Tuesday, December 29, 2009

Tuesday's Rant: the quality of Target's Up & Up brand


Most Tuesdays I take the opportunity to rant about something I do not like about Target… because although I love ‘em to death, they ain’t perfect. Today's rant is courtesy of my BFF Kara, who's here in Sunny Cali from Washington state for the holidays. This morning she asked me "can you please rant about Target's Up & Up brand? Because I haven't had a good experience with it."

Specifically, she's dissappointed with Up & Up's dental floss... which seems like a no brainer (and hard to screw up, right?) but apparantly is of noticeable lower quality than "name" brands. Target even compares their brand to "Reach" floss, although it's nowhere near as good. Kara was also let down by Up & Up's disinfecting wipes... which are supposedly on par with "Clorox" wipes, but leave an awful residue behind.

To be honest, I'm a dedicated "name brand" shopper, so I haven't tried Up & Up products. I know, I know... I could be saving $$$ by shopping the store brands. But then again, if they aren't up to snuff, am I really saving money by using something of lesser qualtiy that I'm not happy with?

How about you, dear readers? Have you been dissappointed - or pleasantly surprised - by the quality of Target's Up & Up products?

20 comments:

lise said...

we love up & up brand's paper products - the dinner napkins, facial tissues and paper towels. the quality is on par with the name brands.

srb said...

I agree about the paper products. The paper towels are wonderful. I've tried some other things like antibiotic cream and baby wipes and don't have any complaints. Overall I think it's like many store brands, and most brands in general- depends on the product.

Unknown said...

I bought the up & up kitchen garbage bags that are compared to Glad, and they are much, much thinner. I used to buy the Target brand garbage bags, which were great, so I'm disappointed in the quality of the new ones!

Libby Issendorf said...

I've tried the contact solution, paper products, and some heating pads for backaches (like Thermacare). Fortunately they have all been great. I guess I'm used to buying off-brand for a lot of things, so maybe I don't have quite as much to compare to...

Tina said...

I love the up & up brand. Anything we can buy in Target's brand we try it out. I haven't noticed any residue left behind from the disinfecting wipes. I use the cleaning products, paper products, medicine, soaps ... we really like Target's brand. I think there are a couple things that I like the brand name better but all in all, it's a good line.

Target Addict said...

Thanks for weighing in, readers! It sounds like as with any store brands, there are winners and there are losers.

Marie said...

I haven't tried them, but I will consider carefully in future when I am thinking of saving a few pennies! I will try store brands now and then, but for stuff I am really hooked on I stick with a brand I like. Happy New Year!
Marie @ Lemondrop ViNtAge

urbanrhetoric said...

the diaper wipes were pretty crappy (they left fuzzies all over my little one!), but i like the laundry detergent and body wash.

kbfenner said...

Sandwich bags are fine and a whole lot cheaper, especially the fold-over kind...

I'm not wild about the graphics, though. Very arty, but awfully hard to read in a glare-y store with middle-aged eyes....

Jenny K. said...

I have been pleasantly surprised by the quality of Up & Up pull-ups. Not only are they $3 cheaper, but they are comparable to the Huggies and Pampers brands.

Christine said...

i agree w/ kbfenner.....i find the graphics very confusing.( i,too,am middle-aged !!!) it takes work to figure out what the product is at a glance. haven't tried anything but sandwich bags and they're fine !

Target Addict said...

Agreed that the Up&Up graphics/text is hard to read... which is probably why I "gloss over" them on the shelf, and instead keep reaching for my known "name" brands.

melis said...

I love the paper products, Aveeno "type" lotion, garbage bags and dishwasher detergent. Not so happy with the flimsy sandwich bags or fabric softener. Wishing for Up & Up Swiffer pads!

Sarah said...

So far I have good experiences with Up & Up. I've been using the Up & Up Zyrtec D and it works just as well. Since I suffer from year long allergies, and right now Zyrtec D seems to be the only med helping, it is great to be able to save quite a bit of money with the Up & Up brand. I also like Up & Up eye makeup remover, comparable to Neutrogena's.

mike721ct said...

I like Up & Up paper products, plastic bags, NSAIDs, allergy meds, and hand soap refill. I usually buy them with a few exceptions: when they have cottonell in the huge pack on sale; sometimes get method hand soaps; and garbage bags because Ruffies brand are cheaper, or I just use my Target shoppping bags.

As far as cosmetics I am picky. I like the smell of, and have totally fallen for the lines of cosmetics aimed at men.

I am also picky about household cleaners and detergents. I like my Fantastic Oxy Power and I love the Renewing Rain scent of Tide/Downy so Ive never tried the Target brands. I also liked the ocean paradice scent of Fabulouso but now I cant find it anywhere.

I also really like a lot of the Archer Farms and Market Pantry products. I actually prefer the MP verson of Nutra-grain bars (the Nutra-grain brand sometimes give me a temporary heartburn sensation when I eat them the MP ones do not)

Kara said...
This comment has been removed by the author.
Kara said...

Thanks for posting this, it is great to read all the comments. I should add that I have been happy with the paper products, so I guess it just depends....no more dental floss, though, that is for sure! :-)

Jackie Kelly said...

I had occasion to use my granddaughter's box of Up & Up dental floss and was very impressed with it. It glides easily between tight teeth but doesn't slip through fingers. I've been searching for the perfect floss and this it it for me. I didn't realize until my online search that it's the Target store brand. Excellent!

J boogie said...

Yes. I love Up & Up Pull-Ups

Jim in the Olympic Penninsula said...

The Up & Up lens cleaning wipes are not good. They streak and smell terrible!