kitchen towel. This store stays open until 6pm Mon-Sat which is also handy for us 9-5'ers. Nice staff, cool shop & great range of goods ~ Partick Superdrug; you are pretty damn super.

A fantastic little life saver of a shop hiding in plain sight on Argyll Street…read more This bodacious and bijoux wee Boots has a prescription collection service for the very close by Radnor Street Doctor Surgery and has really 9-5er friendly opening hours. The service is so so friendly and efficient- always on hand to answer questions and genuinely the quickest prescription turn around I've come across. This compact little shop manages to pack quite the pharmaceutical punch! There's a surprisingly large selection of No7 cosmetics with everything from lipsticks to legends like Protect and Perfect. There's an impressive array of medicines, toiletries, hairbrushes, accessories and all those important day to day products like shampoo and shower gel, hairspray and dry shampoo. Really worth remembering this place for last minute holiday purchases or if you run out of a night out necessity as well as providing most day-to-day essentials.

Small but well stocked pharmacy on Argyle Street…read more I needed a bit of help selecting the right British medicines given my American frame of reference; the lady behind the counter was kind and helpful. And I hit the jackpot getting a small jar (48g) of Vicks Vaporub which can go in my carryon bag on the flight back to California, and accompany me on future plane trips. Happy to return next time I'm in the area.

With a wide range of pretty household gifts and sugary sweet baby accessories, there are no prizes…read morefor guessing the clientele aimed at by Elements in Cresswell Lane. In many ways, the beautifully-presented shop is a microcosm of the lane in its current incarnation as a whole; quirky and alternative, chic and pricey. Given the amount of similar businesses in the city (Felix and Oscar, Papyrus etc...), a shop like this has to be good if it's going to survive, and thankfully this one is. Devoid of the David Brent-esque silliness prevalent in many of its competitors, Elements exudes a little more class and concentrates solely on stocking pretty items which actually have some sort of use as well. Again, like most of its Cresswell Lane buddies, it's not a shop for me, but nor is it trying to be.

Elements kinda sums up Creswell Lane shopping in DeCourcy's arcade - it's yummy mummy central,…read morewhich isn't necessarily a bad thing, however, it might be bad if you're on a budget. This shop has everything! I love just looking round it and in all the 'nooks and crannies' - absolutely everything you see is for sale! It's soooo cute! And it sells those really nice scented candles - you know, the Lily-Frame candles... they're amazing! It has loads of gift ideas, and homewares, from baby clothes to aprons, cake platters to diamantee picture frames and all the rest. It's all quirky, cute and retro. I can easily kill time in there... it's tiny and adorable. I might do a Verrucca Salt and just say: I want everything in it, and I want it now!

If you like Boots, but also like Jeremy Kyle and those women's mags with true stories such as "I…read morehad an affair with my husband's dead siamese twin", then you'll love Semichem. Cheap and shabby, but full of shite you sort of need, it's a veritable feast of toiletries.

This Semichem across the road from Partick Station is very handy for basic toiletries. It is much…read morecheaper than other drug stores such as Superdrug and Boots. However, the stock in Semichem is cheap because it is nearly at its sell buy date so this is something to look out for.

Sally Cosmetics is a hair dressers and beautician's supply shop on Dumbarton Road. Mainly aimed at…read moreowners of beauty salons and hairdressers - it's also open to the general public. Inside you'll find a range of hair extensions, hair dyes and hair products. Although, as I said, it is mainly aimed at wholesalers - you'll also find some really nice hair product gift packs for as little as £4.99. You won't find any popular brand names - instead you'll find authentic salon brands. Sally Cosmetics also sell tanning lights and nail products etc. They have a great selection of nail colours - including OPI nail varnish which, in my opinion, is the best nail varnish in the world. The staff are friendly and helpful. In truth, there's not that much that would appeal to the average passer by - and Sally Cosmetics don't actually sell make-up which was quite a disappointment.

As far as I'm aware, most Sallys are pretty much the same, and while this one is fairly small,…read morethere certainly are a lot of products packed into it. I don't visit here much - normally only when my hairdresser tells me to get a particular item. It's really aimed at the professional market, which I reckon means that most of the products do what they're supposed to - otherwise the professionals wouldn't bother with them. That's what my logic tells me anyway. Today I was in looking at hair styling wands, and there was a selection of products with different features. The member of staff I spoke to was REALLY helpful. Obviously sensing my clueless-ness, she talked me through the different features - diameter, heat settings, titanium or ceramic, and what sort of results they would give me. I feel much more informed and, once I've checked with my hairdresser, I'll be back to buy the right one for me.

This is a lovely Superdrug. Well as lovely a Superdrug as you can get. It is a good size, not…read moreoverly small and cramped or overly massive and intimidatingly fulled with loads of lotions, potions and bottles. This store is well designed, laid out and easy to access for any of your beauty, toiletry needs. The prices are in line with the rest of the Superdrug stores, hence almost always beat their classier rivals Boots. The staff are fairly friendly and will answer any 'where's the...' type questions. The service is always quick and the shop is often pleasantly busy but not over crowded. Everything you want in a place like this.

Plagued by a post-head-knock-headache on Sunday (from roller derby), I needed some pain killers as…read morewe wandered down Byres Road. Superdrug seemed like a good option. This store is very bright and light - as well as very clean. I actually thought it was quite new or perhaps had been refurbed by how nice it was. I didn't have much of a look around but there's a huge makeup selection down one side of the store, and it seems well laid out and easy to navigate. The painkillers are relatively close to the counter with a fridge of drinks beside them which was handy. Prices were reasonable and service was friendly and helpful. I never used to be much of a Superdrug fan, but I have started to notice their prices seem generally cheaper than Boots so I'm going to make more of an effort to visit when I can.

Always handy if you're visiting the West End Retail Park for other stuff, this branch of Boots is a…read morelittle bit larger than other stores in the area so it tends to carry more stock. You're more likely to find something here if other stores don't have it, plus it saves you the trip into town.

I don't often come here except when I can't find a particular item in other local branches of…read moreBoots. It's usually for shaving-related stuff - I'm an eco-conscious kind of dude who eschews the expensive environmentally-unfriendly planet-destroying plastic multi-blade razors and chemical aerosol shaving foams in favour of a plain, simple, single-blade safety razor and a shaving soap bowl. It's probably an age thing, although it is a much cheaper option too. Although Boots do have own-brand shaving bowls and single blades, they seem to be getting harder to find in the smaller branches (like Byres Road and Dumbarton Road), but I always seem to manage to find them here thanks to the larger selection of stock. It's certainly the largest branch of Boots I know outside of the city centre, and for that fact alone I'm grateful that it's here.

A very large and comprehensive Boots - nicely laid out - not cramped or stuffy like some Boots can…read morebe - with plenty of breathing space. They have a Pharmacy, a photo kiosk, a large cosmetics and perfume section, and of course, at this time of year, is well stocked with their famous 2 for 3 gift packs. Very good for gift, essentials, photo and medicine shopping. A great feature of the Crow Road shopping estate - makes up completely for the usless furniture stores.