Junction One

Junction one is an ‘Outlet’ centre. A place where high prices go to die. Some notable and should places like the Nike factory shop and Gap outlet offer good value for quality goods, but other shops require a lot more searching to find something that is worth parting with your hard earned cash for.
The Next shop is just one of those that require a bit more effort to find an item of clothing you would actually wear. Having said that if you are looking for a ridiculous item to force someone to wear after they have lost a bet, give gere a try!
Marks and Spencer also get into the outlet spirit with some garish outfits but prices don’t seem to that better on practical items that you would find in more city centre locations.
In summary this retail park can be a bit hit or miss, if you do want to check it out make sure you’re in a bargain hunter mood.

Junction one seems to have had better days. There are too many vacant outlets for it to feel worth a trip of more than 20 minutes. Sadly it more than 20 minutes from Belfast, or there abouts. I call in when driving about for work takes me past here to use it more like a motorway service station and call in to one of the coffee places like Starbucks or Costa. Some of the shops that are here aren’t too bad and if you are passing is probably worth calling in for a look. I just wouldn’t go out of my way to go. It’s much like an out of town shopping centre because it has primarily big name shops all in one out of town location. A difference being though that the individual shops are of a larger standard ‘outlet’ size. Also as the mall area between and around the shops isn’t covered it isn’t always suited to our weather!

I remember when I first set foot in this shopping extravaganza and I thought «wow this is the future». It was one of the first weekends that it was opened. You could not move for shopping bags, excited children and more shopping bags. We thus returned within months of our first visit and the place was like a ghost town that had lost it’s ghost. The staff looked dreadfully bored and the entire complex seemed like a massive waste of space. And so I never returned.
That is until recently…
Dum dum daahhmm!
Turned out there was like at least ten people! AAH! More shopping bags than I could literally carry in one hand! Wild!
Look I think to have something like this is impressive. A shopping complex on a road that doesn’t really have anything else worth reviewing. So it brightens the place up. Gets a few tourists in. Etc etc.
But realistically, there is nothing ground breaking in this. In fact there is nothing in this that makes you go… «oh my gosh I just HAVE to go there right now!» It is a pretty standard, pretty average, pretty place full of pretty average shops that seem to crop up wherever there is a carpark outside and customer toilets inside.
Worth one or two visits. But that’s really the height of it.

Junction One both thrills and depresses me at the same time.
Hear me out — the shopper in me loves a bargain and there are lots to be had out here (they’re always shouting about 60% off), but a lot of the shops just don’t do it for me.
The highlight for me is the cosmetics store, but it’s pot luck as to whether you actually find anything in there (and if you do, whether you’re saving enough to have covered the cost of petrol out there!). There’s also a Next sale shop, but I’m not a Next person, so it takes a lot of hoking before I’ll find anything in there! The M&S is quite dire — all fluorescent lighting and nighties your granny would struggle to find appealing. There are also some shops that you only find in outlet centres.

Junction One is my kinda shopping experience… cheap, easy to get around, and tons of wonderful shops all in the same area. Heaven for most girls, and even for some guys (my dad’s a huge fan, but he doesn’t like to openly admit it).
This place has really taken off since its opening in six years ago. Us poor Norn Ironers now wonder what the heck we were doing paying full price for all those clothes /​shoes /​accessories /​cosmetics /​other bits and bobs when you can get up to 60% off such things in Junction One. I’ve gotten so many things here over the years, many from shops which are long since gone (RIP Logo… darn that recession), and for really genuinely good prices. Ones to definitely check out are Next Clearance (no changing rooms is the only let down here), All Wellan Good (*really* cheap makeup and toiletries), Cosmetics Company (top brands such as Bobby Brown and Elizabeth Arden feature here, but you’ll get them for a good bit cheaper than on the high street), Mexx and Tom Tailor.
Unfortunately, as I previously mentioned, a few shops have closed over the years, including the awesome Ralph Lauren store and Pilot.
One other slightly negative note is that the cafes are really quite expensive… no 60% bargains to be had in these!
All in all, a tremendous shopping experience, and one which you won’t regret.

Junction One is Antrim’s very own answer to international outlet shopping. A visit down here means a look around over 70 shops and 10 food places. It may take a while, but if you plan it right then you can spend a great day here nosying at all the brilliant bargains and wonderful wares. My personal favourites are the Next, Clockwork Orange, Mexx, M&S outlets and the lovely shoe shop, which name escapes me (Pavers maybe?) but from where I bought my favourite all time shoes, they are simply beautiful. The shoe shop is worth the trip alone. For shoe addicts anyway! For make up lovers there is a brilliant discount shop which has the best prices I’ve seen anywhere, last time I was here we even got some free samples of old stock. For all other regular shoppers, you can find a brilliant 60% off in some shops which I could hardly believe, but it’s true, go see for yourself! There’s even Tax Free Shopping in participating stores. There’s free parking, a kids area, it’s open all week, oh come on, how many more reasons could you need to visit! Get down here now!

Junction 1 is all about managing your expectations. The first time I visited, I had just been to the US and been on a serious spree in one of the outlet malls there. I went to Junction 1 expecting the same kind of unbelievable bargains there, especially as Belfast’s first Ralph Lauren store had just opened there. Big mistake. You just don’t get those kind of crazy prices anywhere but in the states. So, with my expectations of bargains managed right down, I made a second visit and was very impressed with both the range of shops and the prices.
The best buys are to be found in M&S and the Next outlets, as well as Gap, Levis and Mexx. You’ll get prices which are about half of what you would pay in the high street shops, but you may be buying goods that are a season or two old. As long as you’re not looking for high fashion, there are savings to be made. M&S underwear, Next shoes, Gap clothes for children and jeans are all good choices and sadly the Ralph Lauren store has closed down. Maybe it was too expensive to do any business?
The whole environment at Junction 1 is really pleasant, beautifully landscaped ‘streets’ and lots of open space, very much in the style of my beloved US outlet malls. There are plenty of places to bolster your energy reserves for round two of shopping — M&S café, Starbucks, Subway and Moe’s Café which does very good scones.
It’s not really a place to take the kids, although if you have to, you could bribe them with a visit to Adventure Island, an indoor play area. Sadly you can’t drop them off there and collect them 3 hours later, you have to actually stay with them. Now there’s a niche in the market if ever I saw one.