kids clothing stores - Aeropostale, Abercrombie, etc

[sTINKS]

My oldest is just starting out in bigger kids clothing, and am wondering about quality and sizing of stores like Abercrombie & Fitch, P.S. from Aeropostale, Justice....Is it crap or worth it? Any sizing advice - large, small, slimmer fits? Does it wash okay, or wrinkle up and fade? I have really liked GAP Kids quality wise, and don't like Old Navy for anything other than jeans.

 

[StitchBuddy]

We started with Aeropostale, they have awesome sales. Not sure how old your child is, but my DD was about 11 when she started shopping there. She liked Justice too, but it was pricey in my opinion and I never really liked their clothing. She didn't start shopping at Holister and Abercrombie until last year in 7th grade about half way through and then it has to be on sale and I usually make her ask for giftcards for Christmas and birthday to buy things in these stores.

 

[kirstenb1]

The cotton that aber and hollister use is crazy soft!!! I wish I could buy my clothes there!!! Aero is cheaper, but still a hot commodity in dd's middle school. DD was done with Justice by 5th grade.

There's a lot of pressure on kids. Kind of reminds me of when I was a kid and I had to have Gloria Vanderbilt or Calvin Klein jeans, an alligator shirt, and Sperries, no socks.

 

[kirstenb1]

Forgot to add, my way to budget is, dd can buy tops from aber and hollister, but jeans are no more than 19.99 levi's.

 

[descovy]

I'll tell you a secret. I work at a Target, right next to Justice. I went into Justice one day after work (in my red-n-khakis) trying to find some things for my daughters.

The very trendy teenagers (working the register) were all "OMG! I love Target! Everything's so cute there! I shop there all the time!"

I figure if Target is good enough for 16 year olds with their own spending money, it is good enough for my tween-teens trying to spend my money.

As far as Aero, Abercrombie, I follow the same shopping choices as I did for myself in high school. If I am going to spend the $$ for name brand, I am going to plaster that "name brand" all over the hoodie, tee shirt, jeans, whatever. But the cami, undershirt, plain, no label white tee... we're buying Target thank you very much.

I would worry about fit... but not so much about quality. Teenagers have fickle tastes. They're not going to wear anything long enough to wear it out

Platos closet, neighbors, friends, resale shops are great places to find stuff too! Don't spend and arm and a leg on that trendy stuff... especially in the name of "quality."

 

[Desnik]

I have a DD who is 12 and shops or has shopped at the stores you mentioned. Justice clothing is crap and not worth it unless you have one of those 40% off coupons. The clothing is of poor quality and doesn't wash well.

Aeropostale has ok quality and is worth it for the price because they always have really good sales.

P.S. from Aeropostale is of the same quality.

Abercrombie is high quality and has the prices to reflect that! The clothing is so soft too! Everything washes so well and the clothing lasts. DH and I actually shop there too! We all love it and feel it is worth the price. Their other store, Hollister has similar clothing but not as good quality, but still pretty good and the prices are a bit cheaper. The only thing is their tshirts don't wear well over time, they get pilly. Aero is actually better for t's than Hollister but Abercrombie is the best, IMHO.

We still love the Gap but DD only gets her jeans there now.

Abercrombie does run small, so does Hollister, but Abercrombie does have a kid store.

 

[disfan07]

I think that the best quality is American Eagle.

I shopped at Aeropostale when I was in middle school and yes you can get them cheap but they are crap.

With my American Eagle clothes, I could go a year or more without having to replace most of what I buy there because they stay in great condition. Right now I am actually wearing a shirt I got form there last summer and it still looks and fits great.

By signing up for the all access card plus email notifications and sales, I have gotten shirts for les sthan $10, jeans for $25, sweatshirts for $25, etc. My bag I use for college is from there also. I got it on sale for $10. It has lasted an entire year and I plan on using it again this year.

My cousin is 12 and absolutely loves AE

Personally, I would never pay the prices at Abercrombie.

 

[phamy76]

My son is 10 and loves Aeropostale.
I took him yesterday and they were having a 50% off sale. AWESOME!
The clothes last. No problems with early rips/tears.

 

[dawson5]

I have three boys 17, 14 and 12 (along with niece and nephews close to the same ages). I have the best luck with american eagle and hollister. They all have various things from all those stores and those two seem to hold up best. You just missed a sale posted on here, I picked up american eagle jeans for $11, t's from $5-10 and free shipping.

Middle and oldest son have hoodies and t's that are around three years old, the AE and Hollister have held up great (have long sleeve shirts also, they don't get the wear like the t's & hoodies). The aeropostale, ripped out and was thin, could not pass that along to the youngest. We had a few A&F, did not like the way the polo's fit.

Do you have an outlet mall nearby? We had also found some great deals in there.

 

[powellrj]

Another American Eagle fan here. Areo clothes are cheaper, but they don't last as long and it really isn't considered one of the better brands. Its kind of like Old Navy.

The kids like A&F and Hollister, but we don't have one at our mall, so while they wear it when we can get it, American Eagle is just more convenient. We also do better at Goodwill than we do at Platos closet.

My middle DS likes to wear Express and we have found lots of new with tags things at Goodwill and also lots of Polo and Lacoste which are the brands he likes since he went to college. Find an area with lots of young professionals in the area and thats where we tend to find them.

 

[NMW]

I buy my boys a lot from Hollister and American Eagle. They both prefer Hollister over Abercrombie. Abercrombie owns Hollister, it's kind of a surf themed line and slightly cheaper. Kind of like Banana Republic owns Gap and that's slightly cheaper. I prefer Abercrombie over Hollister, but the kids disagree with me.

All 3 stores make good quality clothing. I have never had anything not wash and wear well.

My boys have some shirts from Aero but it is not their favorite.

My DD is only 8 and still loves the Gap and Justice, so I can't really comment on a middle school girl. Although, I imagine that she'll like the same stores as her brothers in middle school.

Oh, and I agree with the poster about the jeans. I refuse to pay $90 on jeans that my 14 year old will outgrow before the year is up at Abercrombie. He has jeans from American Eagle and Hollister, but they are Christmas/birthday gifts or he buys them with gift cards from Christmas. American Eagle often has jeans sales like buy one get one 50% off. They are just as nice as Hollister jeans...can't tell them apart.

 

[ADisneyQueen]

My dd13 gets all the name brand clothing, but I do not put them in the dryer. The shirts are all so thin, so I usually hang them up to dry and it doesn't take long. I hate when clothing looks worn from the dryer ( little cotton pilling on them), so that's why I do that.

 

[cats mom]

My oldest is just starting out in bigger kids clothing, and am wondering about quality and sizing of stores like Abercrombie & Fitch, P.S. from Aeropostale, Justice....Is it crap or worth it? Any sizing advice - large, small, slimmer fits? Does it wash okay, or wrinkle up and fade? I have really liked GAP Kids quality wise, and don't like Old Navy for anything other than jeans.

I used to buy a ton of Limited 2 clothing, but since they switched over to Justice I think the quality has taken a huge hit. Of course past about 4th-5th grade Justice is so not cool anyway, at least for DD and her friends.

Personally I'd put Aero about on par with Old Navy, and American Eagle on par with Gap.

Definitely add Hollister to your list. They're a bit less spendy than A&F, and my DD can usually find more styles she likes there anyway. I do wish they'd turn the lights up and the music down a bit in that store though. Does that date me or what?

Pac Sun and Tilly's are also popular choices around here for surf & skate wear. Think Roxy, Billabong, Hurley, Fox... those kinds of brands.

Good Luck, it's always such an adventure trying to please both mom and a pre-teen or teen shopper.

Along those lines...
My DD's must have item for b2school this year is a pair of Miss Me jeans. Ackk! I don't suppose anyone has seen those for a halfway decent price anywhere? Please let me in on the secret if you have.


.

 

[Reagan&Co.]

Aeropostale does put their jeans on sale for $19.99 quite a bit. The nice thing about them is that they come in short sizes (unlike many junior brands).

I have had some issues with the quality of thier clothes- a few things ripped after one wash. (3 items out of about 50) The store replaced them for me, no problem.

We buy AE, Hollister, and Abercrombie on sale ONLY. Never had a problem with quality. They seem to run a bit bigger in size.

 

[ceecee]

We buy mostly AE and Aero because it's cheaper and hugely popular around here. Hollister and Aber run REALLY small in my opinion. Justice is out if you are older than 5th grade. Aero seems to be marketing to the much younger crowd with the XS and there are lots of kids now in elementary wearing it so it is going out with the older teens. I hate that, that's exactly what happened to Ltd 2.

 

[Anne34]

Forgot to add, my way to budget is, dd can buy tops from aber and hollister, but jeans are no more than 19.99 levi's.

This is how my kids shop -- they usually buy the tops from the cute stores -- Delia's, Hollister, AE, etc. and then jeans are usually cheaper -- on clearance usually from American Eagle (They have awesome clearance sales! -- I usually buy them online because I can get all the sizes that way)

 

[Whistle]

Aeropostle is having a friends and family sale that ends today. You can shop online and get 33 percent off. The code is on the website. My ds (7th grade) loves Aero!

 

[pixiedustaholic]

I used to buy a ton of Limited 2 clothing, but since they switched over to Justice I think the quality has taken a huge hit. Of course past about 4th-5th grade Justice is so not cool anyway, at least for DD and her friends.

I agree! We loved Limited 2 but once Justice took over, we stopped shopping there. Most of their clothing is geared towards much younger girls now.

Definitely add Hollister to your list. They're a bit less spendy than A&F, and my DD can usually find more styles she likes there anyway. I do wish they'd turn the lights up and the music down a bit in that store though. Does that date me or what?

I feel the same way! I actually have to take the clothes over to one of the spotlights to see them. I'm sure this is not "cool." My dd13 doesn't care to shop in there b/c of the LOUD music. We went a couple of weeks ago and it was ridiculous. She has never even stepped foot into A&F b/c of the loud music and strong cologne/perfume odor that surrounds the entrance. (Her choice.) I'm glad b/c of what I hear about their prices. She usually sticks to Aero or AE.

Oh, and she became a fan of "Welcome to Hollister. Would you like a flashlight?" on FB.

*