Next

Now I normally avoid writing reviews for well known high street chains because generally I find each store is much of a much-​ness, however having visited Next recently on the Arena Retail Park, Harringay I was genuinely taken a-​back by the way the staff were clearly uninterested and unattentive in the way they managed the shop.
I walked in to find two members of staff at the entrance chatting and laughing loudly, nothing astonishing or out of the ordinary about that, but when I moved up towards the back of the store another staff member joined in the conversation from mid store so the whole shop could here. I was a little shocked by this and glanced over at the till area where there was another assistant leaning on the desk with her arms folded taking in all the gossip that was being shouted back and too.
Don’t get me wrong, it’s great to have a bit of banter at work and it’s normally the stuff that gets everyone through their working day, but come on — shouting, laughing and bantering with colleagues who are so far away you have to literally yell to communicate with them, no — that’s certainly not the shopping experience I want from my clothing retailers.
Even when I kept staring over with disbelief at the way the staff were acting, not one member of staff felt it polite to intervene and stop the banter to get some work done while customers were in the shop, oh no, they just looked at me and carried on shouting over my head. Very off-​putting and impossible to feel relaxed while you are looking around what is a fairly limited range of the next collection.
My advice to others is if you do fancy a trip to a Next store, maybe choose a bigger shop and yes, it may be busier, but generally you’ll get a sense the assistants are working and there to help, should you need it. Unfortunately I have to say the Arena Retail Park’s branch doesn’t give you this impression and I won’t be going out of my way to visit again.