99p Stores

You gotta mix it up, kids. For every purchase which makes you wince, and your credit card recoil in horror, a visit to the 99p store must be made. It’s not even the pound shop — its 1 whole penny cheaper every time!
I came to the 99p store, which is hidden away in the cheap corner of Kingston at 10.30am on a week day. Every other shop in Kingston was just getting going, but this place was packed. Credit crunch central. I generally view heavily discounted shops as a bit of a false economy — yes you might buy a lot of stuff, but is any of it actually useful? So I came in here with the aim to find goods which I would actually need, and I was pleasantly surprised.
As well as the omni present tat, there was quite a large amount of food on sale — not fresh, like Aldi or Lidl, but perishable goods. Did you know that Lloyd Grossman sauces came in jumbo size? The industrial looking container made it look a bit… unappetising, but I presume that this sauce is no different then the one that I would find in Waitrose for 4 times the price. I also found a few food items that could almost be considered in the deli bracket, like balsamic vinegar and olive oil. Its not all eastern European cereals here.
I also found a wide range of toiletries, household goods, pet food and toys, kids toys, electrics and even a little bit of underwear. Unfortunately the women’s pants only came in sizes above 22, but at least that gave me 5 minutes of fun playing with them.
I kept on imagining that the 99p thing was just a gimmick — and that only a few things would be that price, with everything else being more pricey. But it does what it says on the box; absolutely everything in the shop will give you change for a pound.

Does what is says on the tin: so, not quite sure whether it’s embarrassing to admit to shopping here, or if it’s something to own-​up to — with pride — as the sign of a canny, practical shopper. While it’s not one of my all time favourite stores — far from it — if you have the time and perseverance you can come away with some astonishing bargains.
Amongst these might be a large Pandoro or Panettone (a traditional Italian cake) served at Easter and Christmas, that might retail for up to ten times the price in other outlets. Books, stationery, artists supplies and kitchenware basics are other good reasons to shop here. It can be a little hit-​and-​miss though; you can’t rely on finding the same item here twice — stock changes frequently — but if you visit, in the right frame of mind, you might just end up smiling at some of the less enticing ‘bargains’ that you wouldn’t touch with a bargepole.