American Apparel

American Apparel is one of those stores I like to stop in every now and then and fantasize about being able to wear their clothing. Most things in there are skin tight, cropped, or cater to women with a bust size that is no larger than a B, if that. I love the way that their clothing looks — super simple and modern, with just enough flair to keep it from looking plain and dull. However, if a short, slightly chubby girl like me was to wear their clothing? I’d come out looking like a sausage bursting out of its casing — not exactly the most flattering unless you’ve got a thing for bratwurst.
That being said, I do enjoy this store. It’s well organized, plus they’ve got tons of stock without getting overwhelming or cluttered. They’ve got a decently sized mens section too, which is nice. Usually in smaller stores the men get shunted into a tiny corner to do their shopping, so it’s nice to see a lot more being offered for them here.
I took away stars because I’ve been here numerous times and I’ve never once been greeted by a staff member. They seem to just ignore my existence. Even when I was on my tip toes struggling to paw down an item, they just stayed where they were and didn’t offer any assistance. I also took down stars because the store caters to a certain body type and if you are that body type, then everything is going to look awesome on you. If you aren’t that body type… don’t even bother, unless you want to take a huge blow to the body image.

I try to shop consciously. American Apparel leaves me in a very tricky position, always. Either I can shop at Forever 21, where shirts cost $ 5, because they’re factory made outside of the US, or I can shop at AA, where shirts cost $ 20 or more, because they’re made in North America, but the company has had all kinds of lawsuits against it from former employees. Hmm.
Yet I keep coming back to AA. Casual tees (I once had an old flame tell me that the black American Apparel tee I was wearing was his favourite piece of clothing I owned. Seriously? Not like, a nice dress I spent $ 200 on?! But I digress), tanks, hoodies, and lately even more hipster-​y items bodysuits and harem pants.
It’s a handy store to have on Whyte — I often swing by as part of my shopping route. And even if the prices are higher than F21 (I know, you’re like, Britt we get it, you love Forever 21), this shop is still less expensive than a lot of other stores along Whyte.
Credit to the staff here, too — even if you’re not into their look specifically, they all do a great job of repping the store by dressing exclusively in AA duds.

Glad to see a company come along to bring the manufacturing back to North America. If I’m not shopping here, I’m usually buying from another company who stocks American Apparel for their graphic t-​shirts. I’m generally not a fan of wearing logos of any kind. If I choose to express a fandom of one type of another, I like to keep it low key. American Apparel helps me do just that.
The quality of customer service here is touch and go. There’s been times where I had great customer service, and other times where the employees didn’t acknowledge me at all. So for that, I docked one star.
But overall, a great place to shop for local.

I’m a big fan of American Apparel in general and this location is no exception. In fact, I particularly like this one. I like that that this store is always well organized and even though it’s fairly small, they still manage to fit TONS of merchandise in here without it looking cluttered.
One thing I really appreciate about American Apparel is that the employees really seem to enjoy their work. They all know the products inside and out and don’t hesitate to offer suggestions. Plus I never feel like they’re being too «hard-​sell», just helpful. Last time I came here, a girl told me flat-​out that she didn’t like the way a dress looked on me but brought me a different one that she thought would look better. She was totally right and I ended up buying the one that she suggested.
I really like how American Apparel has really diversified the clothing they sell in recent years without sacrificing their roots. Most of the clothes are still mono-​colour pieces that are great for layering. However, while most of their clothes used to be cotton, they now sell a wide variety of styles and fabrics. It’s definitely my go-​to store when I need a basic piece in a specific colour.

There are some things I like about American Apparel. I like the fact that they make all their clothes in the US, and that they use average sized girls for their campaigns (although, a bit risqué at best). I like how you can get good-​quality basics here… so for that I applaud them.
What I don’t like about this particular store is that the staff aren’t very helpful. You need to know what your buying and where it is before you go in there, because good luck asking a clerk. They’ll just toss you that hipster stink eye for a second and change the song to something you’ve probably never heard before and toss you that «You’re still standing here?» glance… maybe this was just my experience…
Anyways, in my honest opinion, this store is where our grandparents would shop if they decided to reinvent their sexy side in their mid-70’s.

American Apparel gets my vote for plain yet interesting clothing. Other than the petticoats, everything is well constructed.
But… I’ve noticed that a good fraction of their clothes are extra tiny. Extra large seems to fit a size 4 or 6… what the heck? This isn’t the runway, people. I have a dress from American Apparel that fits fine but some of their dresses won’t go over my head. Points off for inconsistent sizing.
Also, the prices are kind of «what the heck» as well. T-​shirts are decent prices, most stuff is just over what I consider to be a reasonable maximum, and some things are just randomly expensive. A mono-​colored poly-​cotton sweater should not be $ 100, sorry.
That being said, I do like the clothing I have bought here and the pieces I have are pretty much staples in my wardrobe due to the simplicity/​versatility.

While I am a fan of over priced cotton cardigan sweaters, deep v neck shirts and sizes that fit perfectly. I’m not much of a fan of the «stuck in the 80/​70s» motif nor a fan of the people who work there (in general) and I say that as an observation from visiting several stores in the west coast of the US and Canada. Employees always seem aloof and not very excited to help you out unless you ask. It felt like I was interrupting their 8 hour lunch break and burdenening them to actually think. Moreover, the return policies of this chain overall is annoying: if you don’t like you can only get store credit It goes the same with shopping online and customer service: not very bright and you really have to know the size you want and returns have to be made back to the online store. Overall, an awful place for knowledgeable service, gifts, and customer satisfaction, but a great place if you like cute clothes that are rather plain.

The clothing at American Apparel is very plain but somehow it comes across with personality and style. It’s plain but not boring, it’s stylish but it doesn’t try to hard.
The clothing is comfortable and fits great. The clothes come across as striking but not distracting. It’s a great place to shop for clothes if you enjoy good style. The prices aren’t steep and the staff is really friendly.
You should make regular stops here.

I’m very split on this store. I like everything here because it is of solid colour — no weird patterns, no random pictures on my t-​shirt. Looking of a grey sweater? Come here. They will have 10 to choose from.
The prices here are pretty decent as well — nothing is too over priced, but nothing is super cheap either. Everything sort of feel hand made. I know it isn’t, but everything has that feeling to it.
The staff here can be… a little bizarre though. I have been in here on more than one occasion and seen a man in tights and very very short shorts. It was not very pleasant. It seemed as though he was working off the skanky fashion style of the 70’s.
Other than the weird choices of the staff, this place is an awesome store to go to to find some nice comfy sweaters or relaxed t-​shirts.
Just watch out for the man in the short shorts.

This place is. .. interesting. I think I have some mixed review about American Apparel. So the have men’s, children and women’s clothing. Their children’s section is really small and they mostly sell accessories like tights or leggings. The women and men’s selection are pretty big. They have a lot of stuff to look through so it’s nice to just walk along slowly and see what American’s are wearing these days. After going into this store I’m not so sure what American’s are wear these days.
Okay, so I guess I’ll start with the items, on the women’s side, that I really liked and I could see myself wearing. They have really nice and comfortable A line skirts that come in some different colors; I really liked the green and purple ones. Oh, they have these really comfortable spring/​summer dresses made from T-​shirt material (I don’t know if that’s the best way to describe it), but you can make about six or so different looks with just one dress. It really cool! Oh and if it’s not short enough the material is one at you can cut yourself and you don’t need to worry about it unraveling or anything. They have some interesting tights in regular colors but also in tide-​dyed colors. Oh, I almost forgot, they have some these really cool things called circle scarfs that can be made into about four different looks. They are also unisex, so guys these have some ones for you to choose from. They also have these really nice, comfortable and warm looking leggings that go up to your thigh. They look really nice.
What I didn’t really care for was some of their style of tights, spandex and undergarments. They came is crazy colors, which is fine but I wouldn’t wear them. Their underwear was the kind that just allowed you to say that you were wearing something underneath your clothes but really they didn’t cover anything. Whatever, its nothing I would personally wear, but they were sure interesting.
The woman who was working there was really nice, friendly and helpful. The store was a good size and it was filled with a lot of items. Oh and I almost forgot, they carried larger sizes so there seems like there is something for everybody.

This store takes you back to a time when brand names weren’t plastered across everyone’s clothing, back with leggings, head and wrist bands were cool and you weren’t a nerd if you pulled up your socks to your knees with your Richard Simmons shorts. What I like about this place is it offers a generic and less expensive option for trendy fashions of our times. In fact, it’s got it’s own style — solid, colourful, layered, baggy and tight, belted, hip-​hugging, unisex, androgynous, very male and very female.
American Apparel has a look for everyone — and if you just need a cheap tee in a particular colour, you’ll find it here in the size and style you want. I once tried on a sweater vest at a shop down the street and they gave me a $ 75 dollar white t-​shirt to try on with it. I laughed when I saw the price. Are you kidding me?! So I bought the vest and went on down to American Apparel and found a cute cap-​sleeved white tee that worked perfectly for $ 16!

Whoa. I was blasted into the early 80s (late 70s), when I walked into American Apparel. Fashions from Flashdance, Solid Gold, Madonna – it was all there! There were crazy tight spandex shorts and pants in glittery gold, hot pink, and electric blue. How about a shimmery body suit or a pair of white leggings… or knee high sport socks?
This stuff is cool, but my question is: who is going to wear this stuff? I can’t imagine seeing anyone at the YMCA working out in a silver track jacket and ass-​tight shorts. Okay, maybe some people will. I don’t know, but I will admit that I have the desire to buy an entire glittery gold spandex outfit just to work out in at home. I mean, how cool, right?
What I’d also like to see are guys wearing more American Apparel-​like underwear. They have the traditional whitey-​tighteys in lime green, hot pink, and all the crazy colours. I find these sexy for some reason.
Although American Apparel has some cool clothes, and I like the fact that they do not plaster brand names all over their clothes, I dislike that the sizes run small and that some of the quality seems cheap. I’ll probably never buy anything here, except for those crazy high socks – those are cool… and maybe that glittery gold spandex outfit. Oh yeah!

I like American Apparel because their style is so unique and different from other stores, and you know you’re not buying clothing made in sweat shops somewhere in Southeast Asia. They always strike me as sort of hippie and retro-​ish, with the bright colours and all that stretchy spandex material. But their clothes are super comfy (even their underwear is comfy), and the colours add a little pizzazz to your wardrobe.
The prices aren’t that bad either, for the quality and comfort you’re getting. While it’s a few more bucks than what I’d like to pay, it’s still worth it. I got a pair of yoga pants and a mini-​dress from American Apparel once, and they’re now staple items in my wardrobe. I also love their tanktops; they’re so comfortable, and they come in various styles and lengths so you can wear them with different outfits.
They have some of the shiniest and most colourful leggings I’ve ever seen. If I wanted to look like Madonna in the 80’s, this would be the place to go. They also have a special wrap dress that you can wear in several different ways, which is pretty cool. It’s like getting five dresses for the price of one! They have diagrams available too, that show you how to put it on various ways.
American Apparel also carries men’s clothing, a little more subdued than the women’s section. They have accessories like suspenders, wallets, and arm bands as well. I definitely recommend American Apparel if you’re into consciencious shopping and comfortable fashion.