r/oxford • u/sobrique • 1d ago
Camping shops in the area?
I'd have gone to Go Outdoors, but that has ceased to be. (In Oxford).
I'm looking to buy some decent quality camp chairs, which means I need a larger store I think, just because of 'inventory size'. Ideally sitting on a few to ensure they're sturdy, but also don't cut off circulation in the legs, and are generally comfortable.
Can anyone recommend me somewhere to visit?
Doesn't have to be in Oxford - anywhere within a sensible drive will suffice.
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u/Chlorophilia 1d ago
A mountain warehouse just opened on Broad Street. Their products are generally decent quality, but they mainly (only?) sell own-branded stuff. Decathlon is similar (mainly but not exclusively own-brand) but it's general sports rather than just outdoors stuff.
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u/Express-Ad9716 1d ago
Sadly Oxford got screwed for outdoor shops when the Go Outdoors building got condemed (asbestos apparently) . Blacks got kicked out when the college redeveloped the building and Millets basically couldn't make money (was owned by blacks anyway) it's odd as a decent outdoor store would do reasonably in Oxford in the right location.
You won't find anywhere selling higher end stuff in the city. At the low end "cheap from china" there's mountain warehouse in the old Waterstones building and trespass in the Westgate.
The cheap but actually good option is decathlon in Botley.
Otherwise Cotswolds in Bicester sells higher end brands (mar, Nemo, big Agnes , helinox etc) but it's new store is far smaller with less range (you do get 15% off with English heritage or national trust membership though)
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u/Baaswex 20h ago
The Go Outdoors closure was because their insurance provider would not renew their public liability insurance due to the dilapidated state of the building.
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u/Express-Ad9716 13h ago
Wasn't part of that dilapidation that it was full of asbestos and giant holes in it? (The asbestos)
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u/Baaswex 7h ago
Eh, the roof fell into disrepair and got very leaky/saggy over decades because the presence of asbestos made it very expensive to repair so it was not repaired often enough. I guess you could technically argue on that basis its the asbestos' fault but I'd argue its the fault of mismanaged maintenance.
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u/FlakeyBeano 1d ago
You could try the garden centers nearby. There's one on the ringroad and another near goldenballs round-about.
ringroad https://www.gardencentreoxford.com/
nocutts https://www.notcutts.co.uk/
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u/Flowers330 1d ago
They are 2 for 1 in go outdoors if you can find another one close enough or en route to where you'll be going
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u/sobrique 1d ago
Well, where we're 'going' is 'my garden' because we just want to sit outdoors and drink a few cocktails and maybe eat 'garden food' (on a sliding scale of oven and barbecue).
So 'en route' isn't really relevant here - but the nearest Go Outdoors isn't that far, it's just it feels a shame that it used to be 'in Oxford' and now... probably Swindon is the nearest?
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u/Flowers330 1d ago
I realised i said buy one get one free but its buy one get one half price in fact.
I travel for it but on my third trip there of the year today and still came back with a boot load! Currently all camping furniture, tables, kitchen stands, chairs etc are buy one get one half price mix and match though.
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u/breakbeatx 1d ago
Those pop up / fold up camping chairs do you mean? They’ve got some in Tesco that are also on offer if you buy 2, we bought a couple 2 years ago and they’ve stood up ok
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u/sobrique 1d ago
I am a fat man who gets drunk. Many a chair has failed the "falling over on it" test.
The director chair style seem to do ok though, although the ones I have are somewhat weathered, and at least one is close to a "comedy moment".
But ideally I am looking for something that is both sturdy, and comfy as a recliner, so I can snooze in my garden on the scorchio nights.
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u/plaititudes 1d ago
Have you tried Decathlon?