Fred Aldous Ltd Reviews Summary

Store Layout and Accessibility

Pros:

• "The store is a magical mystery tour of amazing arts and crafts which is split over three levels."
• "Based on three floors, this unique art store has VIRTUALLY everything."
• "The store is bright, spacious, and well-organised, making it easy to find what you’re looking for."
• "A large craft store within a short walking distance from Piccadilly gardens in Manchester."
• "2 full sized floors covering all aspects of arts and crafts, with a basement level solely reserved for papers and canvases."
• "Despite two of the floors being underground, there's loads of light and it's not cramped at all."
• "Provides pretty much every piece of art and craft equipment/material you will need!"

Cons:

• "NOT wheelchair accessible as advertised on this listing. There is a step into entrance with no signage to indicate a ramp."
• "apart from the stairs going downstairs, which aren't wide enough for 2 people at a time, the store is easy to get around."
• "Access to the store is difficult as there is a step at the entrance and no ramps."
• "A lot of the craft stock is down a steep and narrow staircase with no lift."
• "I have mobility issues and so have a problem with the stairs and so can no longer go to the main level, which is the lower floor, Manchester branch."
• "Very disappointing. Old-fashioned and muddled layout, no fabric or yarn craft worth mentioning, and a limited range of jewellery and beading supplies."
• "The only problem is the ridiculous pricing - they do offer a 10% student discount but it is still a bit more pricy than CassArt on most items."

Customer Service

Pros:

• "Staff are friendly and knowledgeable."
• "The staff were very friendly and the shop was very well layed out so I could easily locate products."
• "Very knowledgeable staff who all seem to have an interest in art and crafts."
• "Staff are friendly and can always help you out if you need advice or suggestions and, to top it all off, it's just a great looking shop."
• "Staff are friendly and helpful, I could spend hours in here."
• "Staff are so friendly, helpful and knowledgeable."
• "The staff are friendly, knowledgeable, and always willing to help."

Cons:

• "I didn’t find the staff too helpful either."
• "It has come to my attention that there is one staff who works there who is quite rude."
• "A large portion of the staff seem to be really socially awkward in the sense they come across as you are beneath them."
• "The staff can sometimes be a bit unhelpful (I say sometimes because I’m sure they’re not all unhelpful but all the intersections I’ve had they have been)."
• "I would give five stars if it was not for the arrogant staff with glasses and moustache."

Product Range and Quality

Pros:

• "An Aladdin's cave of art n craft supplies. Full on mcr institution."
• "Fred Aldous is the one stop shop for art materials in the Manchester area - all the materials you could need and excellent service from all staff."
• "They've always got new arts and crafts items in stock. They seem to always manage to source quirky things from various places."
• "A massive selection of arts and crafts materials spread across 3 floors, you could easily lose hours and spend a fortune."
• "A truly amazing range of products for every type of creative hobby imaginable."
• "They have everything you need for all sizes of arts and craft projects, in fact they have over 25,000 different products."
• "They sell anything and everything to do with art and craft."