This is a lovely, large, well-ordered, well-stocked Homebase. Its location is ideal; tucked in,…read morenext to the station and behind the main high street. Parking here is plentiful and free. It's rare to find a DIY store in a location that means you can pick up what you need, put it in the boot, then finish the shopping by walking into town. Inside, the store is large, bright and the staff always helpful. Whenever I've been in (and that includes on a Bank Holiday) it's remained a laid back experience. Although the prices here do tend to be higher than some of the other large DIY warehouses - the slightly higher cost is worth the experience.

One of the best Homebase stores as it has so much to offer, in so many ways. Their car park is free…read moreand is the first shop that you encounter when you arrive at the town's train station! The staff are very friendly and helpful and will often say hello if they see you browsing in the store.

Fabulous selection of kitchenware, cutlery and gadgets for anyone who loves to spend time in their…read morekitchen!

Big... Very big! Massive dunelm mill that has everything you will need for the home. My wife loves…read moreit.

Debenhams Colchester store is set out across three floors, with clothing, homewares, gifts and…read morecosmetics. For clothing, there is always a broad choice for men, women and children, although some lines are rather expected. Although this is to be expected of designer brands, some of Debenhams' 'own-brand' clothing (e.g. Red Herring and St George by Duffer) are sometimes extortionately priced. However, staff are nearly always helpful and, if you are so inclined, you can get advice of cosmetics in that department and make use of the free Personal Shopper service. Therefore, I am giving Debenhams Colchester four stars out of a possible five.

This store is set on 3 floors and seems to stock everything the well dressed home and person needs…read morewether it's new undies of new curtains! Loads of different designers offering something for everyone. There's no parking but they do have underground access if you need to collect something heavy.

Cash Converters is one of my favourite stores of all time. CDs are almost all priced at three quid,…read morewhich is astonishing considering the excellent condition of the goods. DVDs are similarly priced, making for huge savings in the long run. Second-hand electronics are also available, which I have never had any issues with over the past ten or so years. Staff are always helpful and welcoming, which is more than can be said for some larger, more famous stores. In all, a brilliant shop for cheap entertainment, even if it is somewhat far from the town centre itself five stars.

Cash converters is a gold mine. It's always worth a visit for cd's dvd's etc even random furniture…read moreitems can be found. The stock seems to change quite often so it's always worth going in even if you don't want anything specific. I've found the staff are very helpful and are happy to offer advise if you looking to either buy or sell

I know Marks and Spencer is a staple of UK towns, but I still found this to be a real haven of…read morespecial goods in a pretty small and sometimes difficult to shop in English town. They had organic foods that I couldn't find other places and their to go items were pretty good considering. Well, considering my taste and the typical English palate are FAR removed from one another. The grocery part of M&S was actually something I only discovered after passing by it several times....it is a regular old department store with clothing and household goods up front. Kind of a high-end Super Wal-Mart here in the States. Also, the staff weren't as horribly rude as they were in some places in Ipswich, certainly not what I would call friendly but not out and out surly.

This is a large outlet of the main M&S chain of shops. It has a superb range of items in the…read moreclothing lines for men, women, and children items as well as plenty of school uniform things. There are a huge range of gifts and plants and flowers as well as cards, wrapping paper and homeware and kitchen items. The food hall is enormous and is extremely well stocked with fresh fruit and veg, chilled items, frozen goods, bakery items as well as magazines, food testing and general store goods too. The staff in this shop are geneally friendly and can be extremely helpful. There is parking at the back in a ratehr expensive car park. However M&S also offer a collect service where you leave your M&S shopping until you have finished your shopping elswhere. You can then park in their loadng bay and they will bring your shopping to your car. On the top floor is a cafe which makes a good stop off point and a bureau de change too. The shop is well served with ramps and a lift as well as escalators.

This is a deceptively large well stocked kitchen/ cooking equipment shop. Very helpful staff and…read morebetter stocked than most department stores' cookery sections. I always try and buy stuff from here rather than on the internet because I love shopping there so much. They even have a little bit where children can sit and play. Beautiful shopping experience

Marchants is a unique independant store tucked away down a side street of town but well worth the…read morewalk to. Unfortunately there is no parking outside, although there is a drop off and pick up zone close by. Parking would be either via a nearby car park or the town centre. The shop has a wide range of products for the cooking enthusiast, from pots and pans to containers, dishes, utensils and far too many more to list. The staff are always very polite, greet you on entering and offer to help you find just what you are looking for - nothing is ever too much trouble. The will help you to source items and make suggestions for you. The only downside with this store is that it is tricky to get around with a large buggy, but for slightly older children there is an area with toys for them to play with whilst you shop in peace and quiet.

I love this charity shop. It has managed to retain everything that's good about second hand…read moreshopping. The prices are low enough to compete with car boot sales and the stock is very varied. You can find some lovely old books here too. It's my favourite place to go for vintage clothing. The shop is a bit tucked away at the end of the high street. Perhaps that's why I've always managed to find something really wonderful here. Do make the effort to walk round the corner. It's a well run, friendly shop and you never know what you might find.

this shop is always worth a look in. it always has a great selection of bags and belts ,some of…read morewhich i buy for my work