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Raja Vathsavvia Google

about 1 month ago

Racist Behaviour and Discriminatory Treatment My experience at the Flannels store in Birmingham was deeply disturbing and clearly rooted in racial profiling. After browsing the lower section and selecting items to purchase, my friend and I moved upstairs to the other section. From that moment on, we were aggressively followed by a staff member. This was not normal customer service. She invaded our personal space, stared at us continuously, and monitored our every movement in a way that was blatantly suspicious and intimidating. Her behaviour made it unmistakably clear that we were being treated as potential criminals rather than paying customers. This was harassment, not assistance — and it felt racially motivated. The situation became so uncomfortable that we abandoned our plans to shop further and left immediately after collecting the items already set aside. Before leaving, I raised the issue with the manager. His response was appalling. He claimed that staff are trained to follow customers and see if they’re doing anything suspicious, which only confirmed that this store normalises racial profiling as policy. He repeatedly interrupted us, refused to listen, and showed no interest in acknowledging or addressing the discriminatory treatment we experienced. I have shopped at Flannels locations in London, Coventry, and Manchester, where I have always received professional and respectful service. The Birmingham store stands out for all the wrong reasons due to its racist practices and poor management. No customer should be made to feel targeted, watched, or criminalised because of their race. This store’s behaviour reflects systemic racism, unacceptable customer service standards, and complete managerial failure. I will not be returning, and I strongly caution others against supporting a store that treats customers this way.

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Ian Smallmanvia Google

3 months ago

I am extremely disappointed with my experience at Flannels Birmingham. My son purchased a pair of trainers on 27 October 2025 — a costly purchase for a teenager, and naturally we expected them to last. Within only a few weeks, the eyelets tore away from the fabric, making the trainers completely unusable. I returned to the store on 7 November 2025, where I was immediately told the damage was “misuse” and unlikely to be covered for exchange or replacement. Photographs were taken to send to Head Office and I was assured I would receive a call on 9 November. As expected, no call ever came. On 10 November, after spending 50 minutes on hold, Customer Services informed me they could only assist with online orders and advised me to contact the store. When I asked for the store’s number, Head Office details or even a postal address, I was told none of this information could be provided. Completely unacceptable for a national retailer. I returned to the store on 11 November and spoke again with the staff member I had dealt with previously. He was initially reluctant to give his name, citing “GDPR”, and admitted he had not contacted Customer Services at all — instead, his Assistant Manager had simply reiterated that the trainers were “misused”, and therefore no refund, exchange or replacement would be offered. What I found most astonishing was being offered a 20% staff discount should I wish to purchase something else. Why would I spend more money in a store that has treated us so poorly and failed to stand behind the quality of the products they sell? To make matters worse, the store again refused to provide Head Office contact details, claiming internal numbers “cannot be given out to customers”. This speaks volumes about their approach to customer service. Do yourself a favour: avoid this store. If you want quality service and accountability, Harvey Nichols or Selfridges are miles ahead. They are accessible, helpful, and stand by their customers — unlike my experience with Flannels. Flannels, this has been deeply disappointing. Your customer service needs a serious overhaul.

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Joanne Bakervia Google

5 months ago

My 2 sons visited on the weekend and my son had a lot of birthday money to spend due to a recent 21st birthday. Him and his brother were constantly followed round the shop which completely put them off buying anything so they left and spent the money in Selfridges. I understand that you need to keep a close eye on people but maybe do it a bit less obvious in the future if you want people to enjoy their experience and spend money. You lost a big sale that day so it was your loss in the end.

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jen xxvia Google

5 months ago

Utterly disgusting customer service. Follow you around the store, staff seem to think they are better than the rest of humanity, store it's self is dirty & smells of damp , if you want a nice shopping experience avoid this store like the plague

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J. mvia Google

6 months ago

Spend over £400 on a bag. Wasn’t used and the print has faded and has discoloured. After only having the bag a month. Manager took photos and sent them off however they are not prepared to do anything. I also mentioned the scandal of people returning fake good and them selling them. The manager denied all of this even though it’s been in the news. Very disappointed, certainly not a luxury buying experience. No different than buying a £10 bag from Primark, in fairness they probably would give better service. Would certainly avoid!