Poundstretcher

Finally. Another shopping Mecca that quenches my bargain hunter thirst. (Don’t worry Aldi, I still love you too)
Gawd damn I love this shop! I initially came in here on a punt, in search of some fold up chairs incase of any spontaneous, hungry diners showing up at my humble abode. Found some extremely comfy, tasteful ones for about £7 each. Brillopad. Then I look around and my excitement rises and just about explodes by the time I’ve had a proper look around.
— Gardening stuff (seriously sack off Wyevale and come here. Loads of gardening goodies for half the price or more)
— Homeware
–Toiletries
–Pet food
& more for cheeeeap!
Be excited people. I am.

I love this place. Unlike the 99p store further up London Road, Poundstretcher doesn’t have pretensions of being some kind of supermarket. Its all jumbled up and higgeldy piggeldy, so that you can walk around the corner from a bird feeder and find yourself examining the tog factor of a duvet. Personally I love it. It reeks of budget so much that it generates its own charm about itself. I generally found myself considering investing in some glass digital bathroom scales for just £10, and when I saw they were reduced to £8, it was only the realisation that I haven’t weighed myself since I’ve been at uni, and probably won’t be compelled to in the next year that stopped me from running to the counter and giggling like a little girl.
There’s of course those items that are cheap for a reason, as my now rusted Baking tray is more than happy to point out, but there are the genuine artefacts for insanely low prices too. I found a lovely canvas image of New York for only £7 that has been gifted to my Manhattan loving friend. I kind of wish I was moving into a student house again, as the amount of good cheap furniture that they have here would have certainly been a welcome addition to the house when we moved in… But still there’s always my next home!

This place is full of messy stacks of goods of various kinds… from TVs to wicker baskets and everything in between.
Downstairs is a useful garden section and some cheap foods and toiletries, and upstairs lots of general homewares and a kids section.
Every time I’ve moved house I’ve ended up heading here for cheap household goods — and while it might not be the highest quality, it’s not utter tat either, which for the prices they charge is really all you can expect.

Oh I could tell you some inside stories about Poundstretcher; the underground dungeons and the goblins who stretch pounds all day long, whilst being whipped by evil, dark lords, the asbestos filled kids toys etc. etc.
But…they wouldn’t be true, even if sometimes you might suspect there is something quite dark to the Poundstretcher underbelly. My mate works there, and nothing of the sort actually happens, although I do hear stories that involve people stealing stuff quite often, but that’s about it.
Digital frying pan anyone? No? Why ever not??? Etc. etc. etc.
But on the more practical side, they sell really cheap pepperm for like 70p and it grinds like a beauty.

Poundstretcher is by far my favourite of the London Rd discount stores. I think it has something to do with the fact that every item is NOT 99p! Although everything is cheap, the prices vary and so the quality varies accordingly. Don’t get me wrong, nothing in this shop is going to last you a lifetime and some of it is definitely substandard, as we’ve come to expect from cheapo shops… but there is also some perfectly okay items. Last summer I bought a pair of peep-​toe flats here that I actually really like and fully expect to see me through next summer too! They cost me about £1.99 and I ore them most days for most of the summer… that’s value for money!
Although the ground floor seems to be full of seasonal decorations (this place is great for Halloween costumes and accessories), sweets and tacky stationary, the upstairs is home to more substantial items and you can find some pretty reasonable stuff. Crockery, Tupperware and wicker bins are all cheap and of perfectly acceptable quality. Towels, bath mats and cleaning equipment all also pass the test. Some things just don’t need to be pretty and expensive… Poundstretcher is the place to get these practical household items.