The Outlet

When I looked back at my first review I agreed with myself — and that sounds just stupid. It’s a winter afternoon with the temperature around 3 degrees. It’s dank and it’s damp. I thought as I walked around that there was little pleasure doing so. As I said already this place was designed for the southern Mediterranean. I have very little interest in many of the shops here, Gap, Denby, Fat Face and a Pavers, I don’t even know what it sells; Calvin Klein — zero interest, a tacky jeweller Chappelle, someone called Jeff Banks. Upside there’s an M&S outlet, a Starbucks, a great restaurant: Linen Hill. There’s also a Costa, a BurgerKing, a Streat café, which sells pooh bear ice cream and a fab Creperie in a wooden hut. The owner is French — a sweet friendly character from Normandy. The savoury and sweet crepes are ace and real value for money, made with panache by someone who actually knows what he’s doing. Another thing the owners of this place can be commended on is the great toilet facilities kept clean and tidy always — they deserve an award. The place has been well decorated for Christmas too. A new huge Tesco opened several weeks ago inside this site. It may bring extra footfall to the places within the outlet.

The Outlet has always reminded me of something, but I haven’t been able to put my finger on it until now. It reminds me of a setting in an old western, two gunfighters facing off in the middle of a wide empty street while the townsfolk peer from the shutters of nearby buildings, certainly if a tumbleweed had blown past my feet I would not have been surprised.
I think the whole place has an air of bleak despair about it, admittedly a cold February afternoon does little for ambiance, but with the amount of closed shops, absence of patrons and what shops that were open, appearing to be having a closing down sale, the Missus and I walked the length of the mall, then walked back and went home.
It’s sad, because I can remember the place being a lot livelier, but in these harsh economic times, I wonder how long it can stay an open, viable business.

The Outlet has a number of different discount stores with real discount prices. Nike, Vans, Timberland, The Perfume Shop, Next, Oasis, Gap to mention but a few. You can be unlucky on some days and lucky on others. I’d recommend you don’t go with an idea of what you want in your head because with discounts you really need to be flexible.
There are genuine discounts to be found here though and there are some non-​high-​brand shops too which offer even better discounts again.

I pretty much feel the same about The Outlet as I do about Junction One, although The Outlet has an advantage in that it has both a Warehouse and Oasis on-​site, so I can find something to buy nine times out of ten.
Other than that, it’s the same stuff, just further away from my house!

This is an outlet centre which is genuinely full of bargains. Not in the same league as the crazy reductions you find in US designer outlets, but well worth a visit nonetheless. There are a couple of high end outlets — Armani and Luella which is where the biggest reductions are to be found. On my last visit I saw mouth watering Luella handbags for £250, and I had seen them elsewhere at closer to £600, albeit the season before. Sadly the husband was with me and gave me The Look. The Look which says ‘no more handbags.’
The Armani shop had beautiful tops and dresses which I must admit I don’t really need for the school run, also at less than half the original price.
Outlet branches of high street favourites Warehouse and Jaeger are also good for a look around but just keeping mind that you won’t find the latest must have pieces there. Basics and classics are what you’re looking for here and you’ll find them at about 50% off. The Jaeger shop also sells mens wear — the husband found a fab linen shirt for £30 which was a total steal.
The whole environment at the Outlet is really pleasant, beautifully landscaped ‘streets’ and lots of open space, very much in the style of my beloved US outlet malls. There are plenty of places to bolster your energy reserves for round two of shopping — Costa Coffee, Starbucks and Simply Deans, which does a mean chicken caesar salad.

For Gods sake don’t go when its raining, and we all know THAT never happens in this country…
NO shelter in between shops, we were scuttling about like rats up a drainpipe when the showers came on, this place is so badly designed its not funny, I don’t give a pigs ass about mothers and babies, but I feel really sorry for elderly people and people with dogs who would find it hard to escape the wet weather.
Half of the shops are closed down and the ones that remain are OK, but really not that many bargains to be had, some shops offer decent sale prices, but others offer little more than 10 — 20% off retail. The M&S is a complete shambles, selling nothing but the bottom of the barrel stuff they couldn’t shift anywhere else.
Go in summer if its a nice day but don’t expect any bargains.
The upside is that there is loads of carparking (because there are hardly any shoppers)