Lillywhites, West End, London

I usually do my best to avoid Piccadilly Circus and its mad crowds of tourists, but sometimes I end up walking up that way in to Soho, and if I’m feeling particularly gluttonous for punishment I’ll duck in to Lillywhites. Six floors of discount sporting goods swarmed with bargain hunters - you really have to be in the right sort of mood.

Today I was fine with it, I wanted to buy some great new running shoes so I can start using them in my half marathon training, and decided to go to Lillywhites because I knew they’d have a decent selection of the more ethically produced shoes, by brands like New Balance and ASICS.

It was a bit confusing because every department seemed to be selling trainers, but I eventually got directed up to the sixth floor, where sports shoes liked the walls and a notice promised the staff would happily advise me on the right shoes for the activity. I approached two shop assistants, deep in conversation with a man who was asking questions about what shoes to get. I smiled and tried to catch the eye of either of them, hoping some of the expert assistance would soon be coming my way - because surely its not efficient to have two members of staff fussing over one customer?

After three minutes of standing like this I was getting ready to jack it all in and leave when one of the women finally turned to me. I flashed her a friendly smile and prepared my questions on running trainers but didn’t get a chance to speak: “Could you move your things, they’re in the way of this gentleman”, she remarked huffily before turning back to help her colleague assist the man. No please, no thank you, no acknowledgement that I was also a customer. I was so annoyed I dropped the trainer I’d been holding on to the nearest stool and walked out fuming. Not impressed!

The Lillywhites store is located in Piccadilly Circus in the very centre of London. The store occupies a whole building with several floors exclusively dedicated to sports. They sell sports clothes and equipment with very competitive prices. Well known brands are sold here with huge discounts in shoes and clothes reaching even the 70% of discount, this is specially remarkable on basketball trainers (including Nike, And1, Reebock, Fila). They also sell casual clothes like coats or trousers. The store gets sometimes very crowded so it is better to avoid going at the weekend when there are a lot of tourist hanging around.

One word BUDGET. This used to be presigious sports store has now turned into a ‘hav world’..er no i mean sports world.
Great for picking up probably the cheapest sporting equipment around. But if your after quality cloths then dont bother. All the usual chav suspects here such as diadora ysl georgio kappa and ben Sherman.
But as this is in the centre of the west end always packed and for some reason the aisles between the merchandise are too small for ever one person to walk down let alone big enough for two to pass each other. Also has a few aussie brands like billabong ando’neils.

Sells good quality sportswear. Also quite affordable. Has a wide range over two floors. The location is fantastic right in the centre of London.

Good quality, cheap sportswear. Doubt that you would get anything cheaper anywhere else in London. Can get quite hectic sometimes. The salespeople are generally helpful especially with regard to shoes. Amazing deals can be found sometimes. They have an extensive range of equipment for most popular sports, can sometimes take hours to wade through the multiple levels. Most of their clothing is permanently on sale. They are an institution and people especially tourists have to make a stop at Lillywhites on a visit to London. Would recommend to all. You should not miss their trademark building in Piccadilly Circus. Be careful you are not swamped by crowds.

a former high end and expensive sports shop, the place has been transformed into a Mike Ashley bargain emporium, and I love it! as a kid I remember seeing 100 quid cricket bats (that was a year’s income in them days…) and now you can get a couple of decent outfits for that same hundred. good on yer, Mr Ashley! it does get hotter than a night in a Mumbai hot yoga studio, so dress light

As general purpose sports stores go this is probably the best that London has to offer. A wide range of sports are covered and everything is priced quite reasonably. This is definitely a stack 'em high and price 'em cheap type of store.

More discerning shoppers might prefer to shop elsewhere if they’re fussy about their sporting needs but there are plenty of bargains on offer for the average shopper.

This shop can not get any more famous, even if it tries to. There is something about the store and word sale all over it’s windows. Everything is always on sale and you can bag yourself a good bargain if you are after brand sports clothing. They do a good deal and it is hard to find another deal that comes close. There is no lift, only a lot of stairs and it can become quite crowded over weekends. If you don’t mind the crowds and want a bargain, then Lillywhites is your place.

Bargains galore for the Sports fan. Lilywhites in the last few years has change to Sports Direct, selling Sports World items. Cheap and cheerful products from cheap trainers to cheap branded clothing. If your looking for sport bargains this place will have it all.

Lillywhites used to be an upmarket sports related store, now seems to be a sale shop. Still, worth a browse.

This place sells sports equipment and attire. It is well located in the centre of London. It has many good cheap deals and great customer staff support. You can get almost anything related to sports here.

The idea of a sale is something that happens once or twice a year. Lillywhites has a sale 365 days a year….
I like the shop, you can pick up some real bargins!!!

Lillywhites is actually owned by sports direct. If you do not find what you are looking for, try Sports World, which is located close by at:
26-28 Oxford Street
LONDON
W1D 1AF