This was my first visit to Melrose on W. University in downtown Edinburg. I just happened to be in…read morethe shopping plaza and decided to enter and see what they have - the window signs advertise clothing for the entire family, shoes, and some household goods.
The employees greeted me as I walked through the store. The store itself is not fancy, but pleasant, clean, and, since it's August in South Texas, I'll mention the air conditioning was working well. That's always a plus!
I confess, I'm not in the market for women's clothing or shoes - which is the vast majority of their inventory. So, I ignored that and walked down the center aisle to the back where the men's section is. Along the way there was a table with knock-off men's fragrances with packaging that looks similar to name brands but that are spelled differently and slightly different shape to the bottle. I'm not interested in knock-offs, so I continued.
They do have a small selection of men's button down shirts, polo shirts, long pants, shorts, athletic wear, underwear, etc. The boys' clothes were sort of mixed in with the men's, so you have to pay attention to that. I noticed a pair of swim trunks that had a design and color I liked. When I picked it up, the fabric felt like vinyl and "plasticky" - and ut had a mesh liner throughout the trunks. Cheap, but cheap.
Yes, overall the prices were cheap at Melrose, but the clothing was also rather cheap-looking and/or feeling for the most part. But if you can't afford Macy's then shop at Target or Walmart. If you can't afford either of those, shop at Melrose. If you can't afford Melrose, there's a thrift store at the end of the shopping strip.
As I started back towards the front and the door, I walked through the home goods section. There were shower curtains, phone chargers with speakers and disco lights, food storage containers (one said "Farberware"), and lots of miscellaneous stuff that probably changes according to the season.
Honestly, I was unimpressed with their men's selections. From 36 years of marriage and having raised four girls, I could tell that most of their ladies' merchandise, though more plentiful, was about the same quality level as the men's.
Perhaps you're looking for that pair of shoes or a blouse to match a particular outfit for a one-time event and don't need it to be durable, and have a rhinestone budget... then Melrose may be for you. But that's not me, so I probably won't be back.