Howies Gear

Different thread
http://www.londonfgss.com/thread12962.html

:ATTENTION FAIL:
yes just realised that after doing a quick search

Hey. I have some Howies stuff, got a few bits to take on a cycling holiday last month.
I have a base layer, long arms, medium, blue (worn for an hour) that cost me £40 I think, but since having it, I find I'm alergic to wool in some fashion... Get a bit of a rash... So base layers are off. Sale 20quid?

But saying that, my other howies stuff is great, and I don't always feel like a cycling bell-end when I have it on as its all pretty nicely designed casual / simple / nice.

I think Howies get a harder time from trying to be better.

Try one, and if you don’t like it, send it back and we’ll give you your money back. No quibble, Officer Dibble, as we say round these parts. We think you’ll love it. You may even want to marry it. Outside, frosty. Inside, toasty.

A 'no quibble' returns policy is all well and good, but I've always been of the opinion that if your stuff's good enough, and your quality control is rigorous enough, then a returns policy - whether no quibble or 'you'll jump through all our hoops before we'll let you return anything (bitch)' - shouldn't be necessary.

That said, I've always been very happy with Howies stuff. Well, until I tried on that red jumper in the sample sale on Saturday and ended up covered in red fluff. And I was rocking my weekend stubble, and so ended up with a red fluffy beard...

I like Howies a lot, but even with their ethical policies most of the clothes are still made in China. Traveling half way around the world on a diesel powered container ship isn't really that ethical.

actually its waaay better than flying it. less carbon footprint and all that. the merinoo they use is the best of the best quality with strict policies on all kinds of practices. if you care, buy their stuff. if you dont, buy something else thats cheaper, lesser quality and lesser performing.

the people at howies work fucking hard to make a difference and make stuff with a low environmental footprint. they are constantly trying harder.

i find it kind of a shame that people will knock their effort and credentials, and then buy a merino top from matalan or wherever else that will use cheap merino wool which uses awful inhumane practices with their sheep, use terrible chemicals in their manufacture processes, and then use factories that probably arent monitored or looked twice at, then flown half way round the world just so people can buy a top for less money.

try to understand the VALUE of what you buy, not just the price.

like i said, if you care, then buy their stuff, if you dont care, dont buy it.

A 'no quibble' returns policy is all well and good, but I've always been of the opinion that if your stuff's good enough, and your quality control is rigorous enough, then a returns policy - whether no quibble or 'you'll jump through all our hoops before we'll let you return anything (bitch)' - shouldn't be necessary.

fair point. however, sometimes people just dont like something in the flesh that they saw online. or the person they bought it as a gift for didnt like it. returns arent just about faults eh. but when faults do occurr, its good to have that no quibble policy in place. show me a company that moves that many units per year with an absolute zero return number and i'll be very impressed.

Try one, and if you don’t like it, send it back and we’ll give you your money back. No quibble, Officer Dibble, as we say round these parts. We think you’ll love it. You may even want to marry it. Outside, frosty. Inside, toasty.

http://www.howies.co.uk/content.php?xSecId=101

Hi Tim, Thanks for the input. I have been a regular customer of your fine products over the last 8-9 years and still wear a lot of it today. I have worn your Yurt fleeces day in day out until they are threadbare, faultless. However the last one and some T shirts have all shrunk. Washing instructions were used correctly. The Yurt I am now wearing needs its first wash, will measure and photograph before and after. Do you want to do it?
All the best to you and Howies.

i'd love the pics please and thanks for replying to the post. Regarding jon's bob jackson, he's got clips now but still no bar tape and i'm trying to get him to stop wearing his canoe helmet. he also got a £30 ticket for riding from the cash point to the road across the pavement. cardigan has it's traffic warden hell too.

all the best

tim

Thank you for putting up the prices on your hats to 50 squids. I sold one on eBay the other day for more than I originally bought it for.

A 'no quibble' returns policy is all well and good, but I've always been of the opinion that if your stuff's good enough, and your quality control is rigorous enough, then a returns policy - whether no quibble or 'you'll jump through all our hoops before we'll let you return anything (bitch)' - shouldn't be necessary.

Pish posh. What happens if you're indecisive and bought the wrong thing, or it was a present from your gran, or you were the first person to encounter said problem with the product, etc?

Pish posh. What happens if you're indecisive and bought the wrong thing, or it was a present from your gran, or you were the first person to encounter said problem with the product, etc?

I don't have an issue with the wrong size/didn't like the colour/doesn't fit etc. side of things. I'm just the kind of person who expects things to last, having bought said things on the basis of that company shouting about how well made said products are. It's kind of like Burton snowboards - they have a fantastic level of after sale care for when your board's edges fall off or the topsheet delaminates, or your £400 jacket falls apart at the seams, but my point is that if they were any good in the first place that wouldn't happen.

Regarding jon's bob jackson, he's got clips now
Ha! He got a bit of shit for that. But as you'll note from reading round the forum it's all just piss take, and not meant vindictively.

The irony is, someone's bought me one of these T shirts for my birthday. Now to test your returns policy! :)

they have a fantastic level of after sale care for when your board's edges fall off or the topsheet delaminates, or your £400 jacket falls apart at the seams, but my point is that if they were any good in the first place that wouldn't happen.

The world would be a very boring place if it were perfect, which is what you are demanding in your products. I think there is always a chance in any product there is some catatrosphic flaw which will lead to failure, which is why warantees are offered. If such flaws are endemic then point at the company and say its shit. That is what a company's rep is built upon at the end of the day, which translates into customer confidence and sales. Howies certainly don't have that reputation, and while there have been mutterings that quality has suffered under the ownership of Timberland, I think that is more down to a suspicion of increased commercialism (from the reputation of the Brand that now owns it) than actual real degradation of quality. Call it the placebo effect. I doubt much of their clobber gets returned, but I also doubt there are companies out there that have such complete faith in their product they refuse to have it returned (or are allowed to by law). Would be an interesting marketing tool though.

I believe Howies still operate with incredible degrees of integrity and they are a brand I'll always look to buy from.

Good luck on the new Bristol store Howies peeps. Next time I'm down there I'll look in (and after this speech, I expect free stuff)

Edit: Oh and the catalogue is always a damn good read

just a heads up:

these bags are half price on the howies sale

here

.

Repost

That code didn't work on sale items.

Got my base layer though, its nice.

Search-fail
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Just letting you know, howies / teepay sale in the shop space opposite shop 14.

when, now?

^yup.... it's ok, was there at lunch time. I wouldn't go out my way though.

Is it just me, or is there less technical stuff coming from Howies now?

I had a Long Way Home jacket which I shredded in a crash, absolutely loved it. Would buy one now if they still did them. Not much outdoorsy stuff there, though, seem to be all about everyday clothes. Maybe it's because Timberland bought a share of them?

think they changed the plot after being bought by timberland..... shame !...... i mean timberland !!!!!!!!! eeewwwwww!

I've got a lot of love for howies but that hasn't stopped me whinging about them (a lot) over the years.

It's not that they're crap or anything it's just that there're never quite as good as they make themselves out to be (but then what brand is..) and well.. if they lived up to their potential they'd be fantastic.

Some of this is because I live about twenty miles from where they're based and I don't think they're as 'local' and cutesy-poo as they make out.

Sorry, off on a tangent...

Yeah, I moaned for a while that they changed after the Timberland buyout like when they opened their first store in Carnaby Street of all places, I mean what happened to being a, "Big City Defector"?)

However, in retrospect I don't think that the Timberland thing has affected them. I agree that they've gone off in a more fashion-based direction for the past few seasons (and the technical gear has been thin on the ground). The thing is I honestly think this has been a natural progression, the buyout just allowed them to try out out sooner and on a wider scale (and from what I've read I get the impression it helped keep howies a viable business). I don't think Timberland have much if any impact on the running of howies, they're just the sugar daddy who takes a cut. Would you say IPATH was changed by it's Timberland buyout?

They have been guilty of schizophrenic sizing, poor shrinkage record and sometimes awful colours but I think the quality has picked up in the last few seasons but my main beef is the women's range. I mean one of the things they say they base their collections on is:

"Would a rider wear it?"

Explain the "Snow White Katherine" flared jeans to me then. The only person who would ever ride in those had the last name Knievel. Why are the catalogues full of dudes riding bikes and having fun whilst the girls just mooch about looking winsome: I'm not saying I don't enjoy it but girls who ride bikes are sexy too.

I'm not sure how flying out to go snowboarding squares up with all the eco concious one-step-at-a-time, we can all save the planet bit... (I don't disagree with their eco opinions at all, I just find them a bit too preachy: You're a clothing brand not Greenpeace).

something very faux about it.

reminds me of when http://www.tretorn.com/ was bought by puma