Zara

I love the clothes and the good prices. However, every store regardless of location seems to be understaffed and therefore causing crazy long line ups at the cashier and fitting rooms.

First and foremost I don’t usually shop Zara or any of the discount disposable clothing chains like H&M and Forever 21. Oh, I like a cute cheap outfit like the next chick but they don’t design for my bust area. And I’m ok with that because they fully make up for it with their cheap jewelry.
I decided to pop in and look around. The prices are comparable to Banana Republic but with H&M quality. No sales going on this particular day but it was jammed packed in the middle of the afternoon.
Sales staff was almost non-​existent. I wanted a beanie that was unreachable and when I finally found someone to help me (a guy in a skinny black suit & tie, think Men In Black) he seemed upset that I interrupted his blouse folding tutorial. Started speaking French to his co-​worker, apparently unaware that I am just as fluent! Yes, Agent K, some Americans speak languages other than English.
I finally settled on a pair of overpriced flats that may go back tomorrow.

if you’re looking for runway fashion that is affordable (with ok quality), zara is the place. sizing is smaller than most stores and they tend to run out of the smaller sizes
price wise, it’s not inexpensive as h&m but during their end of season sale, you can score some great deals
clerks are helpful if you need their help
don’t expect a great shopping experience. this is disposable fashion so you’re more likely to be on your own going through piles of stuff looking for that little something

Dear Zara,
I’ve been shopping at your stores for years. I’ve been an all-​too-​loyal customer, dealing with your messy displays and non-​existent customer service to get some well-​designed clothing that somehow seems to last just as long as the trend it satisfies. Having to subject myself to a sub-​par shopping experience to get a decent price on fast fashion without sacrificing a good cut? Fine. But the experience I’m about to describe surpasses all levels of common decency — it’s something you couldn’t pay me enough to endure no matter who you are or what you’re offering. Yeah that’s right, not even if you were Kate Moss giving me free Yves Saint Laurent. It’s that bad.
Having received my tax refund, I thought I’d welcome summer 2012 by looking particularly good in some new clothes. One of the stops on my mini-​spree was your downtown Montréal flagship store. How happy I was, to see that you had restocked extra-​smalls in everything I found good-​looking! I bought a couple of items — including a shirt I wasn’t sure about that I figured I could always return if I changed my mind — and went on to enjoy a delicious lunch salad a MB&Co. (A mid-​day must-​try in Montréal!)
Although I usually think of more important subjects, I wondered whether I should return the aforementioned shirt. I decided that I could, in fact, live without it. Now for this account to make sense, I must mention that I often skip the fitting rooms at Zara. The lineups are uncomfortably long, especially for someone who’s practically allergic to them in the first place. So, you can imagine my surprise when I looked at the shirt one last time to confirm my decision and noticed a huge rip on the sleeve I hadn’t previously seen. I could definitely live without that. And there I was, back at Zara twenty-​five minutes after my original purchase, asking for the manager of the female division.
She came and asked to see the shirt. I handed it to her, out of the Zara bag holding my other purchases. I was expecting this to be an easy transaction, similar to the other returns I had made over the years, until she said: «I have a verrry hard time believing that this was taken off of our shelves today. Not only does this shirt have a hole but it also looks used, and we would never hang something like this on our racks. I don’t think I can accept this.» I asked her to look at my bill — I had purchased it literally twenty-​five minutes ago and, let’s be honest, there was no way I could have worn it in enough for it to looked used and ripped in twenty-​five minutes. Instead of taking my suggestion in hopes of making the situation less painful, she kept insisting that it wasn’t possible for me to have bought the item today. Translation? «Hey liar, you’re lying. Oh, and I don’t get to do this often, so watch me power-​trip BAAAABY!!!»
I was shocked — her tone, her attitude and her hardheadedness, not to mention her dirty insinuations, were something I had never, ever, experienced before. Rather than trying to find a solution, she was trying to avoid lowering her day’s sales by rejecting an item that couldn’t be placed back on the floor. That would never happen at BCBG. That would never even happen at H&M. And it certainly wouldn’t happen in the hospitality industry. It’s a good thing you don’t work in a supperclub babe — your tables would be empty.
Believing it’s a matter of class, I have a habit of being respectful even to the dull-​witted. After politely telling her that I was, in fact, telling the truth, I asked her if we could speak with the cashier that rung me up. She agreed, probably believing she had nothing to lose. And now, a huge heartfelt thanks to the wonderful girl at the cash: «Yeah, I totally took care of her, like, ten minutes ago. I sold her that shirt. Like she, I didn’t realize there was a problem with it.» I couldn’t help but smile. Clearly in the wrong, the manager turned to me and, without apologizing for her primitive behaviour, told me I could get a refund. I explained that she should be more careful with her insinuations. She asked me whether I wanted my money back, and told me to get in line and wait for my turn at the cash.
Yeah. That actually happened. And you know what? I didn’t care about having to wait in line — after her display of incredibly hauty attitude, I had won. Telling me to wait was a feeble display of power intended to threaten but, instead, it just highlighted how little of it she actually has. She could make me wait in line behind one other customer. Oh no.
That’s my story, Zara. I realize that its development has much to do with people who actually do return used items, but my problem was with the way I was so quickly pinpointed with incredible conviction and also, how the issue proceeded to be handled. For a store that delivers pretty classy clothes, that, my friend, was classless.

Weird service here. Came here for a friend to pick something up. 1 person working the counter and about 8 girls walking the floor.
After waiting in line for a bit I got to the front and asked the counter if they put something away for my friend (she called it in) and they said no. The girl working the counter was nice enough to call over the speaker to get someone to help me find the item…3 or 4 girls came to the counter to help others who weren’t in line. I waited about 15 minutes until someone came by to get the item. Not to friendly but they went to check the back room. They were able to find the item and off I went.
If you can get someone to help they’re pretty helpful but not to friendly.
I can see why people love this store but the service is still weird!

Ah Zara! Chaque fois qu je vais te visiter j’ai hâte de passer du temps avec toi même avant de te voir le bout du nez. Je finis souvent par te trouver un peu par hasard (mon GPS interne n’est vraiment pas super) et je n’arrive jamais par la même porte d’entrée.
Tu es toujours belle avec de nouvelles couleurs et de nouveaux mocreaux et accesoires. Tes tissus sont doux et tes souliers sont charmeurs. J’y trouve toujours quelque chose que j’aime.
Toutefois, tu me brises le coeur par moment. J’ai besoin de petites grandeures et je suis souvent chanceuse de trouver un vêtement qui me fait avant qu’une autre de tes conquêtes me le prenne.
Je sais, je sais. On s’était dit pas de relation fermée, mais des fois j’aimerais bien t’avoir juste pour moi.

1) I love Zara
2) I really love it when Zara is having a sale!
3) I super love it when Zara is having such a major sale that I can buy 2 dresses for $ 50!
All these factors forgive the fact that there was a 45 minute wait for the fitting rooms (on the bright side, it was like having your fashion counselors in the queue with you helping you choose your outfits), the store looked like it was trashed (you really had to rummage to find something in the piles), and many sizes were no longer available (unless you’re a 0 – 00 you might be out of luck).
But, the staff was handling the chaos well and even tried to help me find a dress in my size in the racks that had yet to be put back out on the floor yet (score!). Even on a non-​sale day, this will definitely be on my list of places to visit!
It was a largish store of 2-​stories with men’s, women’s, and children’s all in one place for your shopping pleasure!