Supermarket giant Tesco has announced this week that it will be opening a stand alone F&F Clothing store. The store will be located in London’s West End, where retail rent is among highest in the world, and have looked at potential sites on both Kensington High Street and shopping epicentre, Oxford Street. This is the next step in clothing retail for Tesco, who launched an independent online store in 2009, following the footsteps of rival Asda’s clothing range George, which went online in 2008. Tesco look to be proving their worth against George, whose independent stores shut down after 4 years of struggle, with Asda announcing that “the economics just didn’t add up.” But Tesco has been increasingly trying to grab the attention of the usual brand of shopper on the high street- not just people nipping in to do their weekly shop. It develops on the arrival of Tesco’s F&F Couture range; a collection of 16 pieces with prices up to £140 with eye-catching designs and intricate details, made from bespoke fabrics and textures. The Pagoda dress is the key piece of the collection, which comes in both grey and purple, but their Extreme Denim Jacket is a gorgeous stand out piece, and at £75 it isn’t quite the kind of thing you snap up with your milk and bread. Tesco is clearly trying to up the ante in its competition with Asda’s George range. Both supermarkets have been coming up with innovative new ideas in an attempt to cash-in on the success of cheap, disposable fashion shops such as Primark and Peacocks. Back in 2008, Asda was the third largest clothing retailer by volume (behind Primark and Marks and Spencers), and Asda is now the second biggest retailer in the “value sector”, after Primark, with Tesco trailing in 5^th place after TK Maxx and New Look. Asda, back in 2009, launched a range of between-size jeans and soon after released a dress with a tummy-control panel; both priced below £30. It has also announced a range of Asian-inspired clothing to reach out to new markets.

Supermarket shopping in itself has changed over the years. Now you can grab a TV, a mobile phone and even car insurance while you nip in on a Sunday afternoon, but I am still unsure about supermarket clothing. The styles seem to be improving, but there is still much to be desired regarding quality. But you can argue that if I wanted quality I should get out of Tesco and onto Fifth Avenue..While supermarkets argue their case for “fashion democracy”- prices everyone can afford, and “cheap desirable fashion” I remain unconvinced. I work in Asda part time over the holidays and always have a peek in George and come back disappointed. And that is in the biggest Asda superstore in Europe. Although, I have just ordered a lovely nautical playsuit from George Online that I couldn’t resist, so maybe times are changing. Perhaps F&F and George will soon be prominent features on our high street. What do you think of supermarket clothing?

image credit: dailytelegraph.co.uk