David Jones is the fancier alternate to Kmart we all deserve

It’s one of Australia’s struggling department stores, but there is one store Aussies need to head back to. I even ditched Kmart for them.

This is controversial, and we are in a cost-of-living crisis but it is time to head back to swanky department stores.

I promise this isn’t utterly rogue advice. I’ve recently become a David Jones devotee, and I’m reaping the benefits that I feel everyone else is sleeping on. Trust me, I was wearing Crocs in 2018, I know what’s up.

The personal styling suites at David Jones’ new international designer floor at its flagship Elizabeth St store in Sydney. Picture: Supplied

I am also very worried that if we don’t start supporting department stores, we will lose them forever.

David Jones was just bought for $100 million, by Anchorage Capital Partners. This sounds like heaps, but when you consider that in 2014, it was sold for $2 billion it actually isn’t such a great figure. So what does this tell us? Well, Australians aren’t loving department stores like they used too.

Instead, we are all heading to Kmart or online and forgetting about the joys of a fancy in-person shopping experience. Everyone needs to go back and watch Julia Roberts’ shopping scene in Pretty Women for inspiration.

Sarah Jessica Parker at the David Jones store in Elizabeth St, Sydney, having the time of her life. Picture: Flavio Brancaleone/Daily Telegraph

I am very aware that David Jones is a much more expensive option than heading down to Kmart or even online, but I find I spend less when I am there because everything is expensive so I need to be considered.

The problem with Kmart is that I can afford everything there, from $3 T-shirts to $2 mugs. I load my cart up like I’m about to bunker down for the apocalypse and head off. It usually costs me a small fortune because all the little stuff I don’t even need adds up.

My pro-David Jones stance isn’t just because I buy less. I just like shopping there more. There’s a reason everyone’s fancy – Nan raves about it. Shopping somewhere without any self-service check-outs is lovely. I don’t want to brag, but I can go to David Jones and leave without having a single fight with a rogue barcode.

The David Jones designer floor at its flagship Elizabeth St store in Sydney. Picture: Supplied

I decided to break up with Kmart earlier this year because I didn’t feel it was being transparent enough about the ethics behind its goods.

For some background, Kmart Group has launched an Ethical Sourcing Transparency Policy setting out clear requirements under which suppliers, when requested, must disclose information about their supply chain.

And it did achieve equal first with Target in the Fashion Transparency Index (FTI) 2022. However, the FTI doesn’t measure sustainability or ethics.

So while that isn’t being measured, I’ve had to go my own way like Vanessa Hudgens briefly did in High School Musical. Naturally, after the break-up, I then started dating David Jones. I needed somewhere to go to saunter around, and it became my Pete Davidson, aka my rebound.

Once the courtship started, it was effortless to fall in love. The actual store is always kept really beautifully. I also don’t somehow end up getting elbowed by someone who is also digging around for the last $3 T-shirt.

Plus, I tend to go to David Jones and shop with thought. I can’t just accidentally buy a $100 jumper. I need to consider it and know that I’ll love it, and it means I’m not buying a bunch of things that I don’t need.

I understand that shopping at David Jones sounds like something only your affluent grandma would do, but honestly, it is such a nice and pleasant experience. We should all head back to department stores and treat ourselves to the boujee shopping experience we deserve.

Originally published as David Jones is the fancier alternate to Kmart we all deserve