The first store we went to was H&M.
The front of the store held a lot of business casual clothes...
... but a lot of the clothes were wrinkled and cluttered together.
Some of the shirts were even stained.
There were sale signs everywhere. H&M has struggled with having too much inventory, so there are almost constantly sales to get rid of old inventory.
Upstairs were some simple, inexpensive sweaters...
...and accessories for under $10.
The styles sold upstairs felt all over the place. There were a lot of nice clothes, but there were things for every season in every style. It was a bit unorganized.
A lot of things weren't in great shape. Many things were inexpensive, but the quality reflected that.
There were a few outliers, like $99 jackets and $50 sweaters.
There was a massive sale section upstairs as well, with denim, sundresses, sweaters, and everything in-between.
H&M also had a men's section, which was almost as big as the women's section.
The prices and quality were comparable to the women's department.
The store was very trendy. Even though there were a lot of nice styles, the price and quality issues were clear as we shopped through the store.
It seemed more high-end than H&M...
...and it was much more expensive. Many sweaters were in the $100-$200 range. However, everything was much higher quality. Sweaters were softer, and the shirts didn't feel as flimsy.
The styles were much more minimalistic than H&M, and didn't feel quite as trendy.
The jewelry was around three times the price of that at H&M.
Though Cos hasn't faced the same inventory issues as H&M, it had a lot of sales going on.
Accessories were scattered throughout the store ...
...and there was a small mens section in the back of the store.
Cos was much easier to shop at than H&M. It was more organized and the styles were much more timeless.
We went to & Other Stories last.
It fell somewhere in between H&M and Cos.
The prices and quality were similar to Cos, but many things were on sale.
Some styles felt much more classic and timeless, like Cos, but there were a few trendier items as well.
The accessories were very similar to Cos.
& Other Stories had a much bigger emphasis on beauty products and accessories compared to its sister stores.
There was an entire wall with lotions, perfumes, body sprays, and other beauty products.
There were also tables of cosmetics, which neither H&M nor Cos had.
& Other Stories had a lot more to to offer because of the array of beauty products and accessories. The clothes were high quality, and many products were on sale.
After visiting H&M and its sister stores Cos and & Other Stories, its clear why H&M isn't doing as well.
The clothes may be less expensive at H&M, but the store also is overwhelming to shop at because of all the excess inventory, and the quality isn't as high as the other two stores.
The clothes H&M offers are also more trendy, so they are harder to get rid of once they're out of style. Meanwhile, Cos and & Other Stories are more timeless.
