the under manager was extremely unpleasant rude and disrespectful to me when I was in that store on…read moreSaturday 3 rd February 2024. I am a 71 year old disabled pensioner with myriad health problems and a tiny assistance dog in a small pram which is a walking aid for me. I was treated in a bad way on the floor selling cutlery which was expensive but which I wanted to purchase.The young assistant had a couldn't care less attitude.So I walked away without saying anything as I am very polite. I approached the duty manager on my way out who totally misconstrued what I said to him. I have spent thousands of pounds in Binns over many years even when it was open in Middlesbrough.In this time of economic recession I am GLAD they are allowed to be rude so they won't miss my custom.A couple outside saw my distress and comforted me.He needs to remember NOT ALL DISABILITIES ARE OBVIOUS.As the nice Lady outside said 'Poor communication skills are paramount in all walks of life'.I will never go there again.

Binns is a massive department store, located right in the town centre. It has a number of diffeent…read morestores and brands within. in the cosmetics area all major brands are covered; clinique, Lancome, Estee Lauder, Benefit, Calvin Klien etc. In the clothing area their are labels and shops such as; Coast, Wallis and Oasis, along with many major shoe brands. It is ideal place to visit to buy an outfit for any occasion. It also offers men and childrens clothing, along with furniture and homewares.

A great store, I walked in and got exactly what I needed immediately, beautiful serviettes for my…read moretea party. There were a lot of other things I did not need so kept my eyes dead ahead. Lovely to see stores like this still in business in a market town. Go treat yourself today to something, anything, everything!

Barkers Department Store, situated in the centre of the High Street, offers an incredible range of…read moremerchandise, including some of the worlds leading brands of fashion, lingerie, menswear, shoes, handbags, cosmetics, cards, luggage, gifts and homewares. On the first floor is a recently refurbished 200 seat restaurant with views over the Applegarth Park and an excellent menu specialising in home cooking. The store also has an online shopping facility.

This branch of Home Bargains is located in the Castelgate Centre, at the end near Wilkinsons, sort…read moreof opposite Holland & Barratts. It's a nice little shop for a bargain. Have to admit, I prefer the branch at Coulby Newham, but maybe that's just because I'm more familiar with it. They sell all kinds of bargains, from household items and kitchenware, to toys and games. They also sell bedding, and I've been lucky and bought children's character duvet sets here for about £9.99 when they were over £15 everywhere else! They also stock food items - mostly tinned food, or coffee or biscuits, the kind of thing that doesn't really go off. You will generally find these food items are a little closer to their sell by dates than you would get in the big supermarkets, but they are nevertheless still within the dates, so ok to use, and much cheaper.

Home Bargains sells a good range of general home accessories and general food products. Range is…read moresubject to change and in general, is always different each time you visit. Service is excellent and the staff to customer ratio is good, and staff are friendly. Great place to find cheap items especially quality pans and cutlery. Choice is quite poor, but good basic items.

This branch of T K Maxx is located in the new Captain Cook's Square in Middlesbrough town centre. I…read moremust confess, I prefer the branch on Teesside Retail Park. This branch is all on one floor, and seems a bit jumbled to me. They sell clothing, shoes, bags, toys, ornaments etc. I always like to take a look in if I'm in the town centre, as I would hate to miss a bargain, and you CAN get bargains here, but you have to be lucky, and you have to be prepared to rummage for them! I personally find the clothing expensive, even though it is discounted. But they do carry a nice line in reduced price toys and games, although I don't think they have a big a selection at the Teesside Park branch. There always seem to be queues at the check outs, too.

A large store, which is spacious and well laid out. They…read morestock men's, women's and children's clothes, homeware, toys and other bits and bobs. Well worth a visit, as you can pick up some designer bargains. Sometimes you can queue for a while as it gets quite busy. The children's toy section is usually quite good.

This branch of Marks and Spencer is located on Teesside Retail Park. It's on the right hand side as…read moreyou enter the main square, near Zavvi. This is quite a large branch, set out over two floors. Downstairs they have a dedicated food section, then moving left you come to the women's clothing. They have shoes, lingerie, and lots of lovely fashion. The only one I actually notice is Per Una, so truth be told, I don't know if they stock other brands, as I've only noticed the Per Una. They have some really nice items. Most of it is out of my price range, but I have been lucky there when they've had end of season sales one. The service is excellent. The fitting rooms are really quite spacious and luxurious, compared to what I'm used to in Asda, for example! The staff are friendly and helpful. Upstairs, they have men's clothing, and a gift section, and homewares. Last time I was in, I noticed they also had a television section upstairs! This was new to me, but it was a smart little section, not a lot of choice, but the service, again, was excellent. The lady took time out to talk me through some of the products, and was really helpful. About twenty years ago I thought Marks and Spencer was really posh, and the epitome of quality and good service. Then it sort of went downhill, but I think they're climbing back up now.

This is a handy, decent sized Marks and Spencers store which is is part of Teesside Retail Park…read more Because of this there is plenty of car parking outside and it is open later than your average store. I am not sure of the exact hours but I think around 8pm on an average night. As well as the usual ranges of fashion, homeware, food etc there is a cafe on the first floor and a currency exchange which is handy as M&S often have good rates. Personally I think that M&S have become more competitive in recent years and I am now shopping her more and more.

I still stand by everything I said in my previous review. They have a good variety of stuff, at…read morevarying prices but the main reason for visiting the store is for the craft section - they have almost everything that you could need for crafts from card-making to dress-making. The rest of their products are quite dated/old-fashioned, especially the clothing although sometimes you'll find something modern and at a great price (I bought a fab ducky onesie in Boyes!).

Boyes don't look to appealing in decor. It is old fashioned and almost scruffy looking but nether…read morethe less I go in here regularly due to the selection of fabrics and other textily things upstairs. Down stairs there is everything for DIY bits to kitchen appliances to al the beauty and hair care products. Their stationary is always a bargain. Upstairs there's a selection of women's clothes which you can some times find something nice then also fabric, beads, buttons, and other craft equipment. There is also a small selection of clothes for men. Although its very dated its quite a nice shop with a friendly atmosphere.

Guru is a unique shop located in the heart of Darlington Town centre. It offers a range of unusual…read moreitems ideal for gifts; incense, candles, cards and ornaments. It also offers clothing in a gothic or hippy style. It is a friendly shop and worth a visit if you are looking for a more unusual gift.

Guru has been around a long time and is the only place in Darlington to browse for unusual clothes…read moreand gifts. The clothes are rock chick gothy type of thing. They also sell shoes( weird looking ones). A great place to pick up something different in the jewellery, candles, gifts or cards line.

Everything from my previous review is still accurate - Wilko sell a very wide range of products…read more(including a lot of their own brand stuff now, which is a lot cheaper than the big name brands), all at great prices. Whatever you need, from fuses to cat food, you'll find it here! And if you want something specific and don't want to have a wasted trip then you can order online and have it delivered to or reserved at the store. It's a brilliant shop but unfortunately this particular one loses a star due to lack of local parking and due to the occasionally flooding on the street outside the store, which can make it difficult to get in or out.

Wilkinson is a great shop in Redcar. It's quite far up the high street so definitely a bit of a…read morewalk but it's worth it for the bargains it has. It sells a selection of things here from kitchen equipment to pets accessories. The prices are usually quite good. Everything is well priced but their 10p sales are legendary. It's quite a large shop and nicely lit. The staff are always really friendly too. One thing to note is although it sells a mixture of own brand things and other big brands the big brands such as L'oreal, Patntane etc can often be found else where cheaper. My son loves the childrens section and these are always really well priced. Queues can sometimes be quite long though