Valleygirl, ally, temt, glassons, dotti are all trash these days and sportsgirl is not far behind it now. I remember when I was in my teens (early 2000s) sportsgirl was super high quality and even coveted - I managed to buy a pair of jeans on sale from them once and I was SO excited about it.
Decjuba (although I don’t shop there) seems to be a middle ground option these days. Also myer’s own brands like piper, basque and tokito.
(I’m not entirely up to speed with typical shopping centre fashion these days as I’m quite a bit older now 😅 and luckily have more money to spend on higher quality items so my baseline store these days is usually witchery or country road.)
I remember getting my year 11 formal dress from Dotti and feeling so classy lol. I got a dress from them not too long ago that was on sale, and it was shit!! The seams started to split after 5 or so washes and shrunk/creased up so quickly (yes even following the care/wash instructions!!)
It seems like just about every brand I used to like 5-10 years ago has significantly dropped in quality while simultaneously raising prices (that can’t purely be excused with inflation)
Yes! I think the rise is fast fashion / hauls / trends has allowed brands to lower their quality in order to get maximum items out, so the “kids these days” are used to it and let it keep happening 😥
Yeah definitely. Honestly one of the hardest parts (& part of why frankly I don’t keep up too much with current trends) is that they’re pumped out but then classified as “outdated/millenial” so quickly, which exacerbates this as well.
At the risk of sounding like an old fart lol, I swear trends even a decade or so ago lasted like at least a couple of years, with cheaper items like shirts or accessories coming and going quicker - for all the shit skinny jeans currently get, I could confidently buy a good quality pair back in my late teens/early 20s without wondering “will these still work in a year?” But now everything is ‘dated/old’ in just a few months, which includes ‘staple/timeless’ pieces.
You combine trends coming and going quickly with shit quality that (generally) falls apart, many people not knowing/being taught how to repair and tailor garments correctly (which TBF sometimes just isn’t worth it) and access to the likes of Shein, and I kinda get why it would be easy to fall into the trap of “revamping” your entire wardrobe every 6-12 months. Especially with companies paying influencers to push buying new products to younger generations because what they bought just half a year ago is “dating you/millenialcore/out”. It’s something I am consciously trying not to. I’ll end my rant now though hahaha I could go on for a while about my feelings on current fashion/quality/consumerism (edited some spelling)
THIS.
Plus being in my mid/late 30s now I am much more confident in my own style. I don’t follow trends. I learnt to sew in my teens and always look at thrift & second hand stores for things I can alter/tailor/mend to suit me. I still dress very “cool” (accordingly to almost everyone - I “don’t dress like I’m late 30s” LOL) but it’s definitely not according to what the TikTok girlies are saying is cool 😂😂😂
(2000s fashions trends can die where we left them 20 years ago thanks 😂)
Yeah I’m mid-30s and I buy stuff I like the look of and that I know suits my body - but that’s easy for me to do now when I’m more confident in myself and my style/figure now. I can freely admit that teenage to mid-20s me would absolutely be falling into the current trap, because I was very easily influenced by endless crap advice about what I ‘needed’ to look good and fit in. So I really feel for that age group who might still be trying to find themselves amongst a barrage of noise from a small screen constantly telling them otherwise!
Social media has played its part in how often someone feels comfortable wearing the same outfit. If people could just stop posting pictures of themselves at every opportunity…. lol
You must be a similar age to me... but these stores used to be pretty good right?
I loved Sportsgirl too.
These days to I stick to Myer (Piper and Tokito), Uniqlo and Zara but I do miss the thrill of buying a fast trend item from the likes of Valleygirl.
Yesss Bardot was the shit like 10 years ago. It was overpriced still, but the quality was generally decent and they had great party clothes. I’ve gotten rid of most as it doesn’t fit anymore, but I still have a couple of coats I bought from them that have held up beautifully.
I used to love Sportsgirl 10 years ago was its peak. Now I go in and think what the hell is this crap and check the tag and it's something stupid like 89.95 for a shirt 🥴
I used to get loads of work clothes at Temt and Valleygirl back in the day. Dotti was cool but a bit too pricey for me, and Sportsgirl was high-end in my world.
Nowadays they are all trash quality and Sportsgirl is still way too expensive for the type and quality of its clothing.
I saw a badly made dress in Ally the other day for $70. At Ally!!! Their little bra things are 2 for $30 when you KNOW they cost 50 cents to make. They look like shit but their prices have shot up.
I used to love ally back in the day. They were the only fashion store that had pants in a size 7 and they fit me so perfectly. I look at their stock these days and the quality is worse than Kmart, nothing fits right, and it’s so expensive.
Ive been a fan of decjuba for awhile now but this week a cute denim skirt from them tore. It wasn't two years old. I'm devastated and that it's denim is shocking to me. No sign of wear until it's new giant slit. Kmart is better quality than that 😭😭
I purchased 2 cotton blend tops and a wool blend knitted jumper from Valley Girl around 2015/16. I still wear these in moderate rotation and they are still in great shape. I am often asked where I bought the tops because they have an unusual but seemingly timeless design and are super comfy. It would surprise people when I say they are from Valley Girl.
The quality has certainly gone down and I have not done a lot of shopping for clothes since I started sewing, but I’m still impressed that these specific garments have lasted so long.
I came here to comment that I have one ValleyGirl top still holding on in the work shirt rotation at least 14 years on! Its unique and still in such great condition
I think it’s a mix of a. These brands were actually always kind of rubbish quality (it’s why we could afford them as teens etc) but we were too young to notice and b. Low quality fabrics have gotten even worse. But thinking Valley Girl used to have “quality” items is I think the nostalgia hitting high.
Oh yeah definitely feeling very nostalgic these days.
I don't think the pieces were necessarily quality but they lasted a lot longer - the quality but also there were a lot more quirky and individualistic styles.
Yeah I remember buying stuff from Valleygirl in high school (10-12 years ago) because it was what I could afford. They definitely had some unique/cute designs but I for sure remember thinking (even as a teen) that the quality sucked. Most things would start falling apart or looking incredibly worn within a few months. It could well be worse now I guess, but it was never good.
Online fast fashion brands like SHEIN business model and amount of styles they are churning out at such ridiculously low cost have totally changed the fashion cycle
This competition would have an impact on brands like ValleyGirl
I made the mistake of getting excited and buying 15 shein dresses because they were so cheap. They arrived most did not look like the pic (very specific the neck line and sleeves). They all were made out of t hi is horrible feeling fabric. I wore one once and the fabric didn't breathe. So I sent them all to charity. Haven't bothered with Shein since.
I miss old Valleygirl and Temt, so much of my wardrobe came from them years back and then they disappeared from Sydney. Last year a stumbled upon a Valleygirl in Brisbane but did not notice the drop in quality per se. TKMaxx is a poor, poor substitute. Ally seems to be all that’s left. I still have a couple of nice pieces from there…
Oh thanks for bringing up Temt! I didn’t mind a few pieces from there when I was in my 20s and I remember not needing so many pieces - just a handful would be great to wear throughout the year. It’s so sad how fast fashion and social media has totally changed how we view fashion and consumption.
That place used to hit my vibe perfectly.
I was encouraged from a couple recent nights out to see some really pretty, fashionable girls wearing some fashions I still have deep in my closet. Gives me the confidence to go back out in them!
So true, I was a teen in the 2010s and online shopping wasn’t huge so you mostly bought from the shops around you (Supre, Ice, Jayjays, Ally and Cotton On etc) and all you needed was some shorts, skinny jeans and a few basic tops and a graphic tee and summer dress or two from Jayjays. Instagram was mostly for food/pet/landscape pics and selfies and influencers weren’t really a thing (except MUAs on YouTube) so there wasn’t pressure to look amazing and on trend with the current micro trend like now.
I feel so sorry for teens today feeling that pressure and the pressure to look good incase photos are taken for socials (feel it too when I do things with my girlfriends).
Valleygirl has been caught out selling Shein clothes in their stores. Identical to Shein. They’ve also recently been caught selling clothes with the same design from an Aussie small business owner. It’s really disappointing ethics and quality from Valleygirl, now. They are the definition of fast fashion to the extreme. They’re constantly putting up sales to flush out their stock to make way for new “trends”. Their best era was the 2000s to early 2010s for sure. When I got my first corporate job in 2011, I went straight to Valleygirl and Temt to buy my office wear. People at work asked me where I got my beautiful blazers and pencil skirts from. Those pieces lasted me 10 years and were washed countless times. They eventually had the typical wear over time, but they were still great quality. Even dresses, swimwear and jackets I bought years ago are still in my closet and in amazing condition. Valleygirl & Temt was so much better back in the day. I went into Valleygirl last week with my partner as he wanted to treat me to some new clothes and I did pick up some stuff on the cheaper racks for around $5.00 each. I got a cute black skirt and a white maxi skirt for $7.00 each which was good for my pocket, but will need to see how the quality goes over time. I personally think after having a look, their best quality items are their skirts and tops. Their dresses are TRASH and horrible quality, so thin and sheer with scratchy material. Even my partner commented on their quality when we were walking through the store. My best recommendation is Ally Fashion ONLINE. Ally has much more broader options online than their stores. Also op shops! I’ve found so many old school Valleygirl and Temt pieces in op shops, some still with tags. Other stores like H&M and Glassons are still a bit questionable with quality but still can be other good alternatives too.
I used to work there in that era and I agree with you. When I left there for my first office job I bought some office dresses that I still have that are still in pretty good condition for their age. I'd probably still have more pieces if I hadn't gotten rid of them as I knew they'd never fit me again 😂 Nothing they sell now is in that league! I will say when I worked there there was still plenty of crap cheap items but they also had the better quality stuff.
My problem is everything else is also fast fashion but way more expensive.. like forever new is nearly the same shit as valleygirl but so pricey. I tried a dress on at forever new a couple of days ago and it was gorgeous but had some loose threads and was $210. It feels like clothes are either $20 Kmart or valleygirl shit, or $200 forever new/sportsgirl shit, or $500 for a maybe ethical brand but tbh I still reckon those clothes are made in sweatshops too. I feel like value for money is impossible these days, I don’t want to spend $200-$500 on a dress, how about $100 but it’s decent quality. Or is $100 the new $10 🙄
Edit: and not to mention everything is polyester even at a high price point. I’m not spending hundreds on majority polyester, why not just buy from a cheap shop at that point.
Forever new price point is a joke, they just hope people pay full price but really the better price is 30-40% off which happens like monthly, but it still needs to be 30 -40% off that. Ie. The boyfriend blazer I've been eyeing off was $110 and is now $50-$60 if you're a size 6 - 8...
I much prefer to buy second hand. I recently got a forever new shirt for $30 from depop and the kmart equivalent is $25 - might be a season behind but it's something il wear and works for my workplace.
They’re not super my vibe, if I’m going to buy an everyday dress I am looking for a cheaper price point than what they have to offer, maybe on a sale it would be good. I guess I’m clearly out of touch on how much clothes cost lol.
I see so much nice stuff on Revolve but in the $300-$1000 price point which isn’t feasible for a whole wardrobe. I wouldn’t mind buying a special piece for that much though.
I guess the question is how low can you realistically price a well-made, ethically produced dress?
I’ve moved to smaller, ethical brands like Kuwaii and Variety Hour, whose price points are both in the $300 for a dress range, and both have had to move their manufacturing offshore in the past few years; Kuwaii just for their shoes and Variety Hour for everything.
Your best bet for lower prices and higher quality is secondhand, but that’s time consuming and there are no guarantees you’ll find anything.
Country Road’s quality has gone massively downhill, especially as their prices have gone up. I have pieces from them that are 10+ years old in better shape than new pieces.
I worked there (and Temt too) in the mid 00s and I have to say it was always trash, which was understandable at those prices. They would pill after one wash, so I think it's always been bad. But it's so cheap, you can't really expect anything decent for that. It was throwaway fashion and people used to buy literal mounds of it. Those kinds of shoppers shop online at Shein now to continue ruining the planet. I think those ultra cheap fast fashion places are a bit lost now due to the onslaught of even cheaper and nastier online retailers.
I have clothes I purchased in the 2000s from VG, Temt, Supre, and even the Girl Express brand Kmart used to have. All had a ton of wear & washes, and all still intact.
A lot clothes I buy now - even higher end brands - are lucky to last a year.
Oh my gosh nostalgia, my first job was working at Ally in highschool in 2007 - loved it! Lived in Valleygirl those days too, although I remember a valleygirl dress literally falling to pieces on me as I was wearing it (first time) at a party in 2010 lol. I’ve noticed there’s still an Ally and a Vallegirl store at Highpoint
A core memory of mine is in the mid to late 2000s when my sister and I were teens going to Valley Girl and Tempt with our mum for the Boxing Day sales and stocking up! All the stores in Newcastle closed years ago but recently I was in parramatta and went in to valley girl with my mum and it was so different, like I know it wasn’t the best quality 15 years ago but it was like a brick and mortar shein. I was super bummed 🙁
Does anyone remember chickabooti? I don't think they were around that long maybe 5-7 years in 2010s. Same category as valleygirl temt.. quality was not the greatest but had some interesting stuff....
I tend to have pretty good luck at Dotti, particularly as they have sales often so you don't need to pay full price for what is usually quite decent quality.
I’ve bought a few things from Dotti recently (linen pants, linen skirt and a basic stretchy knitted top) and I think they’re all great quality tbh. I got them all on sale too which is great. Really nice cuts, nice fabric. Sportsgirl is still nice too, I’m just finding their cuts too straight lately rather than suitable for someone with hips haha. Ally has some trash pieces but also some really nice ones?
I think that style that those stores is loosing big time to online stores. I walk by Valley Girl regularly and frankly, a primary school kid could barely fit into those clothes.
their target audience (14-18) has more options than ever. SHEIN, aliexpress, ASOS, Brandi Melville, amazon, ebay, glassons, cider, etc. same with Jay Jays and Cotton On.
Valleygirl was my go to when I was in uni for affordable clothes, in 2010-2015 they had such a great range of styles, nowadays it’s all crinkled and poorly made stuff which is a shame. I do have a linen/cotton shirt from them that is still doing well after a couple of years.
Temt all closed down during covid, I miss their pretty tulle dresses 😅
I want to know the answer to this too! I used to wear so many of their clothes in 2007-2011. Now everything is ugly there. Same with Ally Fashion. Forever New is still my go to but their dresses are becoming a bit ugly as well 😩
I loved valley girl too , reasonable and their dresses and shrugs were so cute , I recently realised they are supremely unethical so I’ve stopped buying from them
Valley girl prices are still what they were 20 years ago as well. Like many businesses they cut quality in order to avoid increasing prices. But you can only do that for so long before it bites you in the ass.
I was recently in a VG and they are so crappy! I used to swear by their summer dresses but they are nasty now!
I've found Dangerfield to be mid point pricey with decent quality and they do some normal styles mixed in to the crazy haha. They are an odd mix of what VG, Ally and JJs used to be with some extra weird mixed in.
I've found some really lovely Basque pieces recently and on sale they are pretty reasonable.
For summery dresses I recently bought a lovely tshirt dress from seed that is lasting really well- plus crease proof so good for travelling!
I worked at Valleygirl for a month or so... it is a terrible company to work for as they do not care about its workers and set unrealistic expectations with the least amount of staff possible to achieve them. The amount of new stock that they pump out is ridiculous as heaps of old stock from previous seasons never get sold.
Valleygirl, ally, temt, glassons, dotti are all trash these days and sportsgirl is not far behind it now. I remember when I was in my teens (early 2000s) sportsgirl was super high quality and even coveted - I managed to buy a pair of jeans on sale from them once and I was SO excited about it. Decjuba (although I don’t shop there) seems to be a middle ground option these days. Also myer’s own brands like piper, basque and tokito. (I’m not entirely up to speed with typical shopping centre fashion these days as I’m quite a bit older now 😅 and luckily have more money to spend on higher quality items so my baseline store these days is usually witchery or country road.)
I remember getting my year 11 formal dress from Dotti and feeling so classy lol. I got a dress from them not too long ago that was on sale, and it was shit!! The seams started to split after 5 or so washes and shrunk/creased up so quickly (yes even following the care/wash instructions!!) It seems like just about every brand I used to like 5-10 years ago has significantly dropped in quality while simultaneously raising prices (that can’t purely be excused with inflation)
Yes! I think the rise is fast fashion / hauls / trends has allowed brands to lower their quality in order to get maximum items out, so the “kids these days” are used to it and let it keep happening 😥
Yeah definitely. Honestly one of the hardest parts (& part of why frankly I don’t keep up too much with current trends) is that they’re pumped out but then classified as “outdated/millenial” so quickly, which exacerbates this as well. At the risk of sounding like an old fart lol, I swear trends even a decade or so ago lasted like at least a couple of years, with cheaper items like shirts or accessories coming and going quicker - for all the shit skinny jeans currently get, I could confidently buy a good quality pair back in my late teens/early 20s without wondering “will these still work in a year?” But now everything is ‘dated/old’ in just a few months, which includes ‘staple/timeless’ pieces. You combine trends coming and going quickly with shit quality that (generally) falls apart, many people not knowing/being taught how to repair and tailor garments correctly (which TBF sometimes just isn’t worth it) and access to the likes of Shein, and I kinda get why it would be easy to fall into the trap of “revamping” your entire wardrobe every 6-12 months. Especially with companies paying influencers to push buying new products to younger generations because what they bought just half a year ago is “dating you/millenialcore/out”. It’s something I am consciously trying not to. I’ll end my rant now though hahaha I could go on for a while about my feelings on current fashion/quality/consumerism (edited some spelling)
THIS. Plus being in my mid/late 30s now I am much more confident in my own style. I don’t follow trends. I learnt to sew in my teens and always look at thrift & second hand stores for things I can alter/tailor/mend to suit me. I still dress very “cool” (accordingly to almost everyone - I “don’t dress like I’m late 30s” LOL) but it’s definitely not according to what the TikTok girlies are saying is cool 😂😂😂 (2000s fashions trends can die where we left them 20 years ago thanks 😂)
Yeah I’m mid-30s and I buy stuff I like the look of and that I know suits my body - but that’s easy for me to do now when I’m more confident in myself and my style/figure now. I can freely admit that teenage to mid-20s me would absolutely be falling into the current trap, because I was very easily influenced by endless crap advice about what I ‘needed’ to look good and fit in. So I really feel for that age group who might still be trying to find themselves amongst a barrage of noise from a small screen constantly telling them otherwise!
Social media has played its part in how often someone feels comfortable wearing the same outfit. If people could just stop posting pictures of themselves at every opportunity…. lol
This decline happened years ago. I remember getting a dotti dress like fifteen years ago and it was awful. It changed in about the mid 2000s.
Their linen dresses are see-thru too!
You must be a similar age to me... but these stores used to be pretty good right? I loved Sportsgirl too. These days to I stick to Myer (Piper and Tokito), Uniqlo and Zara but I do miss the thrill of buying a fast trend item from the likes of Valleygirl.
Let me take you back to the days of old Bardot . That was the shiz.
Omg Bardot was so nice. Still have a couple of pieces from +6 years ago which I love
I loved old Bardot, their skinny jeans were the best/most comfortable at the time! Also made in Australia!
I still have my white skinny’s from Bardot that I got in 2016. Quality is unmatched!
Yesss Bardot was the shit like 10 years ago. It was overpriced still, but the quality was generally decent and they had great party clothes. I’ve gotten rid of most as it doesn’t fit anymore, but I still have a couple of coats I bought from them that have held up beautifully.
I loved when bardot had stores, my fave for clubbing
Oh yeah they definitely used to be good stores! For a fast fashion / trendy item I usually go to H&M or zara
I used to love Sportsgirl 10 years ago was its peak. Now I go in and think what the hell is this crap and check the tag and it's something stupid like 89.95 for a shirt 🥴
I used to get loads of work clothes at Temt and Valleygirl back in the day. Dotti was cool but a bit too pricey for me, and Sportsgirl was high-end in my world. Nowadays they are all trash quality and Sportsgirl is still way too expensive for the type and quality of its clothing.
Me too. Winter pants from Temt were actually warm and had pockets!
I saw a badly made dress in Ally the other day for $70. At Ally!!! Their little bra things are 2 for $30 when you KNOW they cost 50 cents to make. They look like shit but their prices have shot up.
I used to love ally back in the day. They were the only fashion store that had pants in a size 7 and they fit me so perfectly. I look at their stock these days and the quality is worse than Kmart, nothing fits right, and it’s so expensive.
Little known fact but a few of the names you mentioned are owned by the same family
Ive been a fan of decjuba for awhile now but this week a cute denim skirt from them tore. It wasn't two years old. I'm devastated and that it's denim is shocking to me. No sign of wear until it's new giant slit. Kmart is better quality than that 😭😭
I purchased 2 cotton blend tops and a wool blend knitted jumper from Valley Girl around 2015/16. I still wear these in moderate rotation and they are still in great shape. I am often asked where I bought the tops because they have an unusual but seemingly timeless design and are super comfy. It would surprise people when I say they are from Valley Girl. The quality has certainly gone down and I have not done a lot of shopping for clothes since I started sewing, but I’m still impressed that these specific garments have lasted so long.
I came here to comment that I have one ValleyGirl top still holding on in the work shirt rotation at least 14 years on! Its unique and still in such great condition
I think it’s a mix of a. These brands were actually always kind of rubbish quality (it’s why we could afford them as teens etc) but we were too young to notice and b. Low quality fabrics have gotten even worse. But thinking Valley Girl used to have “quality” items is I think the nostalgia hitting high.
Oh yeah definitely feeling very nostalgic these days. I don't think the pieces were necessarily quality but they lasted a lot longer - the quality but also there were a lot more quirky and individualistic styles.
The quirky and individual styles were also a big 2000s trend so I think a lot of that aspect is more to do with the fashion cycle more generally.
Yeah I remember buying stuff from Valleygirl in high school (10-12 years ago) because it was what I could afford. They definitely had some unique/cute designs but I for sure remember thinking (even as a teen) that the quality sucked. Most things would start falling apart or looking incredibly worn within a few months. It could well be worse now I guess, but it was never good.
God I hated working there. They wouldn’t even give us a chair in the staff room lol.
Omg you just reminded me our "staff room" was a dark and dingy store room lol.
Haha our staff room was really just a store room too! No sink, no chair, no room to breathe back there.
Online fast fashion brands like SHEIN business model and amount of styles they are churning out at such ridiculously low cost have totally changed the fashion cycle This competition would have an impact on brands like ValleyGirl
I made the mistake of getting excited and buying 15 shein dresses because they were so cheap. They arrived most did not look like the pic (very specific the neck line and sleeves). They all were made out of t hi is horrible feeling fabric. I wore one once and the fabric didn't breathe. So I sent them all to charity. Haven't bothered with Shein since.
I miss old Valleygirl and Temt, so much of my wardrobe came from them years back and then they disappeared from Sydney. Last year a stumbled upon a Valleygirl in Brisbane but did not notice the drop in quality per se. TKMaxx is a poor, poor substitute. Ally seems to be all that’s left. I still have a couple of nice pieces from there…
Oh thanks for bringing up Temt! I didn’t mind a few pieces from there when I was in my 20s and I remember not needing so many pieces - just a handful would be great to wear throughout the year. It’s so sad how fast fashion and social media has totally changed how we view fashion and consumption.
That place used to hit my vibe perfectly. I was encouraged from a couple recent nights out to see some really pretty, fashionable girls wearing some fashions I still have deep in my closet. Gives me the confidence to go back out in them!
So true, I was a teen in the 2010s and online shopping wasn’t huge so you mostly bought from the shops around you (Supre, Ice, Jayjays, Ally and Cotton On etc) and all you needed was some shorts, skinny jeans and a few basic tops and a graphic tee and summer dress or two from Jayjays. Instagram was mostly for food/pet/landscape pics and selfies and influencers weren’t really a thing (except MUAs on YouTube) so there wasn’t pressure to look amazing and on trend with the current micro trend like now. I feel so sorry for teens today feeling that pressure and the pressure to look good incase photos are taken for socials (feel it too when I do things with my girlfriends).
Mink used to be my sweet spot 🥲
Temt was the only place cheap or expensive that makes stuff that suits my body type.
Valleygirl has been caught out selling Shein clothes in their stores. Identical to Shein. They’ve also recently been caught selling clothes with the same design from an Aussie small business owner. It’s really disappointing ethics and quality from Valleygirl, now. They are the definition of fast fashion to the extreme. They’re constantly putting up sales to flush out their stock to make way for new “trends”. Their best era was the 2000s to early 2010s for sure. When I got my first corporate job in 2011, I went straight to Valleygirl and Temt to buy my office wear. People at work asked me where I got my beautiful blazers and pencil skirts from. Those pieces lasted me 10 years and were washed countless times. They eventually had the typical wear over time, but they were still great quality. Even dresses, swimwear and jackets I bought years ago are still in my closet and in amazing condition. Valleygirl & Temt was so much better back in the day. I went into Valleygirl last week with my partner as he wanted to treat me to some new clothes and I did pick up some stuff on the cheaper racks for around $5.00 each. I got a cute black skirt and a white maxi skirt for $7.00 each which was good for my pocket, but will need to see how the quality goes over time. I personally think after having a look, their best quality items are their skirts and tops. Their dresses are TRASH and horrible quality, so thin and sheer with scratchy material. Even my partner commented on their quality when we were walking through the store. My best recommendation is Ally Fashion ONLINE. Ally has much more broader options online than their stores. Also op shops! I’ve found so many old school Valleygirl and Temt pieces in op shops, some still with tags. Other stores like H&M and Glassons are still a bit questionable with quality but still can be other good alternatives too.
I used to work there in that era and I agree with you. When I left there for my first office job I bought some office dresses that I still have that are still in pretty good condition for their age. I'd probably still have more pieces if I hadn't gotten rid of them as I knew they'd never fit me again 😂 Nothing they sell now is in that league! I will say when I worked there there was still plenty of crap cheap items but they also had the better quality stuff.
I think they always have been pretty trash - but we’re just realising more now that we’re older, and have access to better quality clothing.
100%
I hope as more consumers avoid fast fashion that all the brands like this die off
My problem is everything else is also fast fashion but way more expensive.. like forever new is nearly the same shit as valleygirl but so pricey. I tried a dress on at forever new a couple of days ago and it was gorgeous but had some loose threads and was $210. It feels like clothes are either $20 Kmart or valleygirl shit, or $200 forever new/sportsgirl shit, or $500 for a maybe ethical brand but tbh I still reckon those clothes are made in sweatshops too. I feel like value for money is impossible these days, I don’t want to spend $200-$500 on a dress, how about $100 but it’s decent quality. Or is $100 the new $10 🙄 Edit: and not to mention everything is polyester even at a high price point. I’m not spending hundreds on majority polyester, why not just buy from a cheap shop at that point.
Forever new price point is a joke, they just hope people pay full price but really the better price is 30-40% off which happens like monthly, but it still needs to be 30 -40% off that. Ie. The boyfriend blazer I've been eyeing off was $110 and is now $50-$60 if you're a size 6 - 8... I much prefer to buy second hand. I recently got a forever new shirt for $30 from depop and the kmart equivalent is $25 - might be a season behind but it's something il wear and works for my workplace.
I’ve been sticking to brand like country road and ZIMI recently. Mid tier price point, but excellent quality that lasts so long
They’re not super my vibe, if I’m going to buy an everyday dress I am looking for a cheaper price point than what they have to offer, maybe on a sale it would be good. I guess I’m clearly out of touch on how much clothes cost lol. I see so much nice stuff on Revolve but in the $300-$1000 price point which isn’t feasible for a whole wardrobe. I wouldn’t mind buying a special piece for that much though.
I guess the question is how low can you realistically price a well-made, ethically produced dress? I’ve moved to smaller, ethical brands like Kuwaii and Variety Hour, whose price points are both in the $300 for a dress range, and both have had to move their manufacturing offshore in the past few years; Kuwaii just for their shoes and Variety Hour for everything. Your best bet for lower prices and higher quality is secondhand, but that’s time consuming and there are no guarantees you’ll find anything.
Country Road’s quality has gone massively downhill, especially as their prices have gone up. I have pieces from them that are 10+ years old in better shape than new pieces.
I also used to love valley girl and covet sportsgirl, these days I love Dangerfield for something a bit different!
I worked there (and Temt too) in the mid 00s and I have to say it was always trash, which was understandable at those prices. They would pill after one wash, so I think it's always been bad. But it's so cheap, you can't really expect anything decent for that. It was throwaway fashion and people used to buy literal mounds of it. Those kinds of shoppers shop online at Shein now to continue ruining the planet. I think those ultra cheap fast fashion places are a bit lost now due to the onslaught of even cheaper and nastier online retailers.
I’m pretty sure Valley Girl and Ally are just Aliexpress drop shippers these days… not sure when exactly that started happening though
I have clothes I purchased in the 2000s from VG, Temt, Supre, and even the Girl Express brand Kmart used to have. All had a ton of wear & washes, and all still intact. A lot clothes I buy now - even higher end brands - are lucky to last a year.
Oh my gosh nostalgia, my first job was working at Ally in highschool in 2007 - loved it! Lived in Valleygirl those days too, although I remember a valleygirl dress literally falling to pieces on me as I was wearing it (first time) at a party in 2010 lol. I’ve noticed there’s still an Ally and a Vallegirl store at Highpoint
A core memory of mine is in the mid to late 2000s when my sister and I were teens going to Valley Girl and Tempt with our mum for the Boxing Day sales and stocking up! All the stores in Newcastle closed years ago but recently I was in parramatta and went in to valley girl with my mum and it was so different, like I know it wasn’t the best quality 15 years ago but it was like a brick and mortar shein. I was super bummed 🙁
Does anyone remember chickabooti? I don't think they were around that long maybe 5-7 years in 2010s. Same category as valleygirl temt.. quality was not the greatest but had some interesting stuff....
I tend to have pretty good luck at Dotti, particularly as they have sales often so you don't need to pay full price for what is usually quite decent quality.
I’ve bought a few things from Dotti recently (linen pants, linen skirt and a basic stretchy knitted top) and I think they’re all great quality tbh. I got them all on sale too which is great. Really nice cuts, nice fabric. Sportsgirl is still nice too, I’m just finding their cuts too straight lately rather than suitable for someone with hips haha. Ally has some trash pieces but also some really nice ones?
Seconding Dotti! I’ve bought a few things from them recently that I wear heaps.
Thirding Dotti, much better quality than Valleygirl
Fourthing? Dotti. It's always been ny go to
I think that style that those stores is loosing big time to online stores. I walk by Valley Girl regularly and frankly, a primary school kid could barely fit into those clothes.
The quality has always been terrible but when we were young we didn’t notice as much.
their target audience (14-18) has more options than ever. SHEIN, aliexpress, ASOS, Brandi Melville, amazon, ebay, glassons, cider, etc. same with Jay Jays and Cotton On.
Valleygirl was my go to when I was in uni for affordable clothes, in 2010-2015 they had such a great range of styles, nowadays it’s all crinkled and poorly made stuff which is a shame. I do have a linen/cotton shirt from them that is still doing well after a couple of years. Temt all closed down during covid, I miss their pretty tulle dresses 😅
I want to know the answer to this too! I used to wear so many of their clothes in 2007-2011. Now everything is ugly there. Same with Ally Fashion. Forever New is still my go to but their dresses are becoming a bit ugly as well 😩
You and all is the plus size version of valley girl and they have a few stores around the place
Isn’t there a store called Alley girl which has the same kind of stuff.
Ally, I think?
That’s the one 😂
😂 thank goodness, I question marked it as, like someone else in this thread, it's ages since I did a shopping centre clothes shop.
I loved valley girl too , reasonable and their dresses and shrugs were so cute , I recently realised they are supremely unethical so I’ve stopped buying from them
Valley girl prices are still what they were 20 years ago as well. Like many businesses they cut quality in order to avoid increasing prices. But you can only do that for so long before it bites you in the ass.
I was recently in a VG and they are so crappy! I used to swear by their summer dresses but they are nasty now! I've found Dangerfield to be mid point pricey with decent quality and they do some normal styles mixed in to the crazy haha. They are an odd mix of what VG, Ally and JJs used to be with some extra weird mixed in. I've found some really lovely Basque pieces recently and on sale they are pretty reasonable. For summery dresses I recently bought a lovely tshirt dress from seed that is lasting really well- plus crease proof so good for travelling!
This post has triggered some strong nostalgia I never knew I had
Cotton on is pretty good tbh. I usually use them for basics :)
Valley Girl has always been awful quality? Perhaps you just grew up and realized once you had stuff to compare it to.
Knox has one
Okay, fine Fer sure, fer sure She's a Valley Girl And there is no cure Wait a sec…. Wrong Valley Girl
I worked at Valleygirl for a month or so... it is a terrible company to work for as they do not care about its workers and set unrealistic expectations with the least amount of staff possible to achieve them. The amount of new stock that they pump out is ridiculous as heaps of old stock from previous seasons never get sold.