Intu Watford

ohh mah days fam like when i first herd dey was changing the name for dat harlequin to focking intu twatford i was like naaaahhh cuz you havin a giggle? like wut the actual fock fam?! the harlequin was the main G spot for me an the boys to roll but den they called it some well shit name cuz. intu watford? more like fockin outu watford. outu focking name ideas. smh
–bessie, 19, single mum xx

Mid sized indoor shopping centre just off Watford high St. Only came here for one purpose and that was to visit the apple store, so didn’t spend a lot of time in the rest of the centre.
There appears to a reasonable range of big brand store with small to to medium size floorspace and selection of restaurants on the top floor.
There is an information desk with helpful staff and store guide and map available. You can also buy giftcards here which can be used within the majority of the stores.

Stretching across the east side of the Watford one way system is a mutli storey array of about 140 stores forming the Harlequin Center.
Modern bright open air design and sometimes entertainment on the second floor walkway.
Huge amount of parking, always crowded and busy the Harlequin center holds such stores like
French Connection
M&S
BHS
John Lewis
Disney
Boots
Millets
Waterstones
Great food court, Starbucks and Costa coffee too.

Watford and shopping are two words that shouldn’t go together but actually make an ensemble building dream. Sure Watford is grotty and a bit inbred but The Harlequin has served me for many years now and I feel it’s time she got a mention.
Just a mere 15 minutes from London’s Euston, this ‘Mall’ is one of the UK’s older undercover, one stop high streets and is holding up rather dashingly. It’s light and airier than some peers, ie. Brent Cross which is dingy and always induces a migraine, and it is cheap as chips to park here unlike my one true forbidden love, Westfield (which cost me £15 to park in her shiny relm of a car park before xmas). Music plays softly over a PA system, modern bus link tv’s have been added and its very clean. Geri Halliwell’s mother is STILL a cleaner here. Amazing fact.
The Harl does lack food spots though, many have shut down and been replaced by coffee shops but good old Ponti’s is always a winner and John Lewis café is pricey but great. She’s wheelchair friendly and has many extra facilites which is always great for new mums or people escourting the disabled (my mum likes to be pushed round these floors weekly)…
Shops, now, Primark is fecking fantastic (reviewed previosuly) unspoilt by the London consumer and still jam packed with all the latest trends and must haves. Plus its gigantic. Topshop is terrible, absolute no go here but the large New Look always acts as a back-​up for that fail and I’ve got many a winning item in here for myself and clients. M&S is fab, John Lewis is the mall’s department store (JL own’s the Harlequin which prevents Debenhams for being here, they aren’t ever in same mall… another fab fact) and Zara here makes me go weak at the knees. All Zara managers act as buyers and thank the lord that Watford’s branch, the manager has the London eye and buys in all the best merch. LOVE.
There’s a crech, a massive HMV, BHS, Boots, all the usual culprits and what’s more your more than likely to get all the must have items here as opposed to London’s stores, which get attacked by fashionista’s globally!

So stranded in the UK on account of the volcano deciding to .eh.kind of erupt and what’s a woman to do? Shop of course!
So looking for somewhere to spend my hard earned cash I found Watford (although I really don’t think I could find it again!) a little shopping street somewhere near Amersham.
This place has so many shops it’s baffling, including some chain stores like New Look, Champion Sports, M&S to nice little individual shops (that were so individual I can’t remember the names at this moment in time).
Wandering around with my lil cup of ice cream from a stand and leaning to one side due to all the bags on my arms (damn you gravity) I had a brilliant time browsing through all the shops and wandering into random coffee places (each of which deserves a review of it’s own) and the staff are really chatty and friendly. The Security Guard was even kind enough to help me into a taxi with my bags (more out of concern and pity than anything else)
I am looking forward to making my way back here (I wouldn’t complain if I was stranded again!)
3 hours was simply not enough for me to shop here!