French Connection - final score: 25/40

Address: 249-251 Regent Street

Map: Click here to find this store

Score last year: 24/40

Verdict: Product looks good, but there are too few options in the mix and it is hard to justify these prices

Looks - 7

French Connection has approached trends with a young fashion head this season, backing star prints on jersey dresses, oversized gingham prints and dip dye styles on maxis and panelling prints similar to Jonathan Saunders' Topshop line.

There are some good denim options, with wide-legged and flared styles, but it is the dresses that stand out with their prints, fabrications and embellishment.

Tiered skirts appear in mini floral prints, stonewashed denim, and black or white sheer silk.

Mix - 6

Dresses are the strongest category for French Connection this season and cover roughly a third of the floor space, ranging from heavily jewelled evening shifts through to more casual printed jersey styles.

The smaller upstairs section is dedicated to swimwear and also footwear, which is a bit of odd merchandising as this small floor is really a product overspill and some on-trend shoes can be easily missed stuck up there.

Other successful product categories include city shorts, printed blouses and coloured vests.

Store - 7

The window display is disappointingly bland for French Connection, with white smock tops and blouses, and doesn't reflect the breadth of colour and style in-store.

But the L-shaped shop is very tidy, there are plenty of helpful staff, and the location is great, just at the top of Regent Street and perfectly placed for the those customers wishing to browse high street fashion in a less bustling atmosphere.

The high ceilings give the store a bigger feel, and the corner location is a good draw. There is some evidence of outfit building suggestions, but this is largely not necessary as dresses lead the look route.

Value - 5

In the context of the contemporary sector, French Connection's price points are well placed, with sequinned vests coming in at £40 and heavily embellished smocks a fair £75.

However, some of the product is significantly similar to that found in Topshop, and here it is confusing.

The tiered floral skirt style becomes £60 with a French Connection tag, twice that of Topshop's, and plain smock tops rocket to £55 without any real justification. A heavily beaded shift dress is towards the top end of contemporary prices at £150, and a jersey dress is £50.

Vox pop: Tracy Lawrence, 30, project manager

• Are you a regular shopper here? 
Yes, I've shopped here for years.

• What does this shop mean to you?
The clothes are timeless and elegant. There's always something here I want to buy.

• How impressed are you with this season's offerings?  
It was a bit summery, but the colours are great. I love the shades of yellow; there is a yellow beaded dress that I especially like.

• What is it they're doing well?
It's always very on-trend, and yet at the same time, the clothes are so classic they don't date. I have things from French Connection that I bought 10 years ago and still wear. The clothes also suit all ages.

• What have they missed out that you would have liked to have seen? 
I think it may be slightly behind fashion with all the waistcoats it had on the shop floor. That's a bit over now, and it's the sort of trend-item you would go to Topshop to buy anyway. French Connection should stick to what it does best; ling-term investment pieces. But generally I don't think there's much wrong with the womenswear.