OMG I watched the channel 5 documentary
Sunday 12th April, 2026 at 7.15pm
Supermarket Clothes: Are You Missing Out? Which first aired on Channel 5 at 8:00 PM on August 27, 2025.
Billed as a one-off documentary investigating the multi-billion-pound UK supermarket fashion industry, which surprisingly makes up 7% of the nations total fashion shopping spend, as a fashion industry professional myself focused on affordable ethical quality production, (the opposite of supermarket fast impulsive buy fashion) I was compelled to watch. The documentary features insights into brands like George at Asda, Nutmeg at Morrisons, Tu at Sainsbury’s and F and F at Tesco the idea presented, to investigate and check if these mass produced (higher margin longer shelf life than food) items are true bargains or simply adding to the increasing pile of low value discarded textile waste whilst making the big supermarkets a fortune from impulsive compulsive shoppers.
The show featured “experts” a stylist, Lauren Cunningham, a fashion writer and industry expert Nat Binns, a lecturer in fashion Kate morris from Leeds University (responsible for seam testing, textile stretch and recovery and fabric shrinkage) and a culture and lifestyle writer. Emma Lightbown hosted a panel of members of the public, comparing three brands in the same garment offering comparisons, men’s jeans, a white shirt, a pair of briefs etc, each category showing a garment from a supermarket, a high street store and a designer brand. The results came out 2 for the supermarket, two for the high street store and two for the expensive names but even without feeling the garments or seeing them up close we were able to identify which was which better than the panel.
The whole program was interesting and contained a lot of data but we just couldn’t get past the rails and rails of frankly ugly clothes and whilst the conclusion amongst the experts was the Supermarkets are offering great wearable clothes in up to the minute designs the camera couldn’t lie. The actual clothes featured were bloody horrible.
The presenters addressed what they called The "Celebrity Effect". We laughed. The program noted the influence of celebrities like Yasmin LeBon (George) and others who now endorse supermarket clothing lines. Except Yasmin LeBon just got paid for a campaign and wouldn’t be seen dead in clothes from George.
They even showed Times Fashion editor Anna Murphy spending a week in supermarket clothes at Paris fashion week. And giving the supermarkets even more press and PR to flog this rubbish, no one seemed to give her the heads up the mustard pussycat bow shirt and cheap leopard print coat just weren’t working where the fashion devils definitely wear Prada even if it’s nicked off a runway, TKmaxx gold label or purchased for way less than retail; secondhand.
The British public aren’t known particularly for their great style, OK sure the London look from the 1960s has endured and haute couture has strong players like Stella McCartney, Alexander McQueen but the British fashion public let’s be frank cannot stand up as a whole on style compared to the French, the Italians, the Spanish and even the Americans. (Who 20-30 years ago were laughed out of the style race in their signature shell suits, visors and fanny packs (bum bags)). They have come a long way since then and captured the quiet luxury minimalist market.
You only have to people watch at an international airport to discern who is stylish and who is not. We often play the game guessing where people are from by what they are wearing. Sad to say the British traveller usually ranks close to bottom in their supermarket wardrobes.
The conclusion from the chosen experts in what seemed like a paid supermarket clothing advertorial to me was supermarket clothes are great, and offer exceptional value and cost per wear. (If they don’t fall to bits after a few wears)
They did slip in for the conscious consumer, and people that care about the environment or the planet they are still a diabolical choice.
For me as an independent fashion designer who never buys supermarket clothes, the elevation and constant promotion of this low quality ill fitting clothing on ITV daytime TV shows like This Morning and Lorraine, only serves the brands and TV content producers not the public who are left buying and wearing them. I thought about it before writing this and I don’t have one piece of super market clothing in my wardrobe. And I’ve got a lot of clothes in a couple of wardrobes that houses more of a collection of everyday wearable comfortable staples to secondhand high quality ready to wear to pieces purchased on buying trips; in Japan an authentic silk kimono, Africa Traditional Kikoy from Swahili culture and in France, Vintage YSL, Chanel and Dior, to New York City Runway shows; John Galliano prints acquired from the 2000s and Guy Laroche from the 1960s.
The documentary was produced by Firecrest Films, with Grace Kitto and Harriet Scott listed as executive producers.