I have a confession to make - it's been almost a year since I visited this store. In the beginning, there were very few plus sized clothing stores for ladies. LB was one of the first to actually offer relatively fashionable clothing for the rotund (I'm looking at you, Grandma Catherine's of the butt-ugly clothes). So I used to shop there as a captive audience and cry at how expensive the clothes were for what you got, and ask my mom for a gift certificate every Hanukkah when she would ask what I wanted (so that I could be spared a little sticker shop once a year).
But now, we have a lot more choices. And a lot of cheaper choices. And to be honest, sometimes more fashionable choices.
Lane Bryant has experimented with trying to categorize jeans based on body shape which is a terrific idea overall. Unfortunately, they are all high rise jeans which my other half would call "mom" jeans. On my last visit to LB I got excellent service (which is getting them extra stars here). I was looking for jeans that were not mom jeans. Being a (step) mom doesn't mean you have to look like one. They worked with me for probably close to an hour, trying to help me find jeans that would not only fit but meet the criteria. Sadly, there weren't any that I know he would have liked. So I ended up not buying anything and feeling really badly about it since the ladies there did try really hard.
Historically I have had better luck using LB as a destination for tops and formal wear than for bottoms. Although, now that I found Cato which has some dressier tops for cheap, I am not sure what niche they will fit for me. They're kind of my last stop when I haven't found what I'm looking for elsewhere due to the high prices.
I think they need to adapt - they could charge a premium when they were the only game in town, but they aren't anymore by a long shot. read more