Bop

Not sure why this place is so popular, but twice I walked in more than 10 mins, I was ignored completely.
Way overpriced.
There were a few staffs there – behind the counter and some way at back– they just looked at me when seeing me coming in and didn’t even say hi or welcome. Feels very rude.
Most items you can order online and probably find a better deal, with fast shipping and probably tax free. Why do you have to come here?

Hostile shopping environment and way over priced. I had always been curious about Bop and finally decided to stop in last weekend while I was walking down state street. BIG MISTAKE. From the minute I walked in I was treated like a criminal. They have a police officer stationed at the front door and I got dirty stares from the three sales women as if to say, «What are you doing here?» (Side note: my friend and I were the only two shoppers in the store so I’m not sure why they needed four people working a.k.a. sitting there vacantly… seems like a bad business model.) I noticed they had a good selection of J Brand and Rag & Bone denim and I’ve been in the market for new jeans so I picked out a few pairs and headed to the dressing room.
In my experience at other boutique shops, an attendant will introduce themselves, set you up in a dressing room, ask if you need help, etc. Not at Bop. I ended up showing myself to a dressing room. About 30 seconds later, one of the sales women had appeared and asked through the curtain «If I could please put my purse outside of the dressing room.» Mind you, my purse was a small cross body that can barely fit a phone and wallet let alone fit a pair of jeans in it. Like I said… they treat you like a criminal. I complied and dropped my bag outside my room. I tried on each pair and showed my friend how they fit and not once was I offered help to find another size or color. The woman literally just sat there and didn’t even try to hide the fact that she was watching me for shoplifting.
Even though I found a pair of great J Brand jeans I liked for $ 190, I decided I did not want to give revenue to a business that treated me so poorly. I ended up finding the exact same pair of jeans on
for $ 60 less. My advice to Bop: If you’re expecting shoppers to spend $ 100+ on clothing, you should offer good customer service.

I’ve spent my fair share of time and money at Bop. Yes, ladies, this is the original (and I believe, the only) Bop retail outlet. This is the flagship brick and mortar store of the amazingness that is
.
That being said, the store is *fine*…it’s not overly special or stocked with a very wide variety of labels that you can find online, but honestly, that’s to be expected. It’s a small shop with a decent selection of jeans, sweater, tops, cocktail dresses, accessories, etc. I’ll agree with other reviewers that some of the staff can be «aloof.» These staff members aren’t particularly friendly or interested but I attribute that to the potential buzzed college kids walking into their shop filled with $ 200 denim. Mind you, there have been some ladies who are more than friendly, so take that for what it’s worth.
You’ll find high quality items here and if you can time your visit with a sale, you can score bigger and faster than Bucky playing Indiana at Camp Randall.

In short, Bop has an awesome selection of designer clothes but not so awesome customer service. The employees spend most of their time gossiping amongst themselves, which I find rather annoying. If I cared about that kind of drama I would go home and watch Gossip Girl. I live less than a mile away but if I want something from Bop I get it online.

Yes it’s expensive here but you can find totally unique pieces that you won’t find anywhere else in Madison. Also you can buy staple pieces that will be in your wardrobe for years! I have a pair of jeans from here from 2003 and they are still kicking, a little faded but still fabulous. Quality over Quantity wins over in my book.
Half of the staff over the years have been friendly and half are rude with a pretentious attitude. Meh. they don’t bother me that much as long as they do their job. I don’t expect someone who gets paid near minimum wage to jump off their seats to cater to me unless I ask for it, on the other hand I expect to be treated with respect if I do ask for help.
I’m giving it 3 stars for the uniqueness, selection, quality, and cleanliness of the place. It loses a star for the dressing rooms: most of the time the curtains don’t quite cover for modesty (not just women in the dressing room area, they allow boyfriends/​husbands too). It loses another star for the somewhat pretentious attitude of the staff. I remember a sales girl (young, brunette, East coast accent) tossing a pair of jeans at me when I asked her for a different size, and avoided eye contact with me when I talked to her. Not a huge deal but definitely puts a damper on my shopping experience.
I like that Bop is on State Street. State Street is riddled with a lot of bargain shops and it needs a higher end alternative. I hope the shop survives the tough area and sticks around for the long haul!

Love this sweet little spot filled with unique trends along with a few stable must haves.
Yes, it’s pricey, but most durable, quality name brands are. It’s perfect for a treat to myself or a gift for others.
And the staff is super helpful… always a plus when you’re buying gifts to have an honest second opinion.

I was visiting granddaddy Jackson with my special lady this past weekend and she informed me that Bop is THE place to shop in Madison (If you a lady of course). Now, my experience differs greatly from some of the Negative Nancy’s down below. My lady and I aren’t rich by any means. In fact, we had polished off some Taco Bell prior to stopping at Bop. Sh**t, I even had on a do-​rag! None of the sales girls were bitchy or rude to us and they helped my girl find just the right pair of J Brands to accent her sweet booty. They all chatted with us, not just our main sales girl, (who was dressed like whoa btw!) and even suggested a sweet spot where we could get us a sexy mojito and some chimichangas. My girl was more than happy with her Bop experience, and if she’s happy, I’m happy. We’re from NYC and she says this is one of her top 3 favorite stores in all the US of A! All I gotta say is, if you go into Bop (or anywhere for that matter) with a bad attitude, you’re going to have an unpleasant experience. Even if you aren’t a fine lady, you might still like Bop because the designers are HOT and the sales girls are super fine.

I am pretty devoted to shopbop and bop. I really love the personalized help the girls offer that work there. The sales girls do not try to pressure you into buying anything. If something doesn’t look the greatest or they can tell you are hesitating, they will be honest and will say, we can do better… and then bring back different options to try. The store itself, is unlike anything else in the area, they sell high end clothing, with definitely a college vibe. They have limited size runs and selections, which can be a bummer if they are out of your size, but also can make you feel good that not everyone will be wearing the same dress or top (the feeling I get if I shop at larger retailers) and if I am looking for something and they don’t have my size, they have helped me find what I was looking for — even if it isn’t located at their store or website, they’ll search other retailers like neimans, saks, etc. or write down the product style/​name for me.
I have never experienced the poor customer service that other reviewers mentioned, the only thing I can think is that many madisonians are not used to small upscale boutiques and it might be intimidating at first, but once you walk in and actually take the sales girls up on their offer when they ask, if you need help finding something — you will be instantly more comfortable and find what you are looking for.

Some great clothes and great bags– but I agree that the employees could use some upgrading. As soon as you walk in they seem unhappy you came. Whatever! Okay selection, terrible customer service.

I am a religious devotee of this store’s online counterpart– Shop​Bop​.Com and I was so stoked to find it in Madison. I don’t live here, but I’m on a business trip and this was the perfect way to spend my rainy day. The best part is, unlike the online shop, you get the perks of browsing through return items that have been worn, damaged, or somehow else marked as flawed– today I bought a pair of Tucker silk harem pants for $ 25 dollars that were sold originally for $ 282. Also bought a James Perse slub cotton jersey dress for under $ 70 dollars. The shop is cute and clean and it was very interesting to see how a lot of items looked in real life versus online– plus, I think some of the models were working in the store– weird!
Anyway, of course its expensive, but it’s a shock that it’s in a city like Madison (even though Mad is very cute). If you’re into high-​fashion and searching for something a bit more metropolitan than small-​town boutiques, head here.
Also, the online store is freaking amazing. I could spend my whole paycheck and more there (and I sometimes do).
Cheers, Bop.

This is an unfortunate situation because I think this place really has potential and great sales. The website is put together nicely, but I can not help but notice that management or the owners have completely forgot about their business endeavor. I walk in this Saturday more than half of the store has NOT FOR SALE signs everywhere. I have worked in fashion for many years and have never experienced the lack of professionalism. There was two girls sitting on the side gossiping while I was the only person who was attempting to try on clothes. but do not let me bother you, with your actual job. Then after I made my way to the front, there was three girls at the register play fighting. I mean c’mon where is the management? where is the customer service. If you are going to pay 300+ for a piece of clothing you expect a certain level of customer service. Get your act together guys!

While the store is slightly cramped and small, I can’t begin to say how much I love love love their selection. Where else in Madison can you find such a plethora of fantastic designers under one roof? I love that I can actually go and try the clothes on, usually you can only find these things on the internet and have to guess at sizes and what something really looks like.
I bought a fabulous purse there and while it cost me a pretty penny, I don’t regret how wonderful it makes me feel. Their jean selection is great too. The sales girls are nice and helpful and I don’t ever feel like I’m being pushed into buying something or being followed like some high-​end stores.

Bop is a great store to have in Madison as they carry a lot of labels that you would normally have to drive to Chicago for. They also give customized service… when you actually get service.
I’ve shopped Bop a few times and my main concerns are:
(1) Because it is a smaller clothing store there is really only a limited selection of styles. So that while you may get a high end designer, you may not get the article of clothing from them that you are interested in.
(2) The staff are too aloof. I have walked in on more than one occasion in which the lady behind the counter never even looked up to acknowledge me or have greeted me without taking their eyes off of whatever magazine they are reading.
I’d rather drive to Chicago and get actual customer service along with a better selection when I am paying a premium rate for clothing.

I grew up in Mad-​town and this was by far my fav place to shop way back when. I still hit it up when I’m in town but since their website is the basis of most of their business the majority of the stuff you see on there won’t be in the store. Still love it tho!

Pricey indeed, but world-​class brand selection; incidentally the ONLY store in the state of Wisconsin to be included in the Lucky Guide to Shopping, if you’re a follower of that sort of thing.
Their sales are sometimes solid (think Diesel and the denim collection generally), but their online incarnation
has a better selection.

bop is so over-​the-​top ridiculous. the prices are outlandish for the very little fabric you’re actually buying. i’ve been in there a couple of times and feel like i’ve entered an alternate world: a land where it makes sense to spend $ 80 on a tube top covered in cheap rhinestones, a land where the employees believe customers should be discouraged from buying their clothes by sending them sneering glares, a land where they forget their neighbors are pizzeria uno and fair trade coffeehouse.
ugh.

This locally-​owned clothing store has a global market and it often deatured in top fashipn mags. This place is a favorite of Greek girls and JAPS (jewish-​american princesses) and the prices reflect this. Everything is big city expensive and they have all the top brands… Seven jeans, Citzens of Humanity, L.A.M.B…a little taste of New York right on State street… just be ready to be made feel like a second class citizen if the employees don’t think you’ve got the cash to afford their clothing. 4 stars.