Monday evening, I decided to go to my all-time favorite store, Hot Topic, to complete my review. Now, in the past, I normally review a store with either my sister or other members of my family, but I went to Hot Topic by myself for several reasons. My mother calls Hot Topic “hell”; I will explain why throughout my review. I did not go with my sister, because literally (no exaggeration) I am in Hot Topic for at least forty-five minutes. Also, I can never make up my mind what I want to purchase, which drives my sister insane. Last time I went to this store with my sister, she was getting so frustrated with me. The store was doing a “buy two items, get the third free” sale. My sister could not understand why I could not pick three things. She kept shouting (we were the only ones in there), “Lisa just pick three bloody things!” Anyway less talk about why my family dislikes coming to Hot Topic with me and onto the history of Hot Topic. The store first opened in 1988 by Orv Madden in California. The store grew, and today there are 642. Hot Topic is still very popular, and thank goodness Francis Scott Key mall is the proud home of a Hot Topic. I was very thrilled that I got to review my favorite store: Hot Topic.

            When I walked into my second happy place (after Disney World), the first item I rated was the store’s atmosphere. The scent that hit me when I entered the store was a sweet smell. It smelled like cotton candy, which I loved. (The scent of cotton candy is great, but I actually hate the taste of cotton candy.) Okay, now the music in Hot Topic is pretty terrible. It is definitely not the music you hear every day on the radio. The music is loud, obnoxious screaming. Sometimes you cannot even understand what the screamer is saying. Also, some of the songs sound really evil. Once my sister said that it sounded like the devil was singing. This is one of the reasons why my mother calls it hell. The music also kills her ears and the rest of my families’ ears. Personally, the music does not bother me because I tune it out because I am too busy looking around. One song that was playing while I was shopping was “Thriller” by Michael Jackson, which was a pretty quiet song compared to the other music Hot Topic has played. Seeing as it was a Monday evening, the store only had four customers including me who were shopping.

            After I reviewed the atmosphere, I drew my attention to Hot Topic’s surroundings. The lighting in the store was dark. The main lighting in Hot Topic were these miniature lightbulbs that ran from the front of the store to the back. The store had brighter lighting that was shining on their major display sections. Do not worry you can still see the merchandise throughout the store. I prefer the lighting dark in Hot Topic; to me, the lighting helps make the store amazing. My mother on the other hand thinks the lighting just proves that the store is hell. Hot Topic had the best displays. The walls are filled with the merchandise. All the graphic tees that they sell were folded and hanging on the walls. There were over fifty graphic tees alone hanging on the walls. This allows the customers to visually see the image and the different options. There were a couple mini mannequins (just the body). The mannequins right in the front of the store were dressed in Marvel outfits or Disney dresses. Also, they displayed different items like a Lilo and Stitch dress in the windows, which draws people in like me. Everything in Hot Topic was organized. Although the store was small, they did a great job of dividing the store into different sections. For example, they had half a shelf dedicated to Star Wars while another shelf was for Anime movies like My Neighbor Totoro.

            The next item I reviewed was the cleanliness of that specific Hot Topic. There was nothing on the floor. No clothes were falling onto the floor. Most of the jewelry was hanging neatly on the walls. Only a couple items throughout the store were misplaced. The store was spotless. Yet again, Hot Topic did not have a bathroom in the actual store. Yay…not! I decided not to review the mall bathroom; instead, I reviewed a bathroom in JCPenney. Plus, the JCPenney bathroom was closer. Instead of reviewing the same bathroom when I did rating on JCPenney, I went to a different bathroom. The bathroom looked as if somebody just finished cleaning it. It smelled fresh, and there was no toilet paper on the floor.

            After I reviewed the cleanliness of Hot Topic, I rated the employees. The only employee working there was a young guy, and he was super friendly. He greeted me right after I walked in and told me about the sale that was happening. Everything except for the records was “buy one, get the next item 30%”.

            The final item on my list to review was the merchandise at Hot Topic, which was definitely my favorite part. Hot Topic’s merchandise is quite different from all the other stores I have reviewed in the past. Hot Topic sells clothing, shoes, jewelry, bows, backpacks, purses, stuffed animals, lanyards, pins, etc. I could go on forever. The thing I loved most about Hot Topic is pretty much everything they sell there is dedicated to different themes. They have all kinds of theme- related merchandise including Marvel, Batman (my favorite superhero), Disney, Sherlock Holmes, Doctor Who (my least favorite things they sell), etc. They also sell some weird items, which is another reason my mother calls it hell. I love to buy mostly Disney, Batman, and Marvel merchandise. The merchandise for Disney ranges from bows that are designed to be like Disney characters (like Peter Pan) to shirts with different Disney characters (such as Lilo and Stitch). They also have Disney character jewelry like Winnie the Pooh earrings that had Eeyore, Piglet, Tigger, and Pooh. This set of earrings only cost $12.50, so I had to buy it. Also, I love the Winnie the Pooh characters. I am such a Disney nerd. The Batman-themed merchandise had items such as jackets with a hood that looked like Batman’s mask (another thing I own), rings with the Bat signal, bows that also had the Bat signal on them, and a Joker wallet. The list of merchandise Hot Topic sells goes on. All the clothing and items I have purchased in the past have lasted, which is good seeing as most of my stuff comes from Hot Topic. Hot Topic sells high quality merchandise for great prices.

These  are three of my many clothes that I have purchased from Hot Topic.



These are a few of the many items I have purchased from Hot Topic

The final score for each item was:

Prices: 5

Staff: 5

Appeal: 5

Popularity: 4

Merchandise: 5

Displays: 5

Cleanliness: 5

Atmosphere: 5

Bathrooms: 5

The total for Hot Topic was forty-four. Next week I will be reviewing Plato's Closet.

 

           

 

Saturday evening, my sister and I headed off to Francis Scott Key Mall to window shop and relieve some of the stress caused by school. At the mall, I accomplished the review of my fourth store, American Eagle Outfitters. In 1977, Mark and Jerry Silverman founded the first American Eagle Outfitters in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. The store actually began as a retail store that sold clothing and accessories for outdoor activities like hiking and climbing. By 1991, the Silverman brothers were losing too much money, so they decided to sell their company to Jay Schottenstein. Schottenstein turned American Eagle into a casual clothing store for men and women. With this new change, the store became very popular. Today, American Eagle is still a popular store especially with adolescents and young adults (like me). Although we did not buy anything this time (due to a lack of money), we had fun trying stylish outfits on while rating the store.

              Instead of starting the review process with the atmosphere, I began by observing American Eagles’ cleanliness. American Eagle was quite clean. All the clothes were either neatly folded on the shelves or hanging properly on the racks. The only slightly messy area of the store was the area with the sale racks. There were a couple clothes on the floor or about to fall off the hangers. While we were there, some young children were unfolding clothes and dropping clothes on the floor. The employees quickly straightened up, which goes to show why American Eagle is always rather clean. Even the dressing rooms were cleared of any leftover clothes. There were no bathrooms actually in the store, so I decided to visit the mall bathroom closest to American Eagle. The bathroom smelled horrible. I literally held my nose while I quickly reviewed the bathroom. The sinks were covered in water. There was toilet paper on the floor and in the stalls. To avoid passing out from the horrific odor, I did not even check an actually stall.

            After observing the cleanliness, I focused on American Eagles’ atmosphere. When my sister and I walked in the store, we smelled perfume. It was such a nice scent that we decided to try all the perfumes in the testers until we found that perfume scent. It was the last one of course.  After looking like a fool, I started to listen more carefully to the music that was playing in the store. The songs that played while we were in there were pop hits such as Sam Smith’s Like I Can and Justin Bieber’s What Do You Mean. I was embarrassing my sister, because I kept singing the songs a little too loudly for her taste.

Next, I drew my attention to the store’s surroundings. It was not too bright, like Walmart, but it was not too dark either. The store’s lighting was just bright enough for the size of the store. Once I walked into American Eagle, I not only noticed the smell of perfume but also the mannequins, which were clothed in trendy outfits and accessories. There were also several other displays located in the back of the store. American Eagle does a fantastic job of displaying the merchandise and accessories such as jewelry and headbands. The jewelry and headbands were all easily accessible on a long table. Because of this layout, the customer does not have to wrestle with the jewelry and accessories trying to untangle them. I hate doing this, and I will just give up and not buy the accessory. The store was pretty empty when I was in there. It was just my sister and myself and a few other people.

            When I finished the review of the atmosphere and surroundings, I reviewed and examined the staff. Saturday night, all the staff members were young women. There was an employee up front, who greeted us and told us about the sales which were going on that day. She also asked if we needed any assistance finding anything. Because my sister and I were in American Eagle for like twenty-five minutes, another employee asked if we needed any help. The only problem with customer service that I observed was when we asked for a dressing room it took them a while to unlock one for us.  

            Finally, the entertaining part of the review process, the clothing and merchandise, the items sold at American Eagle were mainly fashionable and popular among many adolescents. The variety at the store includes colorful skirts, comfy yet stylish sweaters, numerous types of jeans, jackets, crop tops, etc. In addition to clothing, American Eagle sold rings, long necklaces (my favorite), flowery headbands, earrings, shoes, and purses. The styles at American Eagle were mostly hippy. The quality of the clothing at the store was definitely high quality at least for me. My clothes purchased at American Eagle have always lasted me awhile. All the clothes were well stocked. The sales racks were filled with sale items, which is always nice. Although American Eagle does have sale racks, the regular priced items were absolutely overpriced. I picked up a pair of jeans that cost $49.95, which I find ridiculous. There was a sale going on which was buy one pair of jeans get the second 50% off. Personally, this was not even a good sale. You have to pay $50 for the first pair, and $30 for the second pair. The total for two pairs of jeans is over $80. That is too much for jeans.

              The total rating for each item was:

Cleanliness: 5

Atmosphere: 4

Popularity: 3

Bathrooms: 1

Appeal: 5

Merchandise: 5

Prices: 1

Displays: 5

Staff: 4

The total score for American Eagle Outfitters was thirty-three. Next week I will be reviewing Hot Topic. 

On Sunday, I headed off to Target in Frederick with my mother and my little brother for a little shopping and my second shopping review. In 1902, Goodfellow Dry Goods opened in Minneapolis; this small company founded by George Draper Dayton, grew into what is now known as the Target Corporation. In 1962, the company went from owning and running a leading department store to opening its first Target, a relatively new type of discount store promising quality merchandise at affordable prices. Although critics called it a risky move, Target stores were a huge success. Target stores can now be found not only in the United States, but also in other countries such as Canada and Australia. I continuously shop at the Frederick Target located on Urban Pike. Although I did not purchase any items, I still greatly enjoyed looking at the new items while rating the store.

As always, I began my rating process by examining the atmosphere in Target. Walking through the automatic doors, the strong smell of popcorn from the mini food court reached my nose. (I love the smell of popcorn mainly, because it reminds me of going to the movies.)  Happily, no annoying music was heard, as Target does not play music in the store. I actually prefer no music playing when I shop. After reviewing the atmosphere, I drew my attention to my surroundings. The lighting in Target was phenomenal. The store was so bright I could read the signs a mile away. They even had brighter lights where their new displays were.  The store was decorated with giant, interactive Captain American Civil War displays promoting the movie. I was forced to visit these displays several times with my little brother who loves Marvel. Target had three adorable clothing displays with new designer fashions in the women’s section. The store was fairly crowded.

After I reviewed the atmosphere, I focused my attention on the cleanliness of that specific store. Target was overall moderately clean. In some areas (like mainly the toy department), there were stains and food on the floor and on the shelves. Although the toy section was messy, which was understood, the women’s clothing area was clean. There were barely any clothes on the floor. The shoe section was also quite organized except for the clearance shoes. They were all over the place without any organization. One problem I noted with the cleanliness of the store was with the carts. Some of the carts were sticky and dirty. The bathrooms, though, were disgusting. They smelled terrible, and there was toilet paper all over the bathroom floor. I am just going to state that the stalls were beyond gross and leave it at that.

Moving on to my all-time favorite part of the review, the merchandise and clothing review, the products sold at Target were, as always, trendy, high-quality, and fun. Target pretty much had a wide variety including clothing, shoes, movies, toys, toiletries, electronics, etc. I have never had any problems with my purchases from Target. Their merchandise was well stocked except in popular sections like the little boy’s section with the action figures. The only reason I know this was, again, because my little brother adores his action figures. The movie area was filled with new and old movies and T.V shows, which I appreciate. I love buying movies, and I am not happy when stores are not stocked with new movies or the movies I want. Target also keeps up with stocking their store with the latest video games like Disney Infinity and Disney Infinity characters. The merchandise like Disney Infinity characters, movies, and toys had great prices. For example, normally one Disney Infinity character costs $12.99, but they were having a sale. The special was buy two for $20. The movies ranged from $3.99 to $19.99, but this did not include Blu-ray. The clothing section was also very amazing. Target clothing is very hip. Their variety of clothing ranges from old-fashioned yet adorable hippy styles to popular, trendy clothing. This results in Target having a wide audience and appealing to many.  They also have several sale racks that range from 20 to 70% off. Generally, I find the non-sale items to be too expensive. A graphic tee costs about $12.99, which I find ridiculous for a t-shirt.

The reason I saved staff and customer service to the end of my reviewing process was, because of the horrible experience my mother, brother, and I had that day. My brother and I decided we wanted to buy Disney Infinity characters. We immediately headed to the back of the store where they are located, and we discovered a shelf completely full of old and new characters. My brother was so excited he picked up a new Captain American Civil War starter pack and I picked up Mulan. We were both extremely thrilled that they had the characters that we wanted. We continued to shop, and my brother kept telling me how excited he was to go home and play with his new character which he had to hold tightly through the entire time. After finishing our shopping, we went to check out. I decided to pay for both characters. The employee tried to scan the characters, and neither of the characters would scan. Their system said that it could not sell the items, because they were not in their inventory. The front-end manager then came over, and took the characters. He told my mother that he could not sell them to her. We told him how the wall was covered with these starter packs. The manager said that someone unpackaged the characters too early. While this discussion was taking place, my four year old brother was crying seeing as this guy took his toy. My mother asked if they could hold the character for my brother until the product was in their system. The manager stated it was against store policy even though they were the ones who majorly messed up.  They did not care that my little brother was crying, and they did nothing to rectify their mistake.

The nasty front-end manager said no to this cute face!! So mean!!!

The total rating for each item was:

Atmosphere: 5

Popularity: 5

Cleanliness: 4

Bathrooms: 2

Appeal: 5

Merchandise: 5

Prices: 3

Displays: 5

Staff: 1

The total rating for Target was thirty-five. Next week, I will be rating American Eagle. 

Wednesday night, I headed off to the Walmart on Monocacy Boulevard with my three sisters and little brother for some fun and to review my second store. Walmart Discount City opened in Arkansas in the year 1962 and was founded by Sam Walton. Sam Walton was a past employer of JCPenny, but he had a desire to open a store with high quality yet low priced merchandise. By 1969, Walmart Discount City’s name was shortened to Walmart, and it became a thriving business. Walmart stores are quite similar to Target stores except Walmart normally has better prices, lower quality and less trendy clothing, and a more discount store feel to it. Today, Walmart is still extremely popular with low prices attracting many of their customers. Although I prefer to shop at Target, I shop at Walmart when they have better deals. I did though enjoy shopping with my siblings while rating the store.

           I began my rating process with, of course, the atmosphere of Walmart. Walking through the exit doors (Yes, I am a rebel as my younger sister stated.), I smelled Subway mixed with sweat. It reeked, smelling like rotten sandwiches. Yuck! Thankfully, the scent weakened as we walked towards the back of the store. Walmart had music playing, but only near the electronics’ department. Although the store played music, it kept cutting out which was so irritating.

After observing Walmart’s atmosphere, my attention was drawn to the surroundings. The lighting in Walmart was intense. I am happy when the store I shop in is very bright. Walmart is always crowded. Personally, when I am shopping in Walmart I am constantly looking over my shoulder. The people in Walmart sometimes scare me a bit. My sister gripped my little sister’s hand, while I tightly held my brother’s hand just to be safe. There were absolutely no interesting displays. The only displays Walmart had were the televisions on the wall in the electronics section and the gun display. This does not appeal to young women who enjoy seeing displays with fashionable outfits.

Once I finished observing the atmosphere and surroundings, I focused on the cleanliness. Walmart was mostly a dump. The reason I say ‘mostly’ was because surprisingly the clothing departments and electronics’ department were neatly organized. The toy department was a complete different story. There was absolutely no organization at all. The toys that were supposed to be hanging neatly were all over the shelves. In several aisles, there were even toys all over the floor. (I tend to know a lot about the organization and cleanliness of the toy department because I often have my two little siblings that love toys with me.) In addition to barely any organization, there were stains on the floor throughout the entire store. It was also very disgusting. My sandal was sticking to the floor in several areas of Walmart. Although I normally rate bathrooms, I have heard disturbing stories about many Walmart bathrooms including that specific bathroom. I decided not to enter the bathroom; instead I examined the area around it. The area was filthy and very smelly.

            The staff there appear to all have the same attitude: like they have no desire to be there and literally hate working at Walmart. I had contact with at least six different employees, and only one smiled. My brother wanted me to ask the electronics department employee if they had any more Disney Infinity characters. The employee had no idea what I was talking about. I had to walk him to the characters to show him what Disney Infinity was, just for him to tell me there were no more in stock. The woman that checked us out was unfriendly. She said maybe two sentences at the most to us.

The Disney Infinity character that my little brother wanted, but could not find.

            I was very pleased with Walmart’s merchandise and clothing. This section of my review was fairly positive for Walmart. Astonishingly, the products sold at Walmart were popular, enjoyable, and, for the most part, decent quality. Walmart had a wide variety of merchandise including toys, clothing, makeup, movies, etc. The quality of the merchandise was pretty decent, at least for me. I have had no problems with any of the products I purchased at Walmart. The merchandise was well stocked. There were a ton of movies that would satisfy most people. The prices at Walmart were unbeatable. You can purchase movies that are a couple of years old for $5. Prices for other movies can range from $1.99 to $19.99. The toys and electronics were also priced lower than other similar department stores. In addition to great prices, Walmart also had great sales. For example, the new Hunger Games was on sale for $14.96. The clothing section was fantastic. Walmart had very stylish and hip clothing. Their variety of clothing was wide-ranging. There were graphic tees, adorable jeans, colorful leggings, and spring dresses. Seeing as they had a great variety of clothing, the clothes would have appealed to everyone’s style. The clothes appealed even more, because their prices were low. A pair of leggings only cost about $10, which I found completely reasonable.

            The total outcome for each item was:

Prices: 5

Cleanliness: 3

Bathrooms: 1

Appeal: 5

Popularity: 3

Merchandise: 5

Displays: 1

Staff: 2

Atmosphere: 2

The total rating for Walmart was twenty-seven. Next week, I look forward to rating Target.

JCPenny Ratings

         

Wednesday night, I began my rating process by visiting my first shop, JCPenney. JCPenney was named after James Cash Penney, who opened his first store in 1902 in Kemmerer, Wyoming. The chain is 113 years old. Currently, JCPenney stores are located throughout the United States.  Frederick, Maryland is the proud home of a JCPenney store which is located in the Francis Scott Key Mall. I had the great privilege of shopping there while rating the store.

The overall atmosphere of a store is very important as it leaves the shopper with a lasting impression.  The first thing I noticed when I entered the store was the smell, sound, and surroundings. Taking a deep breathe in, I smelled a fresh and clean scent. When I started walking towards the junior’s department, the store began to smell like fresh ground coffee. (This made me want a Latte from Starbucks, but I digress.) Moving on, I found the music to be completely annoying. The songs were not popular songs, but rather a mishmash of unknown and uninspiring tunes. The lighting in the store was dim, and there were even several lights burned out. The areas which were used to display new items were somewhat brighter. However, in one area, I couldn’t even read a sign clearly because barely any light was shining on it.  The displays were ordinary, not trendy or hip.  They were not that appealing or eye-catching.

After reviewing the atmosphere, I drew my attention to the staff. The employees were very friendly and helpful. I was greeted by at least three different employees asking if I needed any assistance. The customer service was excellent. The staff was helpful and courteous. They actually offered customers coupons for 10% off their purchase of $25 or more. Who can pass up that savings? The store was also quite crowded for 6:23 p.m.

Before discussing the clothing, I will discuss the cleanliness of this JCPenney. Overall, the store’s general appearance seemed fairly clean. However, after closer inspection, there were a lot of what I will call “Yuck Factors!”  There were many clothes on the floor especially near the sales racks. The fitting rooms were the nasty. There were stains on the chairs, fingerprints on the mirrors, and who knows what some of that stuff was on the floors. Here’s some friendly advice: don’t sit on the floor or the chairs. Who likes dirty bathrooms? I personally prefer clean, non-smelly bathrooms. JCPenney’s bathroom was actually (surprisingly) quite clean.

Now let’s move on to a more interesting topic, the appeal and merchandise.  Most of the clothes were exceptionally stylish.  In the junior’s department, most of the clothes were trendy, excluding the Star Wars and Minion leggings.  The variety was diverse seeing as they had a style fit for anybody and every BODY. Some examples of their inventory included flowery clothes, comfy sweats, baseball tees, cardigans, and graphic tees (my personal favorites). Overall, I have been very satisfied with the quality of the clothing purchased at JCPenney. Everything was well stocked. No shelves were bare. The prices were unbeatable. There were numerous racks of sale merchandise. The sale prices were 50% to 70% off. (The sale sections were my personal favorites, because the clothes were adorable and cheap.) The regular priced items were also very reasonable. Most of the clothing runs from $4.99 to $29.99.

The total rating for each item was:

Atmosphere: 2

Staff: 5

Popularity: 4

Cleanliness: 3

Bathrooms: 5

Appeal: 5

Merchandise: 5

Prices: 5

Displays: 3

The total rating for JCpenny was thirty-seven. Next week, I will be rating Walmart.

My Goal as Your Shopgirl

“Can we leave?"                                            

"Just pick something." 

"I am never coming with you again."

“Just kill me now!”                                    

 This is what many guys normally say when forced to go shopping with girls. Many guys go shopping reluctantly, only when forced to, or when they must make a purchase for a holiday or anniversary.  On the other hand, many girls love to shop. Some say it is a special gene or their genetic makeup; but regardless, girls can spend hours looking for the right outfit, makeup, or jewelry to improve their wardrobe. They can enter countless stores, clock up miles and miles on their Fitbit at the mall, and go on endless bargain hunts until they find everything they need.

How do I know this? Well, my sister and I are exactly like this. We adore shopping. We have spent innumerable hours not only scouring for the perfect finds, but also window shopping.  You may even say, we are somewhat of experts in the field of shopping.  Sometimes we end up not finding anything, and some trips are just a waste of time.  Why, you may ask?  Well, honestly, some stores are not worth the time.  Stores can be amazing while others can be disgusting. As a service to all my female friends and fellow bargain hunters, I, your Shopgirl, will be visiting different stores and rating them using a standardized checklist. The checklist will include popularity, staff and customer service, cleanliness, displays, atmosphere (music, lighting, smell (Yes, some stores do smell!), etc.) merchandise (variety, quality, stock), prices, bathroom, and finally appeal (which incorporates stylishness and hipness).  The worst rating a shop category can receive is a one, and the best would receive a five. The best score a shop can receive is forty-five. Next week, my first store that I will be rating is JcPenny’s.