Onine Stores

Fableticsis where you can purchase the latest fashion-forward and versatile activewear for both men and women. Express your unique style with its selection of yoga pants, leggings, joggers, tops, tees and more – all at unbeatably low prices!

However, with a lot of activewear companies out there, the big question is what makes Fabletics different from the rest. More importantly, is it worthwhile to use Fabletics for your activewear needs? Does Fabletics hold high-quality activewear, or is its “fabulous athletic” tag nothing but cunning marketing? If it does have high-quality athletic wear, what about pricing? Does it live true to its promise to offer these at affordable price points?

What about its services; does Fabletics offer the top services that we’ll expect of the ideal online store (such as easy ordering, fast delivery, easy returns, effective customer service, etc.)?

In the first place, is Fabletics legit, or is it just another scam store out to rip off people?

Yes, Fabletics is legit. It is not a scam because they will never take your money without shipping your products. And you will get all the items you ordered from the store without a problem.

This Fabletics review will examine Fabletics in order to provide the information that will help you answer these questions and more.

Fabletic review at a glance

• Website: fabletics.com
• A US-based activewear brand founded in 2013
• Operate 35 retail outlets across the US
• Uses a subscription model, where the member is charged monthly except they shop or “skip”
• Ships to the US, Canada, and Australia
• Free shipping is offered when ordering from the 48 contiguous US States
• Returns are allowed if made within 30 days of the shipment date
• Free Returns is also available (for orders from the 48 contiguous US States)
• 24/ 7 customer support is available via telephone (1-844-322-5384) and Live Chat

What is Fabletic?

Fabletics was launched in October of 2013 by the founders of JustFab (Don Ressler and Adam Goldenberg) and Kate Hudson (the actress). The website says that the inspiration was a gap in the activewear marketplace, which is high-quality gear at an accessible price point.

Fabletics does come offering high-performance athletic wears. Its apparel focuses on fit, function, and style. As the company like to say, it offers “complete coordinated outfits for your workout and beyond”. Fabletics started exclusively as an online store with no retail outlet.

However, it saw so much success that by January 2015, one million orders have shipped, and by June of the year, it launched FL 2 (its men’s line). Later in that same year (in October of 2015); Fabletics celebrated its second birthday, and with it launched brick and mortar stores, opening six retail locations in the US. At the time of writing this review, Fabletics’ retail outlets have grown to 35 stores in 22 states across the US.

Is Fabletics legit?

It’s not news that there are many scammers in cyberspace using different fronts to rip off unsuspecting netizens. Over the years, one scam front that has proved successful to these scam artists is “fake stores” (a place where customers will make payment for orders, but will never receive the order). Thus, before using any eCommerce platform, it is wise to first determine that it is legit. Thus, the big question here is whether Fabletics is legit. The short and simple answer is “Yes, it’s legit”. The longer answer is: it is 100% legal, it has industry-wide recognition, and it has a track record of fulfilling orders.

Our first check of a legit online store is usually legality. This is because stores that are 100% legal are less likely to be scams. Thankfully, Fabletics ticks this box as it is owned by TechStyle Inc, which is a 100% legal company registered in the US. It operates other sites like FabKids and ShoeDazzle. Suffice it to say that a scam store will not be powered by a company with such a profile.

Another check of a legit online store is industry-wide recognition. This is because the scam stores almost always operate in the shadows. Thankfully, Fabletics ticks this box. Thanks to being co-founded by the world famous Kate Hudson, it has always had the flashlight shone on it. Fabletics has been featured by a lot of influencers as well as industry followers and watchers alike.

These include top publishers like People Style Magazine, Elle, USA Today, The Chalkboard Magazine, and many more. Suffice it to say that top influencers will not be associated with a scam store; and that a scam store cannot earn a space in the pages of top magazines.

Another check of a legit online store is the test of time. This is because the scam stores are short-lived. It’s only a matter of time before scamming is exposed, and with such exposure, the affected store usually closes its virtual doors. Thankfully, Fabletics ticks this box. It’s been operating for over 6 years now, which is enough time for it to be called out if it were a scam.

Another check of a legit online store is physical existence. This is because the scam stores almost always exist as virtual spaces; that is, there is usually no physical existence (no production centre, no warehouse/fulfilment centre, and no retail outlet). Thankfully, Fabletics ticks this box; and not just because it now has many brick and mortar stores scattered around the US.

Rather, even before October 2015 when it was exclusively online, it had a robust center in Los Angeles where all its items are designed. With physical centres (design hubs, production centres, warehouse, etc), there’s no doubt that Fabletics has the capacity to fulfil orders, which is something that cannot be said about a scam store.

The ultimate check of a legit online store is the fulfillment of the order. Simply put; when you place an order, a legit store will deliver real products that are also functional. Thankfully, Fabletics also ticks this box. Over 35 million products have been sold, and customer reviews show that these are top quality products with top functionality.

With Fabletics powered by a 100% legal company, earning the recognition of many industry watchers, and having a rich history of fulfilling millions of orders with real and functional products, there’s no doubt that it is a legit online activewear store.

Is Fabletics safe?

Fabletics is safe. With no doubt about Fabletics’ legitimacy, another question is whether it is safe. You’ll want a safe online store so that the sensitive information that you share with it (such as personal information and credit card details) will not leak out to unauthorized third parties.

In this regards, Fabletics says that the security of your personal information is important to them, and as such they follow generally accepted industry standards to protect information that users submit, both during transmission and after it is received. One of the technical measures used is SSL (Secure Sockets Layer) technology. With the use of the bank-grade encryption protocol of SSL amongst other measures, it is safe to say that Fabletics is safe.

Products

When making any purchase, you’ll want to find a wide range of products so that you can shop all your related items in one place. One-place shopping is more convenient than having to visit different stores for your needs. Also, it comes with cost savings, from big order discounts, or paying to ship one order, instead of paying to ship different orders from multiple stores.

Fabletics as an athletic wear brand focuses on women wear, and you’ll find everything from wears to accessories. When shopping, the product categories you’ll find, and the items you’ll find in each are as follows:

Fabletics Women Outfits:

• Outfits – Yoga & Studio, Running, Gym & Workout

Fabletics Women Tops

• Tops – Tanks, Short Sleeves, Long Sleeves, Jackets & Vest

Fabletics Women Bottoms:

• Bottoms – Leggings & 7/ 8, Capris & Crops, Pants, Shorts

Fabletics Women Sports Bras:

• Bras – High Impact, Medium Impact, Low Impact,

Fabletics Accessories:

• Accessories – Shoes, Bags, Hats & Hair, socks & Underwear, Workout Gear
• Plus Size

How it Works

However, Fabletics does not operate like the regular online stores where you go to at anytime you choose browse its listing and make a purchase. Fabletics uses a membership subscription model. Describing this model, Fabletics explains: “Shop or simply click ‘skip’ by the 5th of every month. If you don’t shop or skip by the 5th, your credit card will be charged $49.95 on the 6th until you cancel”. However, the charge is a credit in your VIP account and never expires; that is, you can use it to shop in Fabletics whenever you want.

That is, the model of Fabletics is predicated on the assumption that you’ll need a monthly supply of athletic wears or gears. Seriously, we don’t know anyone who does. Once you join the membership program, it is no longer shopping as usual (where you can go to the online store at any time); you’ll now be required to go to Fabletics at least once every 30 days (before the 5th of the month) to either make a purchase or “skip”.

If you make a purchase, or “skip” before or on the fifth of any month, your credit card won’t be charged. But if you do not make any purchase and forget to skip, your credit card will take a hit of $49.95. The one good news is that it goes into your Fabletics account as a store credit which you can use for future purchases.

If you are wondering why you’ll signup for Fabletics subscription-styled membership instead of using the regular stores, it is because the affordable pricing that Fabletics promises is largely enjoyed by customers in its VIP membership program. For example, at the time of writing this review, we selected a Mila High-Waisted Pocket Legging into our cart.

Its price at checkout was: $74.95 – Regular; $54.95 – VIP. That’s a whopping $20 off for VIP members. Then, we picked an outfit (a lightweight drawstring shorts and boat-neck sweater). At checkout, its price was: $89.90 – Regular; VIP – $39.95. Again that’s a whopping $49.95 off for VIP members.

This shows that you can actually have regular purchases in Fabletics (one-time purchase where there’s no pressure to make monthly purchases and no worrying about forgetting to skip and incurring monthly charges). However, it also shows that the main goal of Fabletics is to get its customers to sign up for its VIP membership. We don’t know any shopper who’ll use a shopping model when there’s another that offers the same product for $20 or $49.95 less (over 25% or 55% lower respectively).

More so, Fabletics says that the VIP membership is simply an option during checkout, but the checkout process by default puts you in the VIP membership. You’ll have to un-check a box, to opt-out of VIP membership. However, even minus the default process of the checkout, shoppers really don’t have much of an option. If at checkout you see two prices, one over 25% (or 55%) lower than the other, which will you go for?

Pricing and Promotions

Pricing

Every shopper wants the best deal, thus, the ideal online store should offer competitive prices. In this regards, Fabletics says that its mission is not just to provide on-trend activewear designs that are high in quality, but to provide these at prices you’ll feel good about. Fabletics does live up to its promise. Whatever category you enter to shop, you’ll find its prices to be competitive.

Promotions

Promotions allow customers to get items for less than the items’ going prices. Thus, everyone loves the promotions and will rate as ideal any online store that runs a lot of promotions. Fabletics does well in this regards. Not only does it run promotions very often, but its promotions are usually very massive, taking sizeable chunks of prices. For example, at the time of writing this review, there was a promotion that was promising getting “2 for $24” promo which promised to offer customers 2 leggings for just $24. Another promo promised 70% off everything. However, most often than not, Fabletics’ promos apply to only VIP members.

Shipping

An important part of all our reviews of online platforms is shipping. This is because, with every online purchase, there are shipping considerations. You’ll have to consider: whether the online store ships to your location, how long it takes for orders to be delivered and how much shipping costs.

Shipping Destination

This is always the first consideration; except an online store directly ships to your location, it’ll be difficult to receive delivery of your orders. In this regards, customers move for stores that ship to worldwide locations so that their location is more likely to be covered.

Fabletics is not a world facing store. At the time of writing this review, it only ships to the US (including APO/ FPO addresses and P.O. Boxes) as well as Canada and Australia. This means that if you live anywhere else, you’ll have to look elsewhere for your athletic wears and gears.

Delivery Times

This is also an important consideration because no one will want to wait forever for his/ her order. Thus, the ideal online store should feature fast delivery.

Delivery time is always determined by order processing time and order shipment time. The former is how much time it takes from when you place the order to when the item ships, while the latter is how much time it takes from when the item ships to when it gets to your shipping address.

Fabletics does relatively well in this regards. In terms of order processing, it takes 2 business days. However, it warns that during peak shipping periods such as the first of each month, promotional events and holidays, order processing may take an additional 1 – 2 business days due to high volume of orders.

The shipping time varies depending on where the item is shipping to. Fabletics offer two shipping options – Standard shipping and Rush shipping. When shipping Standard Shipping, orders going to the 48 contiguous United States take 4 – 7 business days, while orders going to Alaska, Hawaii, Puerto Rico, military addresses, Canada, and Australia take 7 – 10 business days.

However, Fabletics warns that shipping to Alaska, Hawaii, military addresses and Australia may take up to 30 days due to the carrier or location of the station. Rush Shipping is available only to orders going to the 48 contiguous US states, and it takes 2 – 3 business days.

Shipping Cost

In online purchases, the total acquisition cost consists of the item purchase price and shipping cost. Thus, where shipping costs are high, even items that are perceived as acceptably priced can easily become too expensive to acquire. Thus, the ideal online store should feature shipping costs that are perceived as low and reasonable.

Fabletics does very well in this regards. Standard shipping to 48 contiguous US States is free for all items over $49.95. That free shipping is offered is not what makes Fabletics come out fine, rather it’s the fact that the minimum order requirement to get free shipping is only $49.95. There are many stores out there that’ll require your order amount to get to three figures ($100) before you qualify for free shipping. However, with the $49.95+ order requirement of Fabletics, you’ll not have to overspend in chase of free shipping.

Also, where US Standard order is not up to $49.95, the shipping fee that applies is relatively low (only $4.95). However, when shipping (Standard shipping) to Alaska, Hawaii, and US military address, shipping cost is $9.00. When shipping internationally to Australia, Standard Shipping cost is $9.95, but if you’re a new customer (VIP member), you’ll get a one-time first order shipping fee of $5.95. When using Rush Shipping (which is available to only the 48 contiguous US States), the shipping cost is $8.95.

Returns

Given that customers are sometimes not satisfied with their order when it is received; customers gravitate towards online stores that’ll allow them to return an unwanted item and get a replacement item or a refund. Thankfully, Fabletics ticks this box as it allows returns.

Return Window

However, you don’t have forever to return any Fabletics item that you are not content with. In Fabletics, if it’s your first order, you’ll have 45 days from the date of shipment to return the item. However, if it isn’t your first order, you’ll have only 30 days (from shipment date) to make a return.

It should be said that the return window is relatively shorter that what’s becoming the standard – 30 days from the delivery date. Since the return window of Fabletics starts closing when the item is shipped, it means that by the time you’ll receive the order, you’ll have even less time. Thus, if you must return a Fabletics order, you’ll have to act fast upon receipt of the item.

Cost of Returns

You’ll not want to have an unwanted item delivered to you but prevented from returning it because of the high cost of returns. Thus, the ideal online store should offer returns costs that are as low as possible. Fabletics ticks the box here.

All orders to the 48 contiguous US States are eligible for free returns, while a return shipping rate of $9.00 will apply for other orders.

Return Process

You’ll also not want the return process to be stressful. Thankfully, Fabletics offers a hassle-free return process. It does this by providing return labels. To return a Fabletics item, after contacting them about it and getting a return authorization. You can then proceed to print out the Return Label and Return Slip, package the item appropriately and attach the return label to the outside of the package, and ship it to the return address provided.

Exchanges

Sometimes customers only want to get a replacement item when they return an unwanted item to its retailer. Such product exchanges facilitate the process of getting the right product because you’ll not have to wait to be refunded before placing a new order for the right product.

Thankfully, Fabletics allow product exchanges. However, Australia customers cannot return Fabletics orders for exchange.

Customer Support Service

The ideal online store should have an effective customer support service which will handle the questions and issues that customers will have.

Fabletics does relatively well in this regards. First, there’s a detailed FAQ section which holds answers to many questions, and you just may find your concern treated. The section is arranged as per the following subjects: About Fabletics, Membership, Shopping the Site, Clothing and Outfits, Rewards Program, Shipping and Returns, and Gift Cards.

If you need to directly contact a customer support rep, Fabletics can be reached via Facebook, Telephone, and Live Chat. The phone number to call is 1-844-322-5384. Interestingly, the telephone service is available round the clock. That is, you can reach an agent on the phone 24 hours a day; seven days a week. However, the live chat, while also available 7 days a week, is only live from 9am – 9pm (EST).

Complaint

Our reviews are never complete without looking at complaints. This is simply because what real customers have to say about a company says much about how healthy it is. For this section, we checked some of the top independent customers’ review platforms like Trustpilot and Sitejabber.

Interestingly, Fabletics has mixed ratings. For example, in Trustpilot, it is highly rated, scoring 4.2 out of 5 (rated by 95,414 reviewers); however, in sitejabber, its rating is slightly below average, scoring 2.2 out of 5 (rated by 1,594). Some complaints stood out in the reviews, and these are as follows:

VIP credits don’t apply to Sales items

As mentioned earlier, the main business focus of Fabletics is to sign everyone to its VIP membership, where are charged $49.95 any month that you either do not shop or do not “skip”. Yes, we stayed our hands from shooting Fabletics because the charge is credited to your VIP account to be used at any time. The catch is that credits can easily build up for persons who are caught up in whatever and forget to skip.

Now when you do want to make a purchase, you’ll find that you are unable to use those credits to buy “Sales” items. Specifically, some of the complaints were as follows:

For example:

• Yuliana Lacsina says in Trustpilot says “Clothing is great!!! However, they do not allow you to use your credit towards sales items. Or should I say they don’t honour the sales price if you use your credit”
• Rosa Araica in Trustpilot says “I don’t understand why they would hold a sale and at the end when the customer is checking out give them the option to use their credit but pay full price or not use the credit but pay for the outfit on sale. My credit is money that I’ve paid. It’s very tricky and it makes me not trust Fabletics as a company even more. I think they have good quality clothing but the way they do business is sleazy”
• Keri McCoy in Trustpilot says “Your website is not intuitive. I can’t buy leggings with my credits and get a promo item. And if I can, it is not easy to figure out how”
• Kelsey Wetherell says “I am unhappy that as a customer I cannot use my credits when purchasing something that is on promotion sale…”

As one customer rightly says the “credits” is money that has been paid, so there really should be no reason why one cannot use credit to buy “Sales items”. Interestingly, Fabletics in its replies fails to give an explanation (a wise move as any explanation will be crazy); they only thank the customers for the review assuring that the comments “regarding our promotion will help us know what we can do better”.

Monthly Charges

It’s been said that the business model of Fabletics is subscription-styled. It will seem that a lot of customers do not find joy in this, as seen from the following complaints.

• Kim W in sitejabber says “I bought leggings from Fabletics a month ago and signed up for the membership program not knowing it was $50 a month! …”
• Esha N in Sitejabber says “wow I wish I could give them zero ratings. They signed me up for their VIP membership without telling me and have been charging my account 68 dollars every month. Never EVER purchase from them. They will steal your money. THE WORST COMPANY EVER. DO NOT TRUST THEM”

To be fair to Fabletics, it says right in the landing page of its website that a $49.95 charge will apply monthly if you do not shop or skip adding that the charge will become a member credit to be spent at any time. Also, during checkout, there is also a snippet about this $49.95 monthly charge. With a little attention, this problem of not knowing of the charges will not exist.

However, what we have issues with is Fabletics saying that you have the “option” to join its membership program when checking out the first time. Actually, every first checkout, by default, puts you in the membership program. The “option” you have is opting out of the membership program.

Cancellation is a headache

Another complaint that you’ll find is that cancelling the VIP membership to avoid those charges (if you forget not skip) is not as easy as customers will want it to be. For example:

• Paty R in Sitejabber says “they keep charging me monthly and whenever I try to cancel they’re always on hold or the online chat is never available. I need a refund, I don’t even buy anything”
• Kalena S says “Great product, horrible to cancel”. The review added “the products you get is high quality… it’s just that the cancellation is HORRIBLE. I called to cancel and they put me through the ringer until I accepted $10 worth of store credit as long as they would notify me every month in order to [skip] the monthly payment for store credit… Anyway, I never got a notification… So when I forgot again (due to being busy with work and financial issues) I got charged. I called again and demand my subscription be cancelled. I had to repeat myself about 5 times because every time the person would try to keep me like a VIP and totally disregarded what I just said. I finally got to cancel and got reimbursed but this was such a headache”

Charges even after cancellation

Another complaint we saw was that not every cancellation of the VIP membership is successful. As the customers’ reviews show, some persons, who thought their membership is cancelled and do not go to the site to skip a month” get charged the monthly fee. For example:

• Tory N in Sitejabber says “I have stopped with fabletics a few times in the past and last month I tried to cancel my membership, after doing so I received a charge on my card for their monthly fee so I reached out to the live chat. After going back and forth with their customer service for a while I finally convinced her to give me a refund/ cancel my membership. Then I received another charge for a monthly fee this month so [I] reached out again and was told that the agent had told me in our previous conversation that my account will be remaining active (which did not happen). Then after going back and forth with this agent, I got my money back again. This time I was smart enough to screenshot the conversation for the next time this happens. I am very sad that this is happening, I like their products but the monthly membership is a scam and they will do all they can to keep your money”
• Renee C in Trustpilot says “Bills you after cancellation”. The review continued “I cancelled my subscription over the summer [because] of the monthly charges. I simply could not afford to shop with them anymore and thought it would be a simple cancellation process. I was wrong. I called the help number to cancel my subscription at least twice with the reassurance it would be handled but ended up getting billed twice more after that, and [I] have noticed they’ve been trying to bill since then despite having cancelled. I’ve cancelled, yet keep getting these notifications. I liked their products but if this is how they treat their customers then it’s not worth the trouble…”

Unhelpful Customer Support Service

Another complaint you’ll find is that customer support service is unhelpful. For example:

• Kim W in sitejabber says “… When I saw the charge on my card this month, I tried to call the customer service number on their website but would be answered by a robot and would be hung up on multiple times. Using the chat feature, I talked with a service representative Janice who copy and pasted something about their membership and how I should have opted out for that month (for something I was again unaware of) and then ended the chat. I will sure as hell never buy from them again. I’m still working on getting the refund – all of the customer service representatives have been very unhelpful”

However, it should be said that customers who complained of the Support Service of Fabletics being unhelpful where those that needed help with leaving the VIP membership. Since the main thrust of Fabletics is to get customers into the VIP membership, it is understandable that they (the support reps) will do everything to keep customers in the membership. That said, if you want help with leaving the VIP membership, don’t be too dismayed if you do not get a smooth exit.

Pros

• Holds a wide range of activewear (tops, bottoms, sports bra, and more) for both men and women)
• Prices are competitive
• Also offers a lot of price slashing promotions
• Free shipping is offered (albeit to only the contiguous US states)
• Minimum order requirement to qualify for free shipping is only $49
• Delivery is relatively fast
• Provides Return Label for making easy returns
• Offers a return window of 30 days from the shipment date (45 days from shipment date on the first order)
• Offers free returns for orders from the 48 contiguous US States
• Customer support is available round the clock, every day

Cons

• Ships to only the US, Canada, and Australia
• Charges $49.95 monthly (which is credited as store credits) if one does not make a purchase and does not remember to skip
• VIP membership credits cannot be used to purchase any item on promotion (e.g. sales items)
• Promos mostly apply to only customers in the VIP membership
• Exiting the VIP membership is not usually smooth

Conclusion

Fabletics is an activewear brand co-founded by Kate Hudson. It is a very legit online store that holds a wide range of high-quality athletic wears. It ships to the US, Canada, and Australia; US customers even get free shipping, with a relatively low $49 minimum order requirement.  More so, shipping is relatively fast. If you’re not content with an order, returns are also accepted if made within 30 days of the shipment date. US customers even get free returns.

Prices are competitive, and Fabletics offer a ton of promotions that further bring prices to tantalizingly low levels.

However, if you’re to enjoy the competitive pricing of Fabletics, or its promotions, you’ll have to join its VIP membership. But that means that you’ll have to make a purchase or “skip”, else you’ll be charged $49.95, which goes into your VIP account as a credit that you can spend at any time in the store. One big thing to consider is that you’ll be unable to use the credits to buy items on promotions.

That said, if you need a monthly supply of active wear, you’ll definitely find Fabletics just right. Also, if you’ll not forget to skip when you don’t need to make a purchase, you’ll also find Fabletics as fine. However, if you’ll not be making a monthly purchase and may forget to skip it, then you may find Fabletics frustrating, as you’ll be charged monthly, and this will build up store credits in your account.

Do you have an event tonight that you’ll want to grace with casual wear? Then you’ll want to look pretty tonight.

PrettyTonight advertises as a professional global online store committed to providing customers with high-quality, trendy fashion products at favourable prices along with a class-leading customer service experience.

Trendy fashion products, high quality, favourable prices, and top-notch customer service are the promises of Pretty Tonight; those are some things you’ll want from the ideal online fashion store. However, the big question is whether these promises of Pretty Tonight are just adverted blurbs, or whether PrettyTonight does deliver.

In the first place, is Pretty Tonight legit, or is it just another scam store designed to rip off unsuspecting customers?

Yes, Pretty Tonight is legit. And it is not a scam because they will never steal your money or not ship the items you purchased from the store. But that does not mean they do not send low-quality materials, continue reading to know what customers are saying and what we found out.

This Pretty Tonight review will examine Pretty Tonight in order to provide the information that will help you answer these questions.

Pretty Tonight review at a glance

• prettytonight.com
• A brand new online women fashion store launched in 2019
• Focuses on casual women wear
• Prices are competitive
• Offers a number of price-slashing promos
• Supported payment methods are PayPal and Credit/ Card
• Ships to worldwide locations
• Offers free standard shipping to the US for orders over $49
• Allows items not 100% satisfactory to be returned, with a 30 day (from delivery) return window
• Customer support is available via email (service@prettytonight.com)

What is Pretty Tonight?

There are many online fashion stores out there; and Pretty Tonight is one of the latest additions. The more the merrier? Pretty Tonight was launched only recently (August of 2019). Pretty Tonight advertises as a professional global online store for the latest women’s dresses, hoodies, sweaters, cardigans, coats & jackets, etc.

Is Pretty Tonight legit

When it comes to making purchases online, you cannot be too careful. There are many fraudsters in cyberspace that have been ripping off unsuspecting customers. Thus, before any purchase, you’ll want to make sure that the store is legit. So the simple but big question is whether Pretty Tonight is legit.

While many reviewers easily throw the scam label at stores that have one or two failings, we usually follow a more objective approach and look at the store in its entirety.

Usually, our first check of a legit online store is usually legality. This is because online stores that are powered by 100% legal companies are less likely to be scams. Unfortunately, Pretty Tonight does not come shinning as we’ll want. This is not because it is not operated by a 100% legal Company, but because like many online fashion stores, it does not say anything about its owner/ operator. More so, searching for the owner of the website was fruitless, as the website hides this information using Domains by Proxy LLC. So at best, whether Pretty Tonight is owned and operated by a 100% legit Company is inconclusive.

Another check of a legit online store is the test of time. This is because scam stores are usually short-lived. It is only a matter of time before scamming activities are discovered; and with such discovery, the affected store will naturally die. Unfortunately, Pretty Tonight also does not come out shining in this test of time. This is not because it has been called out as a scam store.

Rather it is a new online store; its domain was registered in the second half of this year (2019). While Pretty Tonight does not have the long operating record to make it pass the test of time, it should be remembered that every one of the online stores with the long operating records had a start.

Another check of a legit online store is usually visibility and industry-wide recognition. This is because the scam stores operate largely in the shadows. Unfortunately, Pretty Tonight also does not come out shining in this regards. You’ll not find Pretty Tonight featured by any of the popular industry watchdogs. We’ll chalk this on its relative newness on the fashion scenes.

However, a silver lining is that at the time of writing this review, Pretty Tonight had an Alex rank of just over 1.3 million. Alexa ranks of less than one million show that the website has decent user traffic. Thus, for a relatively new website, the just over 1.3 million rankings of Pretty Tonight is not too bad; and shows that the online store is not “in the shadows”.

However, the ultimate check of an online store is usually fitness for purpose. This is because the scam stores are designed to rip off people, and only legit stores will deliver real and functional products when a customer places an order with them. Thankfully, Pretty Tonight passes this all-important legit check. When you place an order in the store, you’ll receive delivery of real products, which (most often than not) are largely functional.

That said; while the owner of the website is unknown (hidden), and its relative newness means it does not have industry-wide recognition or a robust operating record, that it fulfils orders with real and functional products means that it is a legit online fashion store.

Is Pretty Tonight safe?

A legit online store will definitely not rip you off. But a store ripping you off shouldn’t be your only fear. Another important consideration should be whether the store is safe. This is because, except it is also safe, the sensitive data that you share with it (such as your personal information and credit card details) will leak out, leaving you exposed to all the fraudsters out there. Thus the ideal online store should both be legit and safe.

Thankfully, this is one area where Pretty Tonight does come out shinning. It says that it implements a variety of security measures including offering the use of a secure server. It adds that all supplied sensitive/ credit information is transmitted via Secure Socket Layer (SSL) technology and then encrypted into its Payment Gateway providers’ database only to be accessed by authorized personnel.

Suffice it to say that SSL technology is the industry standard for ensuring the protection of data being transmitted over the internet. A private channel is created that blocks off third parties, while the data is encrypted with bank-grade encryption protocols being sent through the channel.

Also, after a transaction, your private information (such as credit card details, social security number, etc) is not stored on the servers of Pretty Tonight. Lastly, the servers and the website are security scanned and fully verified independently by McAfee Secure (from Symantec) on a daily basis to ensure that users are protected online.

That said; it is safe to say that Pretty Tonight is safe.

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Products

When making purchases, customers usually want one-stop stores; which are stores with a wide variety of products, and that can allow them to get their related products in one place. Being able to get your fashion needs in one place is convenient, as it saves you the stress of checking multiple stores. It also comes with cost savings; as you’ll be able to get big order discounts as well as savings from shipping (paying to ship one order instead of paying to ship multiple orders from multiple stores).

Pretty Tonight holds its own in terms of the product range. It focuses on women clothing; especially casual wears. When shopping in Pretty Tonight, the products categories (and the products you’ll find in each of the categories) are as follows:

• Sweaters and Cardigans
• Tops – Blouses and T-Shirts, hoodies and Sweater shirts, Sweaters and Cardigans
• Pants
• Dresses – Vintage Dresses, Casual Dresses, Maxi Dresses, Midi Dresses
• Outwears – Hoodies and Sweatshirts, Sweaters and Cardigans, Coats and Jackets
• Shoes and Accessories

While Pretty Tonight does quite well in its range of products, it does not provide the full gamut. For example, in the apparel section, you won’t find activewear, swimwear, or intimates. You’ll also find that Pretty Tonight is lacking in terms of non-apparel fashion products. For example, you won’t find jewelry or beauty products.

When shopping, it is not enough to consider the product range it’s also important to consider the size of the inventory in each product section. For example, if a store sells dresses, you’ll not want to find only a few styles; rather you’ll want to find scores or hundreds of styles so that no matter your style preference, you’re more likely to find something that you like.

In this regards, Pretty Tonight also comes out wanting. In the Tops category, it holds good numbers. At the time of writing this review, the Blouses and T-Shirts section held over 350 items, but the dresses category held scores of items in each of its sections. The Pants categories also held only casuals, numbering only 59. The non-apparel category fared worst. The Shoes and Accessories category held only 8 products – 2 boots, 1 bag, 2 scarves, 2 gloves, and 1 head warmer.

Buying from Pretty Tonight

It is also simple to make a purchase in Pretty Tonight. You don’t even have to register and create an account because Pretty Tonight supports Guest Checkout. This is a good feature for shoppers who won’t want their information stored by an online store. However, there are certain advantages to having an account, such as personalized service.

If you do choose to register, you’ll find the process simple and straightforward. You can register with your email, or with your Facebook and Google+ account.

Even if you are new to an online purchase, buying from Pretty Tonight shouldn’t be a problem. You’ll have to browse through the product categories to discover your item. Clicking on it will take you to the product description page, where you’ll find every detail about the particular item. You can then choose your size and colour, and then add the item to your shopping cart. Pretty Tonight does not offer customization, so size and colour changes are the only things you can make to the product.

At any time, you can click on the bag icon on the page to go to your shopping cart. From there, you can then proceed to checkout. You’ll then have to submit your shipping information, so that applicable shipping cost can be calculated. You’ll then be shown your order total. The next step is to select a payment method and complete payment.

Interestingly, Pretty Tonight advertises that when an order is placed for an item that is out of stock, you’ll be automatically refunded. This is a very good one that most other fashion stores can emulate. Many online fashion stores will only try to make the item available, and in the process, delivery will be significantly delayed.

Pricing and Related Policies

Prices

No shopper will want to throw money away. Thus, the ideal online store must be perceived as reasonably priced. In this regards, Pretty Tonight says it provides high quality, trendy fashion products at favourable prices.

Looking at the prices of listings, there is no doubt that Pretty Tonight is competitively priced. For example, at the time of writing this review, most of the dresses were priced $22.90 – $34.99, most of the Tops were priced $19.99 – $31.99, while the outwears were priced $21.99 – $39.99.

Promotions

The search for the best deals takes shoppers to online stores that run a lot of promotions. This is because promotional offers allow customers to get items for significantly less than the items’ going rate. Thankfully, Pretty Tonight comes out as an online fashion store that runs a lot of promotions.

For example, at the time of writing this review, the following promotions were announced in the landing page of the website:

• A “Merry Christmas” offer that promised 12% off $129 orders and 20% off $299+ orders
• A special promo that promised 5% off $59+ and 10% off $99 orders

However, as it is in every online store, the promotions are time-specific – only running within a specified period of time. Thus, to know what particular promo is running at any time, you’ll have to regularly check the website.

Payment Methods

When it is time to pay for your order, you won’t want a headache, so you’ll want to find a range of convenient payment methods. Pretty Tonight does well in this regards. It does not break the roof with a long list of payment methods, but supports the popular that you’ll be able to use no matter where you are making your purchase from. You can pay for your Pretty Tonight order with PayPal, or with Credit/ Debit cards. All the popular cards are supported, which includes Visa, Maestro, American Express, Mastercard, Diners Club, and Discover Card.

Shipping

After placing an order in an online fashion store, it will be moved (at a later time) from the store’s facility to your shipping address.

Thus, it’s important to consider whether the store ships merchandise to your address, how long it’ll take to receive delivery of your order, and how much it will cost.

Shipping Destination

If an online store does not directly ship to your location, you may as well use another store because it’ll be unnecessarily difficult to receive your order. In terms of shipping destinations, it’s fine that a store ships to many worldwide locations so that your location is more likely to be covered.

Pretty Tonight does well in this regards, as it is a world-facing fashion store that ships merchandise to about 240 countries. There’s virtually no place of the world that you’re resident in that Pretty Tonight will not ship your order to. Interestingly, Pretty Tonight also ship to P.O. Boxes or military (BFPO or APO/ FPO) addresses.

Delivery Times

It is not enough that an online store ships to your location, it is also important that delivery is fast. This is because there is no customer that will place an online order and will be willing to wait forever for it to be delivered.

Delivery time consist of order processing time and shipping time. The former (processing time) is how long it’ll take the store (from when you place the order) to prepare your order and dispatch it for shipping, while the latter (shipment time) is how long it’ll take your order (from when it ships) to get to your address.

In this regards, Pretty Tonight takes 1 – 5 business days to process most orders, while some may take up to 7 business days. The shipping times vary depending on the country the order is shipping to, and the selected shipping option. There are different shipping options – Flat Rate shipping, Standard shipping, Expedited shipping, and Priority Direct Mail. The shipping times are as follows:

• Flat Rate Shipping: US and Canada (8 – 15 business days); many Europe countries (10 – 20 business days); Russia, Italy, Brazil, Argentina, Chile, Mexico (15 – 35 business days); all other countries (10 – 25 business days)
• Standard shipping: Latin America, excluding Brazil (7 – 15 business days); Russia and Brazil (10 – 25 business days); all other countries (5 – 8 business days)
• Expedited shipping (DHL/ UPS): worldwide, excluding Russia and Brazil (3 – 7 business days)
• Priority Direct Mail: available in only a few countries; and it takes 5 – 18 days

Note that shipping to P.O. Boxes and military addresses is only via standard shipping.

Shipping Costs

Yet, another important shipping consideration is shipping cost. The total cost of any online purchase is the item’s cost and its shipping cost. Thus when the shipping cost is too high, and item can easily be deemed too expensive to acquire even if its price was acceptable. That said; the ideal online store should have shipping costs that are as low as possible.

In this regards, Pretty Tonight does not offer flat shipping rates. How much you’ll pay for shipping varies. It depends not only on your shipping address and selected shipping option but also on the weight of your order. Thus, you’ll find applicable shipping cost at checkout, after you have added your items to your cart, and inputted your shipping information.

The lowest possible shipping fee is $0.00, which is free shipping. Pretty Tonight offers free shipping. However this does not apply to every country. Thankfully, it is very much available for standard shipping of orders to the US of A.

Also, not only is free shipping offered, but it comes with a low minimum purchase requirement of $49+. That is, you’ll have your orders shipped free of charge if the order is over $49. This is a relatively low requirement, meaning that you’ll not have to overspend in chase of free shipping.

Return

Many shoppers still fear online purchases because it does not allow for the item to be physically assessed before the purchase. The fear is that the order may arrive and may not meet certain expectations. This is a valid concern. As such, online shoppers gravitate towards the stores that’ll allow them to return any item that is not totally satisfactory and gets a replacement item or a refund of payment.

Thankfully, Pretty Tonight allows returns. It says that its offer is comprehensive as it covers: “stains, zipper malfunction, ripped or torn, poor quality materials, obvious colour difference, a major difference between photographed product and the product received”.

Eligible Returns and Conditions

However, it is not every item that is purchased in an online store that can be returned. That said; you’ll not want too many return restrictions so that you’ll not receive an item that you’ll rather return but cannot.

In this regards, Pretty Tonight advertises that “final sale products, swimwear, lingerie, accessories are not eligible for return or exchange”. There is nothing out of the ordinary here, because you’ll find these items also restricted (for hygiene reasons) in other online fashion stores.

The only thing that may cause you to raise the eyebrow is that Pretty Tonight does not offer swimwears and lingerie, yet it lists these items among items that are ineligible for returns. This may be suggestive that Pretty Tonight will offer these items in the nearest future.

Also, even when items are eligible for returns, they must meet certain conditions to be accepted by Pretty Tonight. The items will need to be unused, undamaged, and unaltered. Also, all tags must be intact, and the items must be returned in the original packaging.

Return Process

If the item in your order that you want to return is eligible for a return, you’ll want to find an easy return process. You won’t want a difficult return process that’ll add to the frustrations of receiving an unwanted item in the first place. Thus, the ideal online store should have an easy return process.

In this regards, Pretty Tonight does somewhat well. To return an item in your order from the fashion store, you’ll have to first contact them about it and get a return authorization. It should be said that Pretty Tonight does not have a “no questions asked policy”; you’ll have to explain yourself and state your reason(s) for the return. In your return request, you’ll have to adequately describe the issue, and also include pictures that display the problem.

Interestingly, unlike some fashion stores that only accept returns for faulty items, Pretty Tonight accepts returns for buyer’s remorse (situations where the item is not faulty but the customers have a change of heart or simply does not like the item).

Pretty Tonight will review your return request and get back to you within 24 hours. If approved, the approval email will carry the return instructions as well as the return address. You can then proceed to package the item appropriately and ship back to the return address. You can use any shipping carrier. But after shipping the return package, you’ll have to go back to Pretty Tonight and update the return tracking number.

Return Window

However, you won’t have forever to decide on what item you’ll keep and which you’ll return. This is because only items that are returned to the store within a time frame are accepted and refunded. That said; you’ll want an extended time period so that your returns will not get back late and be rejected.

Pretty Tonight does relatively well in this regards as it offers a 30 days return window. That is, for a returned item to be accepted by Pretty Tonight, it’ll have to get back to its fulfilment centre within 30 days from the day of receipt of an unwanted item.

This is like the standard return window in the industry; so you shouldn’t be pressed with time if you have a Pretty Tonight order that you’ll rather return.

Return Cost

When you have to return an item to its retailer, you won’t want to find prohibitive costs. Thus, the ideal online fashion store should have return costs that are as low as possible. Return costs usually consist of restocking fees and return shipping fees.

Thankfully, Pretty Tonight does not have restocking fees. However, there is a return shipping cost which customers are responsible for. Since Pretty Tonight does not provide Return Shipping Labels, the cost of return shipping will vary depending on how much the shipping carrier used charges.

Return Processing and Refund

After returning an item to its retailer, you won’t want to be kept waiting for too long for the refund or the replacement item. Thus, the ideal online store should quickly process the returned item, and follow it up with fast issuance of refund or sending of the replacement item.

It will seem that Pretty Tonight does well in this regards. It advertises after the return package is received, it takes 1 week to process it, after which it issues the refund immediately. However, there is always a waiting time for the funds to reflect in your account. Where the original purchase was paid for by credit card, this waiting time could take 2 weeks.

Customer Support Service

Some customers who use an e-commerce platform will have questions about one or more part of the platform, and they’ll need good answers to these. Also, others will have issues with their orders; and they’ll need these resolved if they are to continue as customers. Thus, the ideal online fashion store should have an effective customer support service for answering the questions and resolving the issues that its customers may have.

In this regards, e-commerce platforms usually come with a combo of self-help resources and direct help channels. Thankfully, Pretty Tonight is not different.

The first place to go if you need help is its FAQ page. The self-help resource holds answers to many of the questions that users have asked in the past. The FAQ covers such topics as Accounts, Ordering and Payment, Size, Shipping & Delivery, and Return & Exchange.

However, the FAQ is not very detailed. And even at that with some issues, you’ll have to directly contact the customer support. For that PretttTonight supports an email service. You can send them an email directly from your email account using the email address: service@prettytonight.com

Pretty Tonight promises to swiftly respond to all submissions (within 24 hours), and they largely live up to this. However, it is still disappointing that there is no support for instant feedback support channels such as Telephone support and Live Chat.

Pretty Tonight Complaints

“Complaints” is always a part of our reviews. This is because what other customers have to say about a store can give good insight into how well the store operates. Where complaints are too many, the store probably does not perform as well as customers expect; and when complaints are few, the store probably performs relatively well.

For the complaints section, we always go to the independent customers’ reviews like Trustpilot and Sitejabber. For this review, we searched and searched, but found nothing. Not that there were no complaints, but there were no reviews of Pretty Tonight to be found in any of the numerous review platforms online. This will be because Pretty Tonight is relatively new onto the scenes.

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Pros

• Offers Guest Checkouts allowing customers to make a purchase without creating an account
• Offers a range of clothing that includes Dresses, Tops, Pants, Outerwear, etc
• Prices are competitive
• Offers a lot of price slashing promotions
• Convenient payment methods are supported (PayPal and Credit/ Debit cards)
• Offers free standard shipping to the US
• Offers a low $49+ minimum order requirement for free shipping
• Returns are allowed not just for damaged items but also for buyer remorse
• Return window is relatively long (30 days from delivery date)
• Customer support is available via email (service@prettytonight.com)

Cons

• Its non-apparel section is very limited – only a few shoes and gloves and scarves are offered
• Does not provide return labels for making easy returns
• Instant feedback support channels (like Telephone service and Live Chat) are not supported

Conclusion

Pretty Tonight is one of the newest additions to the women fashion wear online stores. It provides dresses, hoodies, sweaters, cardigans, coats & jackets, etc. However, you’ll find Pretty Tonight very limited. It does not hold swimwear, intimates, and activewear. Also, the non-clothing section holds few items that it is almost non-existent.

In terms of service: Pretty Tonight ships to virtually every part of the world; making an order is easy-breezy; delivery time is relatively okay; free shipping is offered, and with a relatively low $49+ minimum order requirement; and if you’re not satisfied with an order, Pretty Tonight will accept it an issue a replacement or refund if it is returned within 30 days of delivery date.

When you hit brick walls you can reach out to the customer support service via email; and you can expect to receive a response within 24 hours.

Mirraw is an online marketplace that offers a wide selection of Indian ethnic clothing for men, women and children. With over 20 million products from more than 10,000 sellers, mirraw.com is one of the largest e-commerce websites in India specializing in traditional apparel from across the country.

Whether you’re looking for sarees, salwar kameezes or lehengas, you can find it all at mirraw.com – with styles ranging from contemporary to classic designs to suit any occasion or budget. They also offer special discounts on select items during festivals and special days like Diwali and Holi so be sure to check out their website often!

Saying the history of Indian clothing history is rich and that the future of Indian fashion is bright; Mirraw comes out as an online shopping platform offering Indian ethnic wears to the world.

The big question is whether it is worthwhile to shop in Mirraw. Does the site hold a range of ethnic wears like sarees, salwars, lehengas kurtas, etc? What about quality; do the pieces feature high-quality material, tailoring, patterning, etc? What about prices; does Mirraw feature prices that are reasonable? If it has high-quality pieces at good price points, what about the service; does Mirraw offer top service that we’ll expect of the ideal online store (such as easy ordering, fast delivery, hassle-free returns, effective customer service, etc)? In the first place, is Mirraw legit, or is it just another scam platform?

Yes, Mirraw is legit. It is not a scam because they will never take your money without shipping your products. And they also have been online for a very long time which is a good sign of legitimacy.

This Mirraw review will examine Mirraw in order to provide the information that will help you answer the questions and more.

Mirraw review at a glance

• Website: mirraw.com
• Founded in 2011 and based in Mumbai, India
• An online marketplace for Indian ethnic wears for women, men, and kids
• Holds a wide range of products that includes Sarees, Saree blouses, Salwar Kameez, Lehengas, Kurtas, Sherwani, etc
• Offer competitive prices
• Ships worldwide to 200+ countries
• Returns are accepted for only defective, damaged, or not-as-described products
• Customer support is available via email (mcare@mirraw.com) and telephone(+1-949-464-5941)

What is Mirraw? – About

Mirraw was founded by Shailesh Jain and Anup Nair. Like many other businesses, it was a failed experience that inspired Mirraw. Jain wanted to buy a saree for his mother, but couldn’t find a decent online store, so the idea of operating an Indian ethnic wear online store was planted. Fast forward to September of 2011, and Mirraw was born as a private business in Mumbai, India.

It is only fitting that there should be an online store serving Indian ethnic wears to the world. After all, at about 2500BC, India became one of the first places to grow and use cotton for making clothes.

Mirraw does not say it anywhere on its website (www.mirraw.com), but it is actually a marketplace. Thousands of Indian based sellers list the items in the site. However, it differs significantly from the conventional marketplaces around in its mode of operation. Most marketplaces only provide the platform; they do not get involved in the transaction process, as such sellers ship directly to buyers. However, Mirraw is very much involved in the transaction.

When you place an order in Mirraw, the item is delivered to Mirraw’s headquarters in Mumbai for quality verification. When the item passes the checks, Mirraw ships the item to you (the buyer). Mirraw started with Indian ethnic wears especially sarees and salwar, but has now expanded, including other ethnic wears, and going beyond that to include western wears.

It also provides stitching services. Stitching is basically customizing; as it allows you to choose a more detailed design pattern for your item. Stitching is not only custom-designed but also custom-sized. That is, you’ll have the item sewn to your measurements for that truly perfect fit. This means that while you can order items in Standard sizes, you can also send in measurements for custom-sized items.

Is Mirraw legit?

With fraudsters ripping people off in cyberspace, before making any online transaction, it’s wise to determine that the online platform is legit. Thus, the giant question is whether Mirraw is legit. The short answer to that is yes. This is because of the following.

Legality – Our first check of a legit platform is always legality because stores that are 100% legal are less likely to be a scam. Thankfully, Mirraw ticks the legality box. The website is owned and operated by Mirraw Online Services Private Ltd, which is a 100% legal company that is duly registered with the Registrar of Companies, Mumbai (Registration Number: 221897). Suffice it to say that scam stores do not bother with legal company registrations.

Visibility and Industry-wide recognition – Another check of a legit online platform is industry-wide recognition because the scam stores largely operate in the shadows. Thankfully, Mirraw tick this visibility box. The website is globally known as a resource that provides Indian ethnic wears to the rest of the world.

Test of Time – Another check we use in determining a legit online platform is the test of time; this is because the scam stores are generally short-lived. Interestingly, Mirraw ticks this box, as it has been operating for over 8 years. Suffice it to say that 8 years is enough time for any scamming activity to be exposed; and following such exposure, the platform naturally dies.

Fulfilment of order – the ultimate check of a legit online platform is the fulfillment of orders; that is, when customers place an order, the store should deliver real and functional items. In this regards, Mirraw does manage to tick the box (but only barely). This is because Mirraw does fulfil orders with real products. Also, there are many customers that expressed satisfaction with the quality (functionality) of their product.

In conclusion, real and functional products are featured in Mirraw. However, as you’ll find in the “complaint” section of this review, there is a significant number of customers dissatisfied with the quality (functionality) of their products; and the poor-quality issues even worsen with refunds-related issues, leading to scam labels being sometimes thrown around.

However, with Mirraw being 100% legal, having industry-wide recognition, and largely fulfilling orders with real and functional products, it comes out as a legit platform.

Is Mirraw safe?

Mirraw is safe. When shopping online, you’ll be sharing sensitive data (like personal information and credit card detail); thus, you’ll want a store that adequately protects this data and prevent it from leaking into the wrong hands. In this regards, Mirraw comes out relatively fine. It uses industry-standard data protection protocols including the use of firewalls and limiting access. It’s safe to say that Mirraw is safe.

Products

You’ll want your shopping destination to offer a wide range of product so that you can get your related products in one place. Mirraw tick this box. Niche-ing to Indian ethnic wears, Mirraw gives you the full gamut.

Mirraw Salwar Kameez:

Salwar Kameez – This is close to a pair of trousers and Tunic. You can shop Salwar Kameez: by style (Punjabi suits, straight suits, etc); by fabric (cotton, Georgette, Silk, etc), or by occasion (Party wear, wedding Salwar, festive, etc)

Mirraw Sarees:

Sarees – The iconic Indian wear is basically a drape wrapped around the body and over the shoulder You can shop Sarees: by roots (Banarasi silk, Kota, etc); by fabric (georgette, cotton, pure silk, etc); by occasion (party wear, wedding, etc); by work (embroidered, printed, etc)

Mirraw Lehengas:

Lehengas – Basically a long skirt that falls around the ankles. You can also shop by fabric, occasion, and style

Mirraw Kurtis:

Kurtis – Basically a collarless and long (knee length) shirt. You can shop by fabric, occasion, work and style

Mirraw Blouses:

Blouses – Saree blouses, which means generally short and showing stomach. You can shop by fabric, occasion, and look (fashion, traditional, or contemporary)

mirraw Jewellery:

Jewellery – You can shop jewelry: by type (Necklace Sets, Necklaces, Bangles and Bracelets, Earrings, Anklet, Pendants, and Silk thread Jewelry); by Work (Temple Jewelry, Antique Jewelry, Terracotta Jewelry, Pearl Jewelry, etc); by Wedding ( Bridal Jewelry, Bridal Set, Mangalsutra, Maang Tikka, Nose Rings, etc). Featured Jewelry section holds, Booches, Jhumkas, Choker Necklaces, Danglers & Drops, etc.

The categories above features women wear. There’s also a Plus Size category that holds Salwar Kameez, Kurtis, Skirts, Leggings, and Blouses. However, Mirraw does not cater to only women but for everyone in the family. Thus, there’re categories for kids and men wear.

The Kids category holds the following sections and products:

• Girls – Lehenga, Salwar Suits, Kaftans, Gowns, Sarees, Frocks, Dresses, and Girls’ Jackets
• Boys – Kurta Pyjamas, Indo Western, Sherwani, Dhoti Kurta, Nehru Jacket
• Collection – Gifts, Watches

The men category holds the following sections and products:

• Clothing – Kurta Pajama, Dhoti Kurta, Nehru Jacket, Kurtas, Blazers, Sherwani, Pathani Suits, Bandhgala, and Dhoti
• Jewelry – Earrings, Studs, Bracelets, Pendants, Rings
• Accessories – Turbans, Cufflinks
• Footwear – Casual

Also, it’s not news that what people wear is largely influenced by their religion. The Islamic religion famed for modest dressing; and its definition of modesty is not reflected in the regular clothing. Thus, Mirraw provides Islamic Wear category to cater for the Muslim customers. The Islamic Wear category holds the following sections and products.

• Women – Kaftans, Burka, Hijab, Abaya, Skirts, Tunics, Farasha, Combo Hijab, Moroccan Kaftans, Burkini, Coat abaya, Pants
• Men – Galabiyya, Kurta Pajama, Caps, Bissht
• Girls – Abaya, Kaftans
• Boys – Galabiyya
• Accessories – Janamaz

However, Mirraw is not all Indian. For all those who’ll want the western look. There’s a Western Wear category which holds the following sections and products

• Apparel – Tops, Dresses, Tunics, Gowns, Indowestern
• Bottom – Palazzos, Leggings, Skirts, Trousers
• Accessories – Stoles and Dupattas, Shawls, Bags
• Footwear – Flats, Heels

Lastly, Mirraw is more than fashion. It has a “Home and Living” Category where you’ll find home items like Bed Sheets, Tapestries, Curtains, Pillow Covers, Table Cloths, Carpets, Sculptures, and Decors

Buying Experience

You contact with the retailer when shopping online is the website; thus, for a smooth experience, you’ll want an intuitive and easy-to-use website. Thankfully, the Mirraw website ticks this box. The clean website holds a menu which will take you to the products categories. As a fast-track to searching for an item, you’ll also find different product sections in the home page.

Alternatively, there’s a search button in the page which you can use for product searches. Whether you use the product categories, the short-cut product sections on the homepage or the search button, upon finding an item that pricks your interest, clicking on it will take you to its description page.

The page holds every detail you’ll need to make your buy-decision, including product description and specification. You can also view other product photos including close-ups of detailing. The page also shows whatever promo is on the item, its shipping details (the shipping details (shipping service used, cost, and estimated delivery date), accepted payment methods, return policy, etc.

If you like what you see, you can then choose a size, choose stitching needs, and click “Buy Now”. When you opt for stitching, a measurement form will be emailed, which you have to fill and mail back within 48 – 72 hours from time of order placement.

One of the good parts of Mirraw is that you are not required to register and create an account to make purchases. Because account creation requires submitting personal information that will be stored in a file, many customers will rather not register. Mirraw caters to these by allowing you to complete order using guest login.

After hitting “Buy Now”, your item will be added to cart. You can go to your shopping cart at any time, review your order, and click “Checkout”. In the page that opens, add your shipping address; after which you can choose your payment method and complete payment. Once your order is successful, you’ll receive an email and SMS.

Sometimes customers want to cancel an order after placing it. Thankfully, Mirraw allows this. All orders can be cancelled, but such cancellation must be within 24 hours of order placement.

Pricing and Related Policies

Pricing

Money is hard to come, and even it’s easy to come, no one will want to throw money away easily. Thus, you’ll want to find a shopping destination that features reasonable prices. Mirraw shines in this respect. You’ll find that many products on the website are considerably lower than you’ll find them in many other destinations.

The additional fee for stitching varies for blouse, dress (Salwar, Anarkali, and Gowns) and Lehenga. For Blouse, regular stitching cost $8.00 and custom stitching cost $12; while for Dresses and Lehenga, regular stitching cost $10.00 and custom stitching cost $15.

Promotions

Promotions allow customers to get items for free or for less than the items’ full prices. Thus, customers gravitate towards stores that run regular promotions. Mirraw comes out as such a store. They’re always too many of these.

At the time of writing this review, some of the promotions running included: clearance sales + $1 stitching + free shipping; buy 3 get 6 free special offer, etc. You can also subscribe for the Mirraw newsletter so as not to miss any offer; this is incentivized, as you’ll get up to 50% off of your next purchase.

Payment Methods

You want to find a range of convenient payment methods so that paying for your order will be straightforward no matter where you are. Be rest assured that it is. Mirraw accepts payment made using credit cards (Visa, Mastercard, American Express and Mastro), PayPal, and Bank Transfer

Shipping

With online shopping, the items have to be moved from the retailer’s fulfilment centre to your location. Thus, it’s important to consider: whether the retailer ships merchandise to your location, how long it’ll take after placing the order for the item to get to you, and how much it’ll cost.

Shipping Destination

If an online store doe not directly ship to your location, receiving delivery of your online order may be unnecessarily difficult. Thus, you’ll want the ideal online store to ship to many worldwide locations so that your location is more likely to be covered. Mirraw aces it in this regards. It ships worldwide, to 200+ countries around the globe. Thus, you can buy Indian ethnic wear from Mirraw no matter where you are located in the world.

Delivery times

Stores that take forever to deliver are generally perceived as not ideal. Thus, the ideal store will feature fast delivery. All items bought in Mirraw will ship from India. They first get to Mumbai for quality verification, before they ship to the customers’ address.  However, delivery typically takes 15 – 18 days to ship to locations outside India (international shipping). Where stitching is required, an additional 7 – 10 days is used. Thus, stitched products take 22 – 28 days.

Shipping Cost

The total acquisition cost for any online purchase is the item’s price and its shipping costs. Thus, even for an item acceptably priced, high shipping cost may make it too expensive to acquire. Thus, the ideal online store should feature shipping costs that are as low as possible.

Shipping costs in Mirraw vary depending on the item and the location it is shipping to. You’ll find the applicable shipping cost when checking out.

However, when checking out Mirraw for this review, we found the shipping costs quoted (for items we put into our carts) to be relatively fine. On many items shipping to the US, we found that free shipping was offered with a minimum purchase requirement of $99. Where free shipping does not apply, the shipping cost was also quite okay. For most of the times, we got: $5 for the first item and $5 for the additional item; and $10 for first item and $2 for additional item.

Returns

Many times, online orders do not turn out to be expected. Instead of holding on to an unwanted item, customers will want to be able to return it to the retailer and get a replacement or a refund. Thus, stores that allow returns to come out attractive.

Eligible Returns

Thankfully, Mirraw allows returns. However, its return policy does not rank as among the best (from a customer’s perspective). For example, items that are eligible for returns are only: items delivered to you in a damaged/ defective condition; and items that differ from the image displayed on the website. This means that you cannot return an item simply because you do not like it, or because it does not fit.

Another group of ineligible returns is stitched products. As Mirraw explains “Stitched products are customized as per your measurements so it cannot be resold/ reused and thus will NOT be eligible for returns/ refunds in any case”. While return restrictions on customized product are understandable; this hard stance (not eligible… in any case) means that in even cases of botched stitch jobs, the buyers can’t return the clearly defective item and get a refund.

Return Window

Also, items must be returned within 7 days of delivery. This is most likely the time to ship the return package, and not the time for Mirraw to receive the return package. However, the online fashion industry is spoilt with a 30 days return window (time for the retailer to receive the package); which is friendlier than the “7 days” return window of Mirraw (even if it’s just the time to hip back the package).

Return Process

Another consideration is the return process. You won’t want a cumbersome process that’ll add to the frustrations of receiving an unwanted item. Mirraw does relatively well in this regards. If you receive an order that you’ll want to return, you have to contact Mirraw. It advises that contact should be made within 48 hours of receiving the delivery. Simply log in, proceed to “My Order” and Select Your Order To Return. Indicate the items you want to return, and indicate your reasons – simply select an option from the “reason” menu (and if desired, use the Notes box for additional information). Choose the resolution desired (replacement, refund, or coupon); then submit the form.

After review, Mirraw will email you an approval with return instructions; you can then package the item and ship to the return address given in the return instruction email. Then you must come back to the site to enter the courier name and tracking number.

Return Processing and Refunds

Another important consideration is how long it’ll take to receive your refund. In this regards, Mirraw promises that upon receipt of the package, the returned item is promised in 7 – 8 working days, after which the refund is issued.

Cost of Returns

Another important consideration is how much it will take to make a return. Unfortunately, Mirraw does not offer free returns. There are no restocking fees but customers will have to cover the cost of return shipping. This also does not come out as friendly.

Yes, in many stores customers bear the cost of return shipping, but the store cover such costs whether the reason for returns is a fault of theirs (such as when the item delivered is defective, damaged, or not-as-described). Defective, damaged, or not-as-described items are the only returnable items in Mirraw, which means the store should be covering these costs. Think of bearing the cost of returning a defective item that was delivered to you.

Customer Support

The legit online store will also have an effective customer support, because there’ll be customers that’ll have issues with their orders and others that’ll simply have questions.

Mirraw supports the self-help resource. You’ll find an FAQ page where articles are arranged in the following sections – Order, Cancellation & Returns, Payments, Wallets, Shipping, Stitching, and Others. However, if this resource does not satisfy you, you can directly contact Mirraw.

For direct contact, it supports email and telephone services. For the email service, you’ll find an online contact form in the “Contact” page of the website. Alternatively, you can send an email directly from your account, using the email address: mcare@mirraw.com. Mirraw promise a response within 24 – 48 hours. For telephone service, the one of the numbers to call is +1-949-464-5941. The service is available Monday through to Saturday.

Complaints

Complaints can help you gauge how well a company is, because the legit and ideal company will not be overridden with complaints. In this section, we checked the independent customers’ review platforms like Trustpilot.com and Sitejabber.com. At best, Mirraw has mixed ratings. While its average rating in Trustpilot.com is relatively fine (3.9/ 5 by 3,510 reviewers), its rating in sitejabber is relatively poor (1.3/5 by 456 reviewers).

However, in both platforms, some unpalatable themes stood out, which include: misleading prices, late delivery, quality issues, refunds issues, poor customer service, etc.

Misleading Prices

This problem rears its head when certain orders are not fulfilled. As customers observe, the original order is “steals” (very good price for very good quality items). When the orders are cancelled, Mirraw’s explanation is that the item “is defective” or “fails quality checks”.

If you are wondering why customers will complain that an order is not fulfilled with “a defective item”; it is because when the first order is cancelled, they cannot place another for an item of comparable quality. That is, at that price point, they can only order a product of considerably lower quality, or top-up to buy a product of similar quality.

Thus, customers feel misleading prices are intentionally listed; and that after collecting your money, the platform claims it cannot deliver (giving the defective-excuse), and then box you into getting an item a grade lower, or to stump up more money for an item of equal grade.

Some of these complaints are:

• Shivani Pandey in trustpilot says “I ordered boys kurta size 10 – 11 years at AUD$8.00. Rest [of the] sizes were far way expensive. Somehow as my gut feeling said, they will definitely create some problem in that kurta; and my nightmare came true when suddenly they said ‘we can’t deliver the product as the product is faulty’ and that I can choose from other items which were nowhere close to that kurta… they are just trying to get away with the fact that they maybe misquoted the price …”
• Bunny in Trustpilot says “four times my order has been cancelled. If stuff is out of stock then why don’t they take the item out from their website. Very irritating. Not very happy with their services”

In one review (Preet in Trustpilot), the customer insisted that the “defective item” be sent; and Mirraw insisted back that another order be placed. Of course, the new order will pale in comparison to the first in terms of value.

Late Delivery

Another complaint that was significant enough to warrant mention is late delivery. Just too many customers complain of having to wait way pass the promised delivery time. For example:

• Raj Raj in Trustpilot says “…I ordered many items from mirraw.com and it was expected to be delivered 10 days ago. To date, I have not received my items, and they are not responding to my emails or phone calls. I will never use mirraw again”
• A Ford in Trustpilot says “… the customer service team kept lying to me about my order that I made over 4 weeks ago. First the products didn’t meet quality checks, then it was with the stitching team for 2 weeks still not dispatched…”

Poor Quality

Another complaint that stood out is poor quality. The complaints ranged from receiving items significantly different from pictured, to product being of poor quality, to stitching being poorly done, etc For example:

• Shilpi h in Sitejabber says “The product stitched was of not good quality and was not stitched as shown in picture on their website”
• Rekha J in sitejabber says “I bought just two items, black jhumka and gold anklets. They posted me totally different jhumka after so much follow up. The delivery was so much delayed. And the anklets were not of good quality”
• Smita B in Sitejabber says “Fraud… will show something and sell something [different]” the review continues “They show different images, don’t be fooled with buying as per images. They will stitch whatever they want and won’t refund saying it’s stitched product. Awful quality and stitching patterns. They deserve zero star…”
• Ramya n in sitejabber says “The clothes are cheap quality, not same as pics & no returns. I tried reaching customer service and no use. They are in the business of dumping crappy merchandise overseas. The clothes are not of the same quality as pics; you can see and know they are cheap. Mirraw doesn’t resolve any sizing issues. But if you think of never returning their product”

Issues with refunds

With quality issues, you’ll expect to be many requests for returns and refunds. However, it will seem that not many customers are successful in these. The refund issues manifest in various forms, ranging from Mirraw not responding to return requests or not approving returns, to not giving full refunds or giving store credits instead of cash refunds to original payment method. The following are specific reviews from the independent platforms.

• Stanley Ang in Trustpilot says “Very dishonest company. They simply sent me the wrong product size for a jacket. Also, the product I bought looked different from the picture. I asked for a return and they offered me only 30% of the product cost as a store credit. SCAMMERS! …”
• Shilpi Harpavat in Trustpilot says “The product was not stitched as shown on their website. After several emails back and forth, they promised to give me only 50% of the cost to the original method of payment, but they did not honour that too and just gave me a store credit, so now I am stuck with making a purchase again from them and paying either extra money or shipping cost”

It should be remembered that with Mirraw’s policy, it does not accept returns for stitched products. In our opinion, a wrongly stitched or poorly stitched item is defective; and since “defective items” are eligible for returns, such items should be returnable. Also, Mirraw’s return policy does not allow it to accept returns for sizing issues. Given that sizing dispute is one of the major reasons for returns in the fashion industry; Mirraw’s no-no on sizing is really disappointing.

Then there is the issue of giving people only a part refund when you have a “100% money-back guarantee” seal plastered on the landing age of your website. Worst still, there’s the issue of going against your word to issue store credits (instead of cash refund) even after the customer only reluctantly agree to the part refund. In our opinion, these two defy any explanations.

In our experience, being out-of-money is the main reason customers attach the “scam” label on retailers. Even if a product does not arrive or is overwhelmingly unsatisfactory, customers who get their money back will not cry out too loud, if there will be any cries at all. Thus, with refund issues rearing its head in Mirraw, you’ll find that in many platforms, customers easily throw the “scam” label at the company. However, as we noted earlier, Mirraw is a legit online store, albeit one that needs serious fixing especially in processing refunds.

Pros:

• Has a wide range of products, including Indian ethnic wears and western wear, all for women, men and kids
• Supports making purchases using “guest login” (that is, without creating an account)
• The ordering process is relatively easy
• Orders can be cancelled without 24 hours of submission
• Able to order in standard sizes and custom-sized stitched items
• Prices are comparatively lower than in many other stores
• Ships worldwide to 200+ countries
• Free shipping is often available
• Customer support is available via email, online contact form, and telephone

Cons:

• Items ship from India, so delivery many be relatively slow
• Only defective, damaged or not-as-described items are eligible for returns
• Stitched products are not eligible for returns for any reason
• Customers have to bear cost of return shipping (for defective, damaged or not-as-described items)
• Too many complaints of receiving poor quality item (not as described, poor/ wrong stitching, etc)
• Too many complaints relating to refunds

Conclusion

Mirraw is a legit Indian ethnic wear store. It is technically a marketplace housing thousands of Indian-based vendors; however, its involvement in the transaction process will pass it off as the store doing the actual selling. When you place an order; the item is delivered to Mirraw, who inspects it before shipping directly to you.

Checking the site, you’ll find gorgeous pieces covering the popular Indian ethnic wears – Sarees, Saree blouses, Salwar Kameez, Lehengas, Kurtis etc. Men’s ethnic wear, Kid’s ethnic wear are available; as well as western wear. Away from clothing, you’ll also find fashion accessories and home & living products.

While its great range and easy buying process are positives, the main draw of Mirraw is its pricing. You’ll find great (relatively low) prices in every product category. Lots of promotions are regularly available further slashing prices by as much as 80%. You can buy from anywhere in the world, as Mirraw ships worldwide.

However, that is as good as it gets. Customer reviews suggest that being delivered a poor quality item is very likely. Worse still, Mirraw has a return policy that is not very great, as it rules out returns of many items that you may be able to return in other stores (such as botched stitched products and ill-fitting products). Even worst is that Mirraw is not known for hassle-free refunds; customers’ reviews suggest that you’ll only get a part refund and this will come as store credit.

Conclusively, Mirraw is a legit site to get Indian ethnic wears. It sure delivers real and high-quality merchandise and at comparatively lower prices; but when you receive an unsatisfactory item (which is likely), getting a full cash refund will be difficult.

Bookbyte is an eCommerce that erases the financial barriers between college students and their academic success by providing multiple options for buying and renting inexpensive textbooks, and also strives to offer the highest buyback prices for students selling books.

As you conquer and move on from any level of education, you leave a lot of textbooks in its wake. Instead of stocking these textbooks somewhere to become feed for paper mites, you sell them to put some money in your pocket.

Also, because the cost of education is ever-increasing, many students will want the opportunity to pay relatively less for pre-owned textbooks instead of stumping up huge fees for new textbooks. This is where Bookbyte comes in.

Bookbyte advertises as one of the longest-running used textbook businesses online. It gives you the opportunity to sell used textbooks and to buy or rent pre-owned textbooks that you’ll need.

The big question is whether it is worthwhile to use Bookbyte. For example, does it support a wide range of textbooks and book conditions to make it the ideal destination for many users? Also, how about its pricing; does it offer reasonable buyback prices? If it supports many subjects and gives a good price, what about its services; does it offer top services that we’ll expect of an ideal online platform (such as being user-friendly, offering easy and fast shipping, effective customer service, and more)? In the first place, is Bookbyte legit?

This Bookbyte review will examine Bookbyte in order to provide the information that will help you answer these questions and more.

Yes, Bookbyte legit. The reason why we said that it is not a scam is that it has been explained in detail below; continue reading.

Bookbyte Review at a glance

• Website: bookbyte.com
• An Oregon based used textbook online business started in 1999
• Services include buying, selling, and renting used textbooks
• Supports different types of textbooks and thousands of titles
• Offers very good prices when selling, buying or renting textbooks
• When buying or selling books, a prepaid shipping label is provided
• Customer support is available via email (help@bookbyte.com) and an online contact form

What is Bookbyte? – About

Bookbyte was established in 1999 and is headquartered in Salem, Oregun. Bookbyte says it is dedicated first and foremost to improving the student experience. With the cost of education ever on the increase and the cost of textbooks one of the reasons for the increase, Bookbyte was established by Steven Gross to help students get textbooks for less (via buying or renting pre-owned and used textbooks).

It will also buy your used textbooks. Thus, the complete range of its business is selling, buying and renting of used textbooks. With time, new textbooks were added to their collections. So you can now also get brand-new textbooks from Bookbyte.

However, the services of Bookbyte are not directed at persons under 13 years of age. Yes, these persons need textbooks too and may have some textbooks that they no longer need. So, Bookbyte allows for minors to use the site only with the assistance of a parent or guardian.

Is Bookbyte legit?

There are so many scam artists online that if you do not determine that a platform is legit before using it, you just may be ripped off. Thus, the big question is whether Bookbyte is legit. The short answer to that is yes. The longer answer is that it is 100% legal, it has industry-wide recognition, and it has a rich operating record laden with satisfied users.

Our first check of a legit online platform is usually legality. This is because online platforms that are 100% legal are less likely to be scams. Thankfully, Bookbyte ticks this box. Bookbyte is owned by RentU.com LLC, which is a 100% legal company in the US with registered office in the US (Suite 220, Salem, OR 97306). Suffice it to say that scam stores do not bother with company registrations.

Another check of a legit online platform is visibility and industry-wide recognition. This is because the scam platforms operate in the shadow. Thankfully, Bookbyte ticks this box. Being one of the first online used textbook retailers, Bookbyte has a strong reputation in the industry. So much so that the Oregon based business was even ranked 79th on the Private 150 Oregon companies list for 2014. Suffice it to say that a scam store will not have such recognition.

Another check of a legit store is the test of time. This is because time shows up the scam stores. With time any scamming activity is exposed, and with such exposure, the store dies out. Thankfully, Bookbyte passes this test of time. Started in 1999, Bookbyte has grown from being operated literally out of a closet, to being operated out of a garage, to its current status as one of the biggest used textbook retailers on the west coast. Suffice it to say that a scam store cannot survive scamming people using the same font for over a decade.

However, the ultimate check of a legit online store is fitness for purpose. As a platform for selling, buying, and renting used textbook, fitness for purpose will be that: customers that send in their textbooks after receiving a quote actually gets paid; and customers that places orders to receive (buy or rent) textbooks actually get delivered the textbooks.

In this respect, it is safe to say that Bookbyte is fit for purpose. This is especially in the buying and renting department; you are sure to get delivered authentic and really good (brand new or like-new) textbooks when you order. In the selling department, many persons have also been able to use Bookbyte to turn their textbooks into cash, by receiving payment when they ship their textbooks to Bookbyte.

However, as we’ll see in the complaint section, there are just too many complaints about not getting paid or not receiving the full quoted price. Thus, while Bookbyte is very legal, it is fraught with many issues (especially when you’re selling to them).

Is Bookbyte safe?

Bookbyte is safe. It is not enough that an online platform is legit, it also has to be safe in ensuring that the sensitive information that you share with it does not leak to unauthorized users. It’s a no-brainer that data like credit card details and personal details should not be allowed to get into the wrong hands (think cyber fraudsters and identity thieves).

In this regards, Bookbyte assures that transactions are 100% safe. It uses Verisign which is one of the most trusted and recognized name for online payment. The Bookbyte website also uses SSL (Secure Sockets Layer) technology.

This is the industry standard for creating a private connection between a buyer and a seller over the web. SSL uses bank-grade encryption protocols to ensure that data cannot be read even if intercepted. With the use of this technical security measure, secure payment methods, and more, it is safe to say that Bookbyte is safe.

Selling your Used Textbook

When you have books you’ll rather turn to cash, you’ll want a used books retailer that supports a wide range of books. Bookbyte ticks this box. The types of books that it accepts include Textbooks, Laboratory manuals, study guides, student solutions manuals, Working papers, Loose-leaf editions, and international editions. However, Bookbyte accepts buy-back orders from only the US, this means that you can turn your used textbooks to cash using Bookbyte only if you are resident in the US.

You want a relatively smooth experience when you want to sell your book. Thankfully, Bookbyte offer this. On the homepage of the Bookbyte website, you’ll find a search bar. Type in the ISBN of your book; and hit search. You’ll be quoted an offer, which you can accept by clicking “Continue Sale”. The page that opens next prompts you to select your payment method. To complete the buyback quote, you’ll then have to provide your shipping address and contact information.

Bookbyte will then send you a pre-paid shipping label which you can print out. You can then proceed to package the textbook appropriately; attach the printed shipping label to the outside of the box; and take the package to the shipping service.

However, you can only sell a textbook to Bookbyte if its buyback value is $10 or more. Bookbyte will also not accept more than 5 books in one order. More so, you are not allowed to sell and get more than $2,000 in buyback revenue within a 30-day period. However, the minimum order size is low enough to make the platform appealing for cashing in on low-value textbooks, and the maximum order size is high enough to allow reasonable amounts of transactions.

It should also be said that after receiving a quote, the price is only guaranteed for 30 days. That is, to be paid the quoted price, you’ll have to make sure that the textbook gets to Bookbyte within 30 days of receiving the quote.

While you may still receive payment for textbooks getting to them after 30 days, Bookbyte says that this payment will be the “current sell price”, which from experience is almost always significantly less than the previously quoted buy-back price. To ensure that the book gets to them within this 30 days window, Bookbyte advises that you mail your package within 5 days of receiving the quote.

If you have used textbooks that you’ll want to sell to a used textbook store; it is because you want to turn these textbooks into real cash instead of them being mites’ feed. Thus, an important consideration is how much you’ll be selling them for. Thankfully, this is one area where Bookbyte really shines. It quotes really generous prices for your used textbooks. In fact, persons who flog Bookbyte use their relatively low buy-back prices as a stick. For example, you’ll find comments like “they offer you a really good price to lure you to ending your property to them…”

However, it should be said here that the price that Bookbyte quotes when you are selling any used textbook to them is based on the ISBN that was entered. As you’ll know the condition of the book is not known at the time. Thus, many times, upon receiving the book and completing their inspection, Bookbyte may decide that the book is worth less than the originally quoted price.

In such cases, the customers will only get paid an amount considerably lower than the originally quoted price. Sometimes Bookbyte will even conclude that the book is not authentic or damaged and therefore not resalable, and in such cases, the customers will not get paid, and worst still, the books will not be returned.

There is a gaping hole here. Many times, the criteria that Bookbyte uses for declaring books inauthentic or damaged are at best vague. As we’ll see in the complaint section, many times Bookbyte claim book to be damaged or inauthentic and either pay the customers only a small part of the original quoted price or nothing at all, but the aggrieved customers will come out claiming that their books are authentic or in perfect conditions. Thus, the relatively high buy-back quoted prices of Bookbyte are not guaranteed.

Another important consideration will be how you’ll receive your payment and how long you’ll have to wait for it. In this regards, Bookbyte advertises that it typically takes 3 – 5 business days to process orders, but warns that this may take longer in peak seasons (May and December). Payments are generally issued the business day after processing. Bookbyte sends payments via check and PayPal. Checks typically take 3 – 7 days to reach any destination in the US, and will remain valid for 90 days.

Selling Pros

• The selling process is relatively easy
• A wide range of books and titles are supported
• Features a low minimum order size ($10) and high maximum earnings ($2,000 per 30-day period)
• Get a very generous buyback quote
• Buyback price you are quoted is valid for 30 days
• Offers free shipping of your Textbook to Bookbyte
• Prepaid- shipping labels are provided to make shipping the textbook to Bookbyte super-easy

Selling Cons

• Does not accept buy-back orders from outside the US
• Too many complaints of Bookbyte refusing to pay claiming that book is inauthentic, damaged or not received

Buying a Textbook from Bookbyte

Another service that Bookbyte offers is the sale of textbooks. That is, you can buy both used and new textbooks from Bookbyte. You’ll want an online retailer that supports a wide range of books so that whatever you want, it is more likely to have it. Thankfully, Bookbyte ticks this box.  You’ll find that the website features over 25 book categories and some thousands of titles.

To buy a textbook, you can start by clicking the “Buy Textbook tab”. You’ll find a search menu in the page which you can then enter the author’s name, the book’s titles or the ISBN number. The system will inform you if the book is available, then you can select whether you want a new or used book. You can then add the book to your shopping cart. You can click the bag icon to view your cart and proceed to payment. Like every online shopping process, you can then proceed to select your payment method, and include your shipping address to complete checkout. The whole process is relatively straightforward, and you really will breeze through it.

An important consideration in any purchase is pricing. That is, you’ll want to get the best deals possible. Pricing of the textbook for sales is one area where Bookbyte shines; just as it is with selling textbooks to Bookbyte. That is, you’ll find that the prices that Bookbyte will quote you for its textbooks will be relatively lower than you’ll find in many other textbooks shopping destinations. Bookbyte even advertises that you can save up to 80% on the average whether buying a well-loved used textbook or the newest edition.

An important consideration in any online purchase is shipping. You’ll want to know: whether the online store ships to your location, how long it takes to deliver, and how much delivery will cost. In terms of shipping destinations, Bookbyte target the US market. Thus, if you are outside the US, you may need a freight forwarding service if you are to buy from Bookbyte. In terms of delivery times, Bookbyte does relatively well as you’ll get your order within 2 weeks. Bookbyte aces it in terms of shipping costs. All purchase over $49 is shipped free of charge, while expedited shipping is only $2.00.

Also, it’s not news that sometimes customers are less than satisfied with their order and will want to return it and get a replacement item or refunds. Thus, online stores that allow returns are the in-thing. Thankfully, Bookbyte tick this box. That you are buying a pre-owned and used textbook does not mean that you’ll have something tattered whose sight will be annoying. Thankfully, Bookbyte used books go through a strict screening process which ensures that only the best is offered for sale. However, if you receive delivery of your order and are not satisfied, Bookbyte gives you the opportunity to return it.

The company offers a 14 days return policy. That is, you can return the textbook to Bookbyte within 14 days of your receiving delivery of it, and you’ll get a full refund.  As you’ll know many online businesses offer 30 days return window. Thus, the 14 days that Bookbyte allows is relatively small. Thus, if you must make any return, you’ll have to act very fast.

Buying Pros

• The process of buying a textbook is relatively easy
• Features a great collection of books that includes 25+ categories and thousands of titles
• Offers both new and used books
• Offers relatively low prices (up to 80%)
• Free shipping is offered for every order over $49
• Expedited shipping is only $2.00
• Allows the returns of books if you are not totally satisfied with your purchase

Buying Cons

• Has a relatively small return window (14 days from delivery date)

Renting Textbook from Bookbyte

Renting books is a way of getting much-needed textbooks for less; this is because the price of renting is relatively lower than buying the textbooks outright. Bookbyte offers book renting service. Like all renting contracts, you’ll have to return the books to Bookbyte at the end of the term of use. Just as when buying a book from Bookbyte, you’ll have to go to the “rent” page and enter the book title in the search menu to get a quote.

Your completing the order means that you agree that Bookbyte will charge your credit card the Rental Price. Bookbyte also does well in terms of the rental price. It offers some of the best prices when renting textbooks.

You can always increase the rent period, and you also opt to retain the book at the end of the rent agreement. When retaining the book, as a benefit for coming off the rental agreement, you’ll pay a “Rental Discount” price which is an amount lower than the book’s list price.

It’s also relatively easy to return the book to Bookbyte, as it provides a pre-paid shipping label. Bookbyte will send email reminder notifications so you’ll know your Return Date. These are sent in the following intervals: 30 days, 14 days, 7 days, when due, and when past due.

Also, Bookbyte also gives a grace period, which is the period after the Rental sell date within which the book must be returned else you’ll be in default. Thankfully, this is a relatively long 20 days. That is, if by the Return Date Bookbyte has not received back the book or notification of your intention to retain it, Bookbyte will give you a grace period of 20 days to ship the book back to them.

However, when a customer defaults (fails to return a book even after the grace period), Bookbyte will charge the customer the Discount Price (as when the book is formally retained) as well as a $10 default fee. Do not try to jump this by cancelling your credit card. Bookbyte will bring in third-party collection services; you’ll be tracked down and will pay considerably more (including 18.5% interest rate compounded monthly, collection fee, attorney fees, etc).

Renting – Pros

• You can choose how long you’ll want to have the book for
• Offers relatively low rental prices
• Sends email notification as a reminder of your Return Date
• Offers a prepaid shipping label for returning the books
• When retaining books previously rented, you’ll pay lower than the book’s listed price
• Offers a Grace Period that is up to 20 days

Renting – Cons

• When there is default Bookbyte charges a default fee of $10 in addition to charging the customer the discount Price of the book

Complaints

It is true that there is no business that customer will not throw one or two jabs at. However, the ideal stores will have just a few complaints which will be drowned by a sea of positive reviews; while it is the less-ideal stores that will be overridden by complaints.

However, it will seem that Bookbyte falls into the latter category (those overridden by complaints). For example, in the top independent customers’ review platforms, Bookbyte is not highly rated. For example; It is rated 1.4/ 5 in sitejabber.com (by 20 reviewers), and 1/10 in resellerratings.com (by 4,935 reviewers). In Trustpilot.com Bookbyte had a relatively good rating of 3.4/ 5 (by 13,390); but a look at reviews showed that 16 of the 19 most recent reviews were a 1-star rating.

Not paying after receiving books

The main complaint which accounted for the poor ratings was that Bookbyte many times do not pay after receiving your book. For example:

• Bryan in Trustpilot says “Bookbyte keeps even perfect books and pockets YOUR money”
• Leah Cerilli in Trustpilot says “Scam – stay away”. The review continued that “…this company is a bait and switch scam. I sent my book valued at $100 in good condition, and they claimed it is damaged and cannot pay me at all, or give me my book back. So they have taken my book, refuse to compensate me for it, and will probably sell it off to someone else. I asked for proof that the book was damaged or donated/ recycled as they claim, and was not given any proof. They offer you a good buyback price to lure you into sending your property to them, but they will not compensate you”
• Tim in Trustpilot says “I was scammed”. The review continued that “Placed my 1st order with 1 book to see how quickly they paid compared with other companies that I have been dealing with. They run a good SCAM!!! They sent me an email stating that my like-new book was unsalable and also suspended my account … This was an authentic book bought from a legitimate state-run organization…”

In the reviews platform, there are just many cases of customers sending books in and not getting paid. Many times, Bookbyte claims that the book is not authentic. The reviews show that many customers dispute this because of having originally bought the books in question from authentic sources such as “legitimate state-run organization”, college bookstores and library, etc.

Well, Bookbyte’s “fake verdict” is always final and customers do not get paid. Customers who push to know why Bookbyte claim their book is inauthentic may get a response like “We cannot provide the exact details of what was specifically flagged about your book as that could aid in the production of these illegally produced textbooks and bypass our authenticity checks”. At best, this is unfair. If you claim my book which I bought from a legitimate source is unauthentic, the least you could do is tell me why.

Not only do the customers not get paid, but the books are not returned. The Bookbyte’s famous line is “We are unable to return the book since it is an inauthentic copy and should not be in circulation”

Another main excuse that Bookbyte uses to refuses payment is to claim that the book was damaged and in an unsellable condition. As you will have guessed, the customers maintain that the book is in perfect or near-perfect conditions. Sadly, Bookbyte does not give any evidence of their claims. Once again, Bookbyte is the Judge, Jury and executioner.

No matter what you think; if your book is declared “damaged”, you don’t get paid. It also hurt that Bookbyte will also not return your book. If they retain inauthentic books because “fakes” should not be in circulation, that is understandable; but why retain my book claiming it is damaged when I maintain it is undamaged and want it back? Bookbyte’s answer is that they’ll recycle it.

Looking at the reviews and Bookbyte’s responses; sometimes it does not pay to say that it did not receive the books. However, there are just too many such complaints that this comes out as a real problem in the company. If you also add that Bookbyte sends you a shipping label for use in shipping the item, then you’ll wonder why this should still be a significant problem.

Then, there is the claim by some customers that they shipped different books in one box, only for Bookbyte to say one wasn’t received. If this were true, it beats us how a book “in a box of four” will go missing; in our peanut head, it’s either all four are received or all four goes missing. However, once again, Bookbyte’s no-delivery verdict is always final; and you do not get paid. Of course, there’s no getting back your book.

The deceptive high buyback price

Remember that it was mentioned earlier that Bookbyte will quote you some of the best prices you can find for your used textbook. Too many sellers wanting to turn their textbooks to cash, this is just a trap. In addition to the many that Bookbyte users that reported not receiving payments, many others reported that after receipt of their textbook, Bookbyte paid only a fraction of the quoted price.

Customer Support Service

The ideal online store should have an effective customer support service for handling the questions or complaints of customers. This is because no matter how well the store operates, there will be those who’ll have issues with their orders, while others may just have questions that they’ll need to be answered.

In this regards, Bookbyte supports the self-support channels and contact channels. For self-support, you’ll find a lot of support articles in the “Help centre” of its website. These are categorized into different subjects to aid navigation.

For contact help, Bookbyte supports an online contact form and an email service. You can submit a support ticket using the online contact form on the “Help Center”. To use the email service, the email address to send your submissions is help@bookbyte.com. However, the support team is not active around the clock. You can expect to have replies to your submissions 8:30 am – 5:00 pm (PST), Mondays – Fridays.

Sites Similar to Bookbyte:

• Amazon

Conclusion

Bookbyte is easily one of the most popular and legitimate online used textbook businesses in the US. Its services include selling, buying, and renting textbooks.

When buying textbooks, you’ll find Bookbyte a delight. It supports a range of options; you’ll get both new and pre-owned textbooks at relatively low prices, free shipping is offered with a low $49+ minimum purchase, and you can return books if you’re not totally satisfied with the order. The one bump on the buying road is that the return window is relatively low.

When renting textbooks, Bookbyte also comes out great. Apart from its vast options and low prices, there are no fixed terms, so you set your Return Date; you’ll get email reminders at various times of this date, so there’ll be no missed returns. Also, with prepaid shipping labels, returning books to Bookbyte is relatively easy, and there’s a 20 days period should you miss returning the book on the return date.

When selling your textbook to Bookbyte, you’ll find the process relatively easy, Bookbyte buy-back quotes are some of the best you’ll find, and there’s a free pre-paid shipping label for easy shipment of the book to Bookbyte.

However, the customers’ reviews do not make for good reading after this. Complaints abound of Bookbyte not paying for the received books or only paying part of the quoted price, claiming that the book is “damaged” or “inauthentic”. Thus, when selling to Bookbyte, despite its generous buy-back quote, you really never know how much you’ll be paid or if you’ll be paid at all.

To many persons, pets are part of their families. Thus, pets need love and affection as any human member of the family; and as a result, they need good food, medicine, and other supplies.

Chewy is an online store where you can shop pet food and other supplies.It advertises with the tagline “where pet lovers shop”.

The big question on this Chewy review is whether Chewy has pet food and other supplies that are good enough for these special members of the family.

Another question will pertain to the product selection of the online store; that is, whether Chewy has supplies for a wide range of pets. If Chewy does have good products for your every pet, another question will be its pricing; that is, whether its supplies are competitively priced. It’s also important to know whether Chewy offers top services that we’ll expect of the ideal online store (such as easy ordering, fast delivery, easy returns, effective customer service, and more). In the first place, is Chewy legit?

Yes, Chewy is legit. It is not a scam pet store because they will never take your money without shipping the products you purchased. And also the subsidiary of PetSmart which is a reputable and very reliable pet store located in United States.

This Chewy review will examine the site in order to provide the information that will help you answer these questions and more.

Chewy Review at a glance

• Website: chewy.com
• A US-based retailer of pet food and pet supplies, founded in 2011
• Owned by PetSmart since 2017
• Supports a wide range of pets (dogs, cats, fishes, birds, small animal, reptiles, and horses)
• Offers a wide range of supplies in each pet department, including foods, treats, toys, medication, and more
• Only credit cards (Visa, Mastercard, Discover, and American Express) are accepted for payment
• Ships to only the 48 contiguous US state
• Advertises relatively fast delivery times of 1 – 2 days
• Accept returns if you are not totally satisfied with your order
• Customer Support is available 24/ 7 via email (service@chewy.com), telephone (1-800-672-4399), and live chat

What is Chewy? – About

Chewy is an online retailer of Pet food and pet supplies. It was founded in 2011 by Ryan Cohen and Micheal Day. The company is based in US; it currently has its headquarters in Florida and Boston, and has other locations (Fulfillment Centers and Customer Service Centers) in Texas, Nevada, Pennsylvania, Florida, Arizona, and Indiana. Chewy also operate two pharmacies in Kentucky and Arizona.

Chewy Inc, the company behind the online store (www.chewy.com) was acquired by PetSmart in 2017. Chewy’s acquisition for $3.35 billion, was at the time the biggest ever for an e-commerce business. Chewy file registration statement for proposed Initial Public Offering in April of this year (2019); and is now a public company.

Chewy says that its mission “is to be the most trusted and convenient online destination for pet parents (and partners) everywhere”. True to this mission, Chewy partners with some 1,600+ of the best brands in the pet supplies industry to offer literally everything you’ll need for your pet.

Is Chewy legit?

Given that there are many online fraudsters, before using any online platform for any transaction, you’ll want to determine that it is legit. Thus, the big question is whether Chewy is legit. The short answer to that is: definitely. The longer answer is that: it is 100% legal, has industry-wide recognition, has the capacity to fulfill orders, and has a rich operating record of fulfilling orders, and making satisfied customers.

Our first check of a legit online store is usually legality. This is because the stores that are 100% legal are less likely to be scams. Thankfully, Chewy ticks this box. The website is operated by Chewy Inc., which is a fully registered US company. Also, Chewy operates licensed pharmacies which have NABP (National Association of Boards of Pharmacy) and LegitScript accreditation.

The company was acquired by Petsmart in 2017 in a record-breaking acquisition; and since the second quarter of this year (2019), Chewy Inc has gone public, and has been trading in the New York Stock Exchange. Suffice it to say that a scam store do not bother with getting legal company registration certificates and definitely cannot get listed in a Stock Exchange.

Another check of a legit online store is visibility and industry-wide recognition. This is because the scam stores operate largely in the shadows. Thankfully, Chewy ticks this box. By 2017, it was even accounting for about 50% Pet Supplies sales in the US. As such, it is easily one of the biggest names in the Pet Supplies industry. Also, Chewy has been featured by renowned publishers and media houses which include The Wall Street Journal, Las Angeles Times, Forbes, and more. Suffice it to say that a scam store cannot gain the recognition of such industry watchers.

Another check of a legit online store is the test of time. This is because scam stores naturally die with time, especially as their scamming activities are exposed. Thankfully, Chewy ticks this box, as it has been operating since 2011. Suffice it to say that 8 years is enough time for scamming activities of a scam store to be exposed.

However, the ultimate test of legitimacy is fitness for purpose. This is because, scam stores do not deliver. Thankfully, Chewy ticks this box. The scam stores do not deliver simply because they are set up to rip people off, and therefore has nothing to deliver. However, Chewy has a “bigger the better” policy, which has driven the Company to open massive fulfillment centers stocking a great selection of products. This gives it the capacity to fulfill orders. Also, Chewy’s long operating record is rich with positive reviews of the Company actually fulfilling orders. That is, customers who place orders receive real products that, most often than not, are satisfactory.

Is Chewy safe?

Chewy is safe. The question of whether Chewy is legit is whether you can be ripped off. The answer is clear – Chewy is not scam store that rips people off. However, another question is whether it is safe to share your sensitive information with it. If a store is not safe, users’ sensitive information (such as credit card information) may leak out, leaving the users exposed to all the cyber fraudsters out there.

In this regards, Chewy says that it implements reasonable administrative, technical and physical safeguard designed to protect the information it collects. A further look shows that it uses SSL technology, which is the industry standards for ensuring protection of data transmitted over the internet. SSL also employs top-level encryption ensuring that even if data is captured, it cannot be read. Thus, it’s safe to say that Chewy is safe.

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Using Chewy

To use Chewy, you’ll have to register and create an account. However, creating an account is relatively easy. You’ll have to nominate a username and password in the process. To make a purchase, you’ll need to go through the product categories; on finding what you want, you can proceed to checkout. You’ll be prompted to log in, if you’re not logged in. You’ll also have to enter your shipping address; then you can select a payment method, and place your order.

You should find the Chewy experience very straightforward. In fact, Chewy is high rated in the top online independent customers’ review platforms. For example, at the time of writing this review:

• In trustpilot.com, it is rated 3.9/ 5 by 7,432 reviewers
• In consumeraffiars.com, it is rated 3.4/ 5 by 577 reviewers
• In resellersrating.com, it is rated 7.11/ 10 by 85,209 reviewers
• In Sitejabber.com, it is rated 4.3/ 5, with 351 of the 458 reviewers giving it a 5 star rating
• In Influenster.com, it is rated 4.8/ 5, with 91% of the 5,037 reviewers giving it a 5 star rating

Complaints

However, no Company is immune to complaints, so you’ll find some customer complaints. What was consistently mentioned by different customers and in different review platforms is late delivery.  As we’ll find, Chewy advertises a super fast delivery time of 1 – 2 days. However, many customers report that their orders were delivered much later. For example:

• Marty J in sitejabber.com says “5 days to ship, never 1 – 2 days as promised”
• Bryan I in Sitejabber.com says “shipment arrived late and they lied despite proof… My stuff always comes from goodyear [which is] 3 hours away. They tried to tell me it came out of state… After I blew that up it became the feigned one dollar coupon apology while taking no responsibility…“
• ChristineStrau in Resellerratings.com says “I ordered food for my animals and they say 1 – 2 days shipping. Well, I won’t get my order for 6 days from the day I ordered. My animals will be out of food; and they gave me a credit, but I don’t have money to buy another… Don’t say 1 – 2 day shipping if you can’t follow it…”
• Jessica Moody in Resellerratings.com says “1 – 2 day delivery is not accurate and false advertising”
• Calvin Meyer in Trustpilot.com says “Chewy advertises fast 1 – 2 day free shipping over $49. Not so true; took a week to receive dog food. If I would have known it was going to take this long, I would have shopped somewhere else”
• Frank Szap in Trustpilot.com says “Chewy deliveries have been better in the past. It took 4 days to get package…”

As can be seen from the reviews, it seems that Chewy does not quite live up to their 1 – 2 day delivery promise. However, the lateness is not usually too much because complaining customers report that their orders were received in 3 – 8 days. However, because plans had been made with 1 – 2 days in mind, it can become really frustrating when delivery promises are not met.

Another complaint that significantly stood out also related to delivery. In particular, it is poor Not-at-home deliveries by Chewy shipping partner – FedEx. For example:

• Frank Szap in Trustpilot.com says “… [FedEx] truly suck; always an issue with them. They leave packages wherever the f… they want!!!”
• Chris Kelly in Trustpilot.com says “As long as Chewy.com uses FedEx, I will not shop with them…”
• Jeff Myers in Trustpilot.com says “My main purpose of using Chewy.com is so I don’t have to go to the store to get all of [my sizeable order] and then lug it to the house. Chewy.com is supposed to have “delivery to the door” delivery service… Well the last couple of deliveries have been to the end of the driveway and not to the door. I have called FedEx (who is the delivery service for Chewy.com) and I was told they would send the driver back to my house to properly deliver it. Of course, no one ever showed up. I also called Chewy.com to complain to them. While the customer service rep was very helpful and seemed concerned, she did confirm that Chewy.com has contracted with their delivery partners for “to the door” service, and she seemed powerless to correct this problem. Not having these boxes delivered to my door kind of defeat the purpose of using Chewy.com. If I have to go to the end of my driveway and get the boxes and then bring them to my house, I might as well go the rest of the way to the store and just buy it there. I feel I am paying for the convenience of having products delivered to my door and I am not getting that”
• Jessica Moody in Resellerrating.com says “FedEx does not go through gates so my package sat right next to the sidewalk for anyone to grab as they walked by…”

Products

You’ll want a store with a wide product range so that you can get all your related items in one place. Apart from the convenience that offers, there could be cost savings – from large order discounts, or paying to ship one order, instead of shipping different orders from different stores.

Thankfully, Chewy ticks this box, as it offers a wide range of products. It has supplies for a range of pets. When in Chewy, you can shop by pets. The various pets, and supplies you’ll find in each pet department, are as follows:

• Dog:

Dog – Food, Treat, Toys, Health care, Dental Care, Crate& Pens & Gates, Beds & Mats, Carriers & Travel, Bowls & Feeders, Grooming, Flea & Tick, Clothing & Accessories, Leashes & Collars, Training & Behaviour, Technology, Gifts & Books, Memorials & Keepsakes

• Cat:

Cat – Food, Liter & accessories, treats, toys, healthcare, dental care, flea and ticks, training & cleaning, crates, pens & gates, beds & mats, trees, condos & scratchers, carriers & travel, clothing & accessories, bowls & feeders, grooming, leashes & collars, technology, gifts & books, memorials & keepsakes

• Fish:

Fish – Food & treats, Aquariums & starter kits, Cleaning & maintenance, décor & accessories, filters & media, gifts & books, health & wellness, heating & lighting, water care

• Bird:

Bird – Food, Treats, cages & accessories, liter & nesting, perches & toys, grooming & health, gifts & books

• Reptiles:

Reptiles – Food & treats, terrariums & habitats, habitat accessories, heating and lighting, cleaning 7 maintenance, substrate & bedding, health & wellness

• Horse:

Horse – Health & wellness, feed & treat, tack & stable supplies, grooming, toys, gift & books

• small Pets:

Small Pets – Food, Bedding & liter, Beds, hideouts & toys, gifts & books, grooming & health, habitat & accessories, harnesses & carriers, treat

• Pharmacy

There’s also a Pharmacy department, where you can shop in the following sections: Heartworm, Flea & tick, pain relief & arthritis, skin & coat, allergy relief, ear & eye care, medications, health conditions.

It should be said that Chewy not only work to ensure that there are options for every pets, but it also works to build the best selection possible. So within each section of any given department, Chewy offers the full gamut. Using the “Dog” department as an example, in the sections, the following can be found.

• Dog Food – Dry food, wet food, veterinary food, raw food, human-grade, frozen food, freeze-dried & Dehydrated food, Food Toppings
• Dog Treat – Dental & hard chews, soft & chewy treats, biscuit & crunchy treats, bully sticks & natural chews, gerky treats, veterinary diet treats, freeze-dried treats, training treats, dehydrated treats, pill covers and wraps
• Dog Toys – Fetch toys, Chew toys, Plush toys, interactive toys, rope & tug toys, toy storage bins
• Dog Health care – vitamins & supplements, hip & joint care, skin & coat care, stress & anxiety, dewormers, ear care, first aid& recovery, digestive & urinary, test kits, veterinary diet, eye care, weight control, wheelchair & handicap support
• Dog Dental Care – breath freshener & teeth cleaning, dental chews, dental supplements, dental food
• Dog Cleaning & Potty – Potty parts & diapers, Poop bags & scoopers, stain removers, potty training, vacuums & steam cleaners, candles & air fresheners, deodorizers, hair remover & lint rollers, lawn & grass care
• Dog Crate, Pens & Gates – Crates & accessories, Pens & accessories, Steps & ramps, Gates, fence system, doors & accessories, dog house
• Dog Beds & Mats – Crate mats, Pillow beds, elevated & cooling beds, orthopedic beds, heated beds, covered beds, blanket & furniture covers
• Dog Carriers & Travel – Travel aids, travel bowls & bags, Carriers, car accessories, steps & ramps, strollers & bicycle trailers
• Dog Bowls & Feeders – Bowls & diners, feeders & waterers, fountains & filters, placemats, storage & accessories
• Dog Grooming – Grooming tools, shampoo & conditioners, brushes & combs, ear care, paw & nail care, waterless grooming, bath & shower supplies, skin care, eye care
• Dog Flea & Tick supplies – Spot treatment, Collars, oral treatment, home & yard treatment, sprays & wipes, shampoos, combs & accessories
• Dog Clothing & Accessories – Jackets, Tops, Dresses, Pajamas, Jerseys & team accessories, outdoor gear, accessories, costumes
• Dog Leashes & Collars – Harnesses, leashes, collars, ID tags & accessories, Tie out
• Dog Training & Behaviour – Calming aids, Leashes & collars, bark control & remote training, repellents, fence systems, potty training aids, agility training, sport training, service dogs, training books
• Dog Technology – Cameras & Monitors, GPS & activity, feeders & treat dispensers, electronic doors
• Dog Gifts & Books – Books, Calendars & Stationery, Drinkware & Kitchen ware, home goods, clothing & accessories, gifts for dogs, magnets and decals
• Dog Memorials & Keepsakes – Urns & Caskets, Memorial picture frames, keepsakes, memorial stones, books

With the wide range of products that Chewy supports, whatever your pet, and whatever its needs, you’ll find that Chewy has you covered. The humongous selection of Chewy is possible because it features over 1,600 brands including Blue Buffalo, Nutro, Natural balance, Tidy Cats, and more

Pricing and Payment Methods

Pricing

Where costs are involved, we always want the lowest possible. Thus, the ideal stores will have competitive pricing. Thankfully, Chewy ticks this box. You’ll find that it is features relatively low prices in many of its product sections.

Payment Methods

You want it easy when making online payment for you order. Chewy ensures this. You can make payment for your order using the following Credit/ Debit cards – Mastercard, American Express, Visa, and Discover. This is definitely not a wide range of payment options that buyers will want to find; however, with the cards, making payment should be easy and convenient. It might disappoint some that PayPal is not supported, as it is the choice payment option of many online shoppers. However, PayPal’s popularity owes largely to the buyer protection it offers; but with Chewy, there are almost no reasons to worry about buyer protection.

Shipping

Shipping is an important consideration; and the most important shipping-related things to consider in any online purchase are: shipping destinations, delivery times, and shipping costs.

Shipping Destinations

You should make sure that the online store you want to use ships merchandise to your location; else receiving delivery of your items will be unnecessarily difficult. In this regards, many buyers will want stores that ships to many worldwide locations so that their location is more likely to be covered.

Unfortunately, Chewy serves only the American market. This rules out international shoppers. More so, it is only the 48 contiguous US states that Chewy ships to. Thus, buyers in Alaska, Hawaii, and other US Territories cannot use Chewy.

Delivery Times

Except you’ll not mind waiting forever to receive deliver of your online order, you’ll want to consider how fast it takes an online store to deliver from the time you order is submitted. Typically, delivery times consist of order processing time and package shipment time. The former is the time from when you order is placed to when the package ships; and the latter is the time from when the package ships to when it gets to you.

Thankfully, Chewy advertises very fast delivery times. It says that except for orders that require prescription approval, every order placed by 4pm (ET) will ship the same day, and that customers will receive their orders in 1 – 2 days afterwards.

Shipping Costs

Except free shipping is offered, the total cost of any online purchase is made up to its purchase price and shipping cost. Thus, where shipping costs are too high, an item which is reasonably priced can easily become too expensive to acquire online.

In this regards, Chewy does relatively well. It charges a flat rate of $4.95 for all orders under $49, while shipping is free for all orders over $49. It’s a good thing that free shipping is offered. However, it’s even more important that the minimum order requirement is low. Thus, there’s no pressure on you to overspend in chase of free shipping.

Special Shipping Feature (Autoship)

A special shipping feature that Chewy has is the Autoship. This allows you to schedule regular shipment of pet supplies such as food, treats and potty pads. With Autoship, you won’t run out of supplies and won’t have to come to the website to place orders all the time.

It’s also very easy to set up. You browse for your pet supply as usual, then at checkout, you can select “Yes” to Autoship. You’ll then be taken to a page, where you can set your schedule. Interestingly, there are no membership fees for Autoship, and you can cancel anytime. Also, Chewy incentivize the service. It advertises that there is a 30% discount for the first purchase; and afterward, there’s a 5 – 10% discount on select brands.

Return

Sometimes, when online shoppers get their orders, the joy of expectation turns to disappointment because of not being 100% satisfied with the order. As a result online shoppers generally like retailers that’ll allow them return an unwanted order, and get a replacement or a refund.

Thankfully, Chewy ticks this box, as it allows returns. Its return policy states that “if you’re not 100% unconditionally satisfied with your pet supplies, you can return them”. However, Chewy does not accept returns or exchange of prescription medication, except your order was incorrect or damaged.

It you need to return an eligible Chewy Order, you only need to contact the customer service team, and you’ll be provided with instructions for returning the item. In most situations, Chewy issue refunds without requiring you to return the original order. However, the return in required, you’ll be responsible for the item until it is gets to Chewy’s fulfillment center.

Customer Support

There’ll definitely be questions, and some customers will have issues with their orders. Thus, the ideal online store should have an effective customer support service for handling the questions/complaints that customers will have.

In this regards, Chewy supports the popular self-help and contact support channels. For self-help, the first place to start is an FAQ page in its website. The page answers many questions that persons have thrown at the Chewy in the past, so you just might find that what’s on your mind is treated there. Also, to aid navigation, the self-help articles are grouped into various subjects as follows: Support, Autoship, Shipping, Payments, Returns, and Prescription Items.

If you do not find answers in the self-help articles, you can always contact Chewy directly via email, live chat, and telephone. The email address to send your submissions is service@chewy.com. The live chat feature can be accessed from the website; and for the telephone service, the number to call is 1-800-672-4399. It’s interesting to state that the telephone service is available round the clock. Whatever the time (night or day), Chewy can be reached on phone. Also, the line is toll-free, so you won’t have to worry about charges when you need assistance.

It should be mentioned that in the reviews, Chewy is lauded for its customer service. Customers positive reviews include: being connected to real persons, relatively fast response time, very understanding and helpful support personnel, and more

Sites Similar to Chewy:

• Petsmart.com
• Amazon.com

Pros

• Has supplies for many animals (dogs, cats, fishes, birds, etc)
• Has a huge selection that ensures that you’ll get whatever you want for your pet
• Its prices are competitive
• Has relatively fast delivery times
• Free shipping is offered; and with a relatively low minimum order requirement ($49+ orders)
• Offers an Autoship service that allows you schedule regular deliveries of your pet supplies
• Offers a very easy return policy
• Different channels for getting help (Email, telephone, and live chat), and the service is available 24/ 7

Cons

• Ships to only 48 contiguous US states
• Delivery may take a few days later than the 1 – 2 days advertised
• Many packages are left not “at the door” but by sidewalks or end of driveways

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Summary

Chewy is a legitimate US based retailer of pet supplies. Chewy.com is a legit online store; it is operated by Chewy Inc, which is a Public Company owned by PetSmart. Whatever your pet, and whatever its need, Chewy has your covered. You’ll find supplies for dogs, cats, fishes, birds, small pets, reptiles, and horses. Pet supplies offered range from food, to treats, to feeders & liters, to medication, and more.

Importantly, Chewy has friendly prices. More importantly, Chewy has superb services. Finding what you want and placing an order will be a breeze; Chewy offers relatively fast delivery; there’s free shipping for Orders over $49; you’re guaranteed a refund if you’re not totally pleased with your Order; and there’s a very responsive and effective customer support service.

There are just small bumps on the road. First, the company ships to only the 48 contiguous US states, so you cannot get the Chewy service if your shipping address is not in the continental US. Also, you just might get your order a few days late; so allow for this when planning your deliveries. Lastly, if you’ll not be at home to receive your package, you just may find that the Chewy’s shipping partner (FedEx) will leave it by the sidewalk/ driveway, instead of entering through the gate to leave it “at your door”.

iOffer is the one-stop destination for buyers and sellers looking for a convenient, easy way of trading used items. Feel secure knowing who you’re dealing with, thanks to their reputation & safety features, while browsing through thousands of new postings daily using just your phone or tablet. Listing an item takes only 30 seconds – see what treasures await at iOffer today!

iOffer advertises as an online marketplace where you can buy and sell practically anything. The big question is whether using iOffer is worthwhile as a Seller or Buyer.

As a Seller, does the platform have the traffic to make your store a success? How about its charges, are they friendly?  Are its services what you’ll expect of a go-to online marketplace (e.g. easy store set-up, easy payment process, etc.)?

Yes, iOffer is legit. It is not a scam because they will never steal customers’ money or financial details. It is one of the most popular and reputable online marketplaces.

As a buyer, you’ll want to know if the marketplace holds a wide range of products. Other important questions include: are the products listed in the marketplace of high quality and price reasonable? What about its service? Does it offer top service that we’ll expect of the go-to online shopping destination (such as easy ordering, fast delivery, easy returns, effective customer service, etc)?

Given that there are many online marketplaces, how does iOffer differ from the others? In the first place is iOffer legit?

This iOffer review will examine iOffer in order to provide the information that will help you answer these questions and more.

iOffer review at a glance

• Founded in 2002, and based in San Francisco, California
• Global marketplace that connects buyers and sellers
• Buy and sell practically anything (fashion product, electronics, home and garden, etc)
• As a seller; you pay only when your items sell (it is free to create a store and list products)
• Sellers are charged a flat rate of 5% of transaction amount
• Buyers can make payment with credit cards and Amazon Pay (but PayPal not supported)
• iOffer does not receive purchase payment; Buyers pay Sellers directly

What is iOffer? – About

iOffer was launched by Steven Nerayoff in mid 2002. It is based in San Francisco, California. It is an online marketplace that simply connects Buyers and Sellers. Anyone from a host of worldwide locations can go to iOffer as a Seller to list his/ her products for sale; while anyone from a host of worldwide locations can also go to iOffer as a Buyer to buy any of the products listed for sale.

iOffer differs from other online marketplaces in that it uses “negotiated offer” model. In the traditional purchase model which many online marketplaces use, the Seller set a price, and the order is placed when the buyer makes the purchase at that set price. This is also available in iOffer. However, iOffer also allow Buyers to make an offer. That is, Sellers can request an offer; to which interested Buyer will make offers. The order is placed when the Seller accepts an offer made by a Buyer.

However, apart from this negotiated offer model, iOffer is a typical marketplace in that it does not own any of the products listed in the site. In fact, iOffer is not involved in any part of the transaction. In many online marketplaces, Buyers pay directly to the platform who in turn pay the Seller after removing their charges. However, iOffer not involving in any part of the transaction include receiving payment. In iOffer, Buyers pay the Sellers directly; after which, the Seller pays iOffer its charges (Final Value Fees).

Is iOffer legit?

iOffer is a legitimate platform. There are many scammers ripping people off in the internet. As such before using any online platform, it’s wise to determine that it is legit. So the big question is whether iOffer is legit. Instead of simply answering Yes or No, we’ll examine whether iOffer tick the boxes that a legit platform should.

One way some check whether an online store is legit is legality. This is because stores that are 100% legal are less likely to be scams. iOffer ticks this legality box, as the website is operated by iOffer corporation, which is a duly registered company in the US. However, it should be remembered that iOffer is not an online store, but an online marketplace. While a marketplace can be 100% legal, if it doesn’t tighten up, there can be unscrupulous Sellers within it who will carry out scamming activities.

As we’ll see later in this review, iOffer though being a 100% legal platform (by definition of the word legal), operate in a way that is “Scammers-friendly” (for example, it does not do any Seller verification, and it does not hold receive payment from Buyers and cannot hold Sellers profits to ensure that the transaction is satisfactorily completed).

Another way some check whether an online store is legit is the test of time. This is because the scam stores are short-lived. It is only a matter of time before scamming activities are exposed, and with such exposure, the stores close their virtual doors and disappear.  iOffer passes this test of time, as the website has been operating for over 17 years (since 2002).

However, since iOffer is not a store, but a marketplace with many stores, there’re sure to be some legit Sellers within it. Thus, the test of time is not a good benchmark for a marketplace because even if many scammers exist in the marketplace, the few legit Sellers in it will act as oxygen for the marketplace to continue almost perpetually.

The true check of a legit online platform is fitness for purpose. To a Seller in a marketplace, “fitness for purpose” means that the platform actually connects Buyers to him/her for the sale of his/her products; and to a Buyer, “fitness for purpose” means that when he/ she places an order online, real and functional products are delivered. Unfortunately, it is in this ultimate check of legitimacy that the jury is out against iOffer.

As a Seller, you can create a store, list your products, and actually make sales in iOffer. Thus, Sellers will consider the platform fit for purpose. However, for Buyers, as we’ll see later in this review, there are numerous reports of purchased items not delivered.

As you’ll know, to buyers who pay for items online but do not get them, the platform is anything but legit. However, it should be emphasized that some buyers did receive delivery of items bought; and to these lucky ones, the platform will be “fit for purpose”.

That said, it is safe to say that iOffer itself is a legit online marketplace, but owing to its free-for-all and simple operating model, there are many fake/ scam Sellers in it.

Is iOffer safe?

iOffer is safe. It is also important to determine that an online platform is safe before using it for any transaction. This is because a platform that isn’t safe will allow sensitive users’ data (like personal information and credit card details) to leak out; leaving the users exposed to all the scammers out there.

In this regard, iOffer says that it takes the protection of users’ data very seriously, such that it employs industry standard measures to safeguard data. One of such measure is the use of SSL (Secure Socket Layer) technology. SSL create a private channel between a user’s device and the platform’s web servers, ensuring that any data exchanged over the internet is private. SSL also employ bank-grade encryption protocols, ensuring that even if data is captured, it cannot be read by the hackers. With the use of this technical security measure and more, it is safe to say that iOffer is safe.

Products

The ideal shopping destination will hold a wide range of products. As a seller, you’ll want a marketplace that’ll admit you whatever you sell; and as a buyer, you’ll want the convenience of being able to get all you want in one place instead of visiting different places.

Thankfully, iOffer ticks this box. It advertises as a place where you can buy and sell virtually anything. True to this, the over 100 million products listed in the sited covers different categories. At the time of writing this review, the product categories in iOffer (and some items that you’ll find in each category) were as follows:

• Women’s Fashion – Clothing (dresses, Tops, T-shirts, skirts, sweatshirts, Pants,  Denim, shorts, blazers, outerwear, swimwear, sleepwear, jumpsuits, lingerie); Handbags (totes, shoulder bags, hobos, satchels, clutches, cosmetics bags, backpacks wallets, travel bags); Shoes (heels, flats, slippers, boots); Accessories (sunglasses, belts, watches, Jewelry, scarves, hair accessories, leggings, socks)
• Men’s Fashion – Clothing (shirts, jeans, hoodies, sweaters, outerwear, blazers, swimwear, underwear, tracksuits), Accessories (wallets, belts, sunglasses, watches, jewelry, men’s bag, hats, scarves, tie, socks), Shoes (sneakers, boots, running shoes, slippers, loafers)
• Jewelry and Watches – women jewelry, (rings, earrings, bracelet, charm bracelets, necklace and pendants, pins and brooches, jewelry sets, body jewelry), Men’s jewelry (rings, bracelets, necklace, wooden jewelry, dog tags, cufflinks), Watches ( sport watches leather watches)
• Electronics – iPhone cases, iPad cases, head phones, Mp3 players, car electronics, gadgets, electronics cigarettes, video games
• Computers – computer accessories, dries and storage, Apple components, software, laptop cases, tablet case
• Sporting Good – sport jerseys, cycling product, hunting product, fishing products, camping products, paint ball, airsoft pistols, tennis and racquets, fitness products, knives
• Movies and Television – Television shows, movies, drama, action and adventure, animation, sports, concert and music, DVD, HD DVD and blu-ray

Other categories that you’ll find include: Handbags and Purses; Fragrances; Health and Beauty; Kids and Baby; iPhone Cases; Hobbies and Craft (embroidery, tattoos, piercing, and manicures); Coins and Money; Dolls and Bears; Home and garden; Pottery China and Glass; Toys and Games; Books; Music; and Photo. You’ll find that many high-end brand name items are listed in iOffer.

iOffer – for Sellers

This section examines everything you’ll need to know when using iOffer as a seller.

iOffer’s Reach

Typically, marketplaces have geographical restrictions. That is, persons in certain regions are restricted from using the platform to sell their products. In this regards, iOffer ticks the box. This is because iOffer can be used by Sellers from virtually every part of the world. With over 224 worldwide countries covered, you can create a store and list products in iOffer no matter where you are resident in the world.

Another important consideration is traffic. As a Seller, you’ll want your store in a platform that a lot of potential buyers visit. In this regard, iOffer advertises that it has millions of users worldwide (10+ monthly buyers) and over 421,000 Facebook fans. This suggests that it has the traffic to make your store a success.

Using iOffer

Like in every marketplace, before you start using iOffer, you’ll have to open a Seller account. However, registration is pretty straightforward. You’ll be taken through the simple steps of creating your store. Lastly, you’ll have to list your products. Listing products singly is also simple; you’ll simply choose a product category, add a title, a description, set your price, and add a product image. iOffer also allows you to transfer your items from other sites to the platform, which will make them live immediately. If you have many items to list, there’s also the provision for bulk upload, using a .CSV file.

iOffer require that shipping rates appear in the item listing so that customers can know what getting the item will cost. Thus, you’ll need to set your shipping options. This could be: shipping only domestically (within the US), shipping to the US and Canada, and shipping to the US and internationally.

Another important setting is getting paid. The default setting is for iOffer to automatically send invoices to buyers to pay you immediately. However, you can change this if you have other preferences, like sending invoices to your buyers manually. From the payment methods supported by iOffer, you’ll also have to set which one you buyers can pay you with.

Pricing

One of the best things about using iOffer as a Seller is that it is free to use. That is, you don’t have to pay until your item sells. It is free to set up your store; it is free to list items in your store; all listing photos are free; and you can create a gallery slide show free of charge.

This means that unlike many online marketplaces that are subscription-based, iOffer is a no-risk marketplace where you won’t lose any money if your venture does not pan out the way you expected. However, iOffer charges for premium listing, where your listed item will be enhanced in search results for 30 days. There are three premium listing services – boldfaced, outlined, and featured. With Boldfaced listing, the item title will be bold on search results, and it cost $3.00; with Outlined listing, the item title will be outlined in green in search results, and it cost $5.00; with Featured listing, your item title will be highlighted in grey and will be shown as “featured item” in search result, and it cost $19.95.

While it’s good that you won’t pay until your items sells (except you use premium listing), you’ll want to know what the charges are when your items do sell. You’ll want these charges to be as low as possible, because high charges can easily eat into your profit margin if you still want your items to be competitively priced.

iOffer’s charges used to be based on the transaction amount; but effective October 1, 2019, the platform simplified its charges, and started charging a flat rate of 5% of transaction amount. That is, for an item whose total amount is $50, iOffer will send you an invoice for $2.50.

Payment

You (the Seller) will receive payment directly from the buyer; after which you’ll have to pay iOffer its due (Final Value Fees). However, iOffer does not bug you incessantly for payments. You’ll be billed only once a month, on the calendar day that you opened your account. Also, you are billed and will receive the account invoice only when your account balance is over $2.00. After receipt of the account invoice, you’ll have 7 days to pay iOffer. This is a relatively long window.

It should be noted that all payments (Final Value Fees and premium listing fees) to iOffer are final and nonrefundable. Thus, any request must be submitted before paying your account balance.

This dispute can occur because of the “negotiated offer” operating model of iOffer. Sometimes, when an order is placed with you accepting an offer that a customer makes, the customer may end up not paying (and becomes a Non-Paying Buyer). iOffer calculate its fees using orders placed. Thus, you’ll have to file a Non-Paying Buyer rating, stating that you did not receive payment so that iOffer will credit you back. In our opinion, having to file Non-Paying Buyer form is an unnecessary headache for Sellers that can be prevented if iOffer operates in a way that it knows what buyers actually makes payment.

iOffer – for Buyers

When using iOffer as a buyer, the following are important:

Pricing and Buying from iOffer

The first thing to consider in online shopping platforms is the user experience. Thankfully, iOffer ticks this box. The products are neatly arranged in categories, making it relatively easy to find and place an order.

You’ll also find that many Sellers in iOffer quote prices that are relatively low and affordable. In fact, one draw of buying from iOffer is the low prices of items listed in the platform. You can buy from iOffer using the “Buy Now” or “Make an Offer” buttons. When you use Buy Now, you’re accepting the listed price, and the order is immediately placed. When you use “Make an Offer”, the Seller has to accept your offer for the order to be placed. Once the order is placed, you’ll get an invoice and have to make payment.

However, if the Seller has not included a payment processor, your order summary will show “Your payment is required”. If payment is not made within 48 hours, the order will be cancelled for non-payment.

Payment Methods

You’ll want a range of payment method so that you can conveniently pay for your orders no matter where you are resident. iOffer supports a range of methods that include: Credit and debit cards (Master card and Visa); Amazon checkout; Visa electron, and Checks/ Money Orders. However, the payment options that will be available to you are those allowed by the particular Seller.

However, almost all Sellers allow the cards; and with these, you shouldn’t have problems paying for your order. However, it’s still disappointing that PayPal is not supported. It is the preferred choice of many customers, and for good reason, as it is a secure payment method that is renowned for its buyer protection.

Shipping

When making online purchases, shipping is an important consideration. It’s important to consider whether the particular Seller ships to your location, how long it’ll takes to receive your order, and how much shipping cost.

Being a marketplace, the shipping destinations, delivery times, and shipping costs you’ll find in iOffer vary, depending on the particular Seller. However, most often than not, they make for good reading. For example, in terms of shipping destinations, you’ll find that many Sellers ships merchandise to worldwide locations. So no matter where you are resident, you’ll be able to buy from iOffer. In terms of delivery times, you’ll find that many Sellers offer relatively “okay” times.

For example, domestic US orders will take about 14 days (from date of order placement) to be delivered; while overseas orders may take 21 – 35 days. Tracking numbers are provided, so you’ll know where you order is at all times. iOffer advertises that it usually takes 3 – 5 days to get the tracking information. This suggests that order processing is 3 – 5 days. Also, shipping costs vary depending on the particular Seller. However, you’ll usually see relatively low prices.

However, as we’ll see in the complaint section, while the delivery times you’ll see quoted for many listed products make for good reading, many Sellers do not live up to them.

Returns

It is not news that sometimes customers are not satisfied with their online purchase; and instead of being stuck with an unwanted item, they’ll want to be able to return it to the retailer for a replacement or a refund. Thus, stores that allow returns are appealing.

However, iOffer is simply a marketplace that is not involved in the purchase in any way. Thus, it cannot refund or exchange products. Independent Sellers manage their products, shipping, and returns. Thus, when making a purchase in iOffer, you’ll need to look closely at whether the particular Seller has a return policy.

It must also be said that the operation of iOffer does not “help” buyers in terms of returns. As mentioned earlier, iOffer does not even receive payments for purchases. In the buyer friendly marketplaces, the marketplace receives payment for purchases; and it is only when the buyer confirms delivery of the order and satisfaction with it (or when a reasonable time has passed from the order shipment date and the customer does not file a complaint) that the payment is released to the Seller. In such marketplaces, the Sellers who want to receive their money will more readily move to work out a resolution with the customer.

However, in iOffer, buyers pay directly to the Sellers. So if you have issues and will want refunds or a product exchange, the platform can do nothing to help. You’ll simply be at the mercy of the particular Seller and its return policy. iOffer does say that if you have an issue with an order, you can make a report, and that it will alert the Seller. In truth, that is all it can do – alert the Seller.

You’ll have to deal with the Seller yourself; and as you do, you should also file a chargeback with your credit card company so that the window for filing this will not close while the Seller strings you along.

Complaints

It should be said that there is no company or platform that is immune to complaints. However, the ideal destinations will not be swimming in an ocean of complaints; rather, complaints would be drowned by positive reviews. Unfortunately, this is not the case with iOffer.

Looking at the top online customers’ reviews platform, you’ll find that iOffer is not highly rated. In trustpilot.com, iOffer is rated by 1,641 reviewers, and has an average rating of 1.4/ 5; and in sitejabber.com, it is rated by 480 reviewers, and has an average rating of 1.6/ 5.

The poor ratings mean that there are many complaints; and for these, iOffer is written off as a scam in many quarters. The complaints include: quality issues, no-delivery and late delivery, no refunds, and more

Quality Issues

You’ll want to find only quality items in a store. However, in the customers’ reviews platforms, there are just too many persons who when they did receive their orders, found its quality largely unsatisfactory. For example:

• Lorna of Carrollton TX in Consumeraffairs says “Hi… the dvds you purchase come on recordable dvrs with magic marker writing for the title. They very often are of horrible quality. I was wondering why you get discontinued, rare movies and documentaries for so cheap… Now I know why … they’re bootleg”
• James G in Sitejabber says “I had [ordered] stuff from the site and all of the quality is bad”
• Mr and Mrs MC in Trustpilot says “…I did order about 5 order things which did arrive BUT they looked nothing like the picture, quality was crap & I was not impressed. In short AVOID!!!”

Late Delivery and No-Delivery

While there are few persons that reports getting their order; just too many others complain of having to wait for too long to receive delivery of their order, and many others complain of receiving delivery of their order at all. For example:

• Shannen in Trustpilot says: “…I ordered back at the end of 2018 and still haven’t heard a word [as at September 27 2019]. I was told my order had been stopped at customs, but customs had no record of it. I was then told the order would be sent again, It clearly was not. Complete scams”
• Ma in Trustpilot says: “Worst website ever!!! Waiting over a year now for my order. I contacted the Seller to tell them I haven’t received my order, and they blacked me out so I can’t even contact them or leave a review…”
• Jim K in Trust Pilot says: “I have been waiting for over 6 months for this site to keep its promises. They say they will reship but do not. Don’t waste your time ordering. They do not use PayPal for a reason”
• Mr & Mrs MC in Trustpilot says: “I placed an order for a bag in October 2018. I chased it up to February 2019 & was told to be patient. I chased it again in April of 2019 complaining that it had been 7 months & I would like a refund as clearly the item is not going to be delivered. The reply was “be patient my angel” to which I replied I would report them to my credit card company… It’s now July 2019 & Still no bag. iOffer accepts no responsibility, the order has been archived so there’s nothing I can do on the site”

No refunds

Another significant complain is that Sellers do not issue refunds. Though some buyers do get their money back, it is only after filing charge backs with their credit card companies. For example:

• Tiffany in Trustpilot says: “I have ordered many items from this website over the last few years and only received a few items. I thank God that I used my bank debit card with all my orders because I was able to get my money back each time I filed a dispute. If you ask for a refund from the Seller, you won’t receive it, so it’s best to file a dispute with your bank or credit card company to get your money back”
• Jacqueline B. in Sitejabber says: “Bunch of thieves!” The review continued “… asked for refunds, but they’re full of excuses. Not buying another single thing from iOffer. Bad Experience”

Customer Support

If there’s one law we don’t like; it is Murphy’s Law that “anything that can go wrong will go wrong”. However, it is so true. So you’ll want the ideal platform to have an effective customer support service to assist customers when something does go wrong.

In this regards, there’s a “Frequently Asked Questions” page where you’ll find answers to many questions categorized under: General Questions, Buying Help, Selling Issues, Site Safety, and Bugs/ Suggestions.

However, for direct contact with iOffer, it supports the following: a suggestion box, an email service, and postal mail. However, the suggestion box, as its name suggest is not for you to get assistance, but to make suggestions to iOffer. Also, the email service does not give you assistance with your orders; its only for seeking strategic partnership (bizdev@ioffer.com) or reporting suspicious, fraudulent or phishing emails and websites (spoof@ioffer.com). Thus, reaching iOffer with your regards to your order is limited to postal mail; in which case the address that correspondence should be sent is: iOffer, P.O.Box 78191, San Francisco, CA 94107.

Since it’s the Seller that you’ll contact to resolve issues, iOffer allow you to easily contact the Seller. This can be done from the Order Summary page using the “Order Messages” button.

Summary

iOffer is an online marketplace. Like all marketplaces, independent Sellers can list their products, and buyers can go there to browse listed items and make purchases. iOffer differs from many online marketplaces in that as a buyer, you are not limited to buy the items at the prices set by the Sellers; there are many items where the Sellers invite the Buyers to make an offer. Thus, you can make your purchases at prices that are fine by you.

One advantage of iOffer is that you can use it to sell and buy virtually anything. Also, it welcomes Seller and Buyers from worldwide locations. As a buyer, you’ll also find prices of listed items to be relatively low. However, as a marketplace, and especially with its operating model (free for all, no verifications, and allowing buyers to pay sellers directly), the environment is friendly for scammers. Thus, if you must buy in iOffer, you’ll have to know the art of identifying and avoiding scam Sellers, who are very much in the platform.

If you buy from its legit Sellers, you’ll get reasonable quality items at good prices. However, if you unluckily fall for the scam Sellers, online customers’ reviews suggest that you’re likely not to receive delivery of your item, or receive delivery of an item with horrible quality.

Site Similar to ioffer:

• Amazon

Pros

For Sellers

• Accepts Sellers from virtually all worldwide locations
• You can sell virtually anything, as a wide range of products can be listed for sale
• It’s very easy to set up store, as there are no verifications
• You’ll not pay until your item sells (that is, free to set up store and list products)
• Charge for completed sales is relatively low (5% of transaction amount)
• Offer premium listing services (albeit paid) where you items is given more visibility in search results
• Receive payment for purchases directly from buyers
• Paying iOffer is done only once a month, and only their “due” reaches $2.00
• You’ll have a relatively long 7days window to pay after receiving your invoice from iOffer

For Buyers

• You can buy virtually anything, including apparel, fashion accessories, home and garden items, electronics, and more
• You’ll find relatively low prices
• You have the opportunity to make your own offer
• Many Sellers ship worldwide

Cons:

For Sellers

• As a Seller, you may find yourself having to file Non-Paying Buyer with iOffer

For Buyers

• Reviews suggest that no-delivery is a real problem of many Sellers
• Reviews suggest that where items are delivered, many times quality is largely unsatisfactory
• Reviews suggest that Sellers do not allow returns and do not refund
• PayPal (which is renowned for buyer protection) is not supported
• iOffer does virtually nothing to help customers if there’s an issue with an order

Redbubble is basically a worldwide, online marketplace where you can get printed products on demand when you look at artworks submitted by users. This platform sprang up in Australia, in 2006 and the company has offices in Berlin as well as San Francisco.

Yes, Redbubble is legit. It is not a scam because they will offer you the service you paid for without a problem.

This Redbubble review will exmine Redbubble in order to provide you with answers to all your questions.

It is a spectacular fulfilment service that gives you high-quality, quick printing services when you request for it and they have an extended array of products that you can pick from. Redbubble does its operations on the Internet primarily and they allow its members to make money from their artwork by selling it as decorations on different kinds of products.

These products can include but are not limited to scarves, duvet covers, prints, skirts, T-shirts, stickers, hoodies and cushions. Redbubble also gives artists that maintain copyrights to their artworks free memberships. They can also regulate prices of their choosing and pick the products that their artworks can be displayed upon.

The reason why you are going through this Redbubble review is probably that you want more information about Redbubble and how it works or perhaps you do not know what it is at all and want to find out. Perhaps you heard about a Redbubble scam but no worries, we’ve got you covered. We are going to be looking at how effective they are and the features that they comprise.

The service they offer is up to standard when it regards the basics of print on demand so if you are just venturing into the industry of print and demand, it is a great idea to make use of a platform like Redbubble because it gives you not just the frontend, but also the backend of this print-on-demand service. Let’s delve right into it and find out the merits and demerits of this platform.

How does Redbubble work?

Redbubble has quite the same features with print on demand outfits on the market. However, it is simply a service on its own so it does not give you any applications or support you can use to link to services like Shopify or even WooCommerce. This means that you cannot get it on Shopify to sell your products through the store, but you can put up your logos and designs right on Redbubble then sell from there.

When you sell your products through their platform, it becomes quite simple and less tasking to manage the overall collection. The downside is that there is no branding and you can’t make your own name and brand the way you want. You would be an artist profiting off Redbubble which is not really a bad thing except you need your own branding and store then you’d have to use another service for that. As for the operations, this platform is very simple to use.

You simply sign up to create an account, next you upload the custom designs as well as the logos that you’ve made and place them on whichever products you want to get more clients and promote them. The great thing is that you are the one that sets your profit margin on every product. This platform will only charge you for your base price because anything else that you get goes immediately to your wallet. For clarity, if you are selling a t-shirt and the base price is $5, if your selling price is $15, you have made a profit of $10. There is no Redbubble scam. Keep reading the Redbubble review to find out how to set up an account.

How to set up an account on RedBubble:

Because RedBubble is an online marketplace for most creative and artistic images, the actual way of earning money with this service is selling your creations. It is easy to set up a Redbubble account regardless of where you are because Redbubble accepts applicants to the platform from everywhere in the world. With the absence of any vetting process or strange rules, you are good to go. However, you need to be sixteen years old at least before you can sign up on the platform. To be able to register, all you need to do is add your email address, then create your username and your password. Furthermore, you need to confirm that email address right before finishing the process that will make your art available to be sold.

Additionally, you have to set up your Redbubble shop right before you will be able to sell anything. It is a virtual store and on it, you can not only promote but you can sell your designs. It is not hard to set up your shop. Just follow these easy steps. First, create your store/domain name, place an avatar and upload a cover image, put in your payment preferences, then upload your design, promote them and liaise with your clients.

RedBubble has a rigid guideline regarding designing or uploading creations to be sold. Every image must adhere to the requirements because of quality. They have particular dimensions, as well as formats that aid the printing of your design on every product. This is because the dimensions for printing duvet covers are obviously different from those of mugs or greeting cards.

Your uploaded image not only has to be lower than 300mb, it also has to be about 7632×6480 pixels. When you follow this guideline outlined in this Redbubble review, your design will come out nicely on the products. The platform does not allow any art that promotes baiting, pornography, drug abuse, defamation, nudity, racism, vilification and violence. Your designs should have only content which is neutral and can be viewed by every age group.

To elevate your chances of acceptance, you should make sure that there’s no infringement of copyright laws by your design. As soon as your design is approved, you can then start promoting the work so you can get customers. This platform lets you promote every design by yourself in different sections of the website such as your profile as well as their journal.

You cannot promote them outside those areas and doing that can make them ban you, that is not a Redbubble scam. You should add prices whenever you are promoting your designs since you can set any price of your choice.

Your selling price can definitely have a considerable effect on your potential income because it can determine how much clients you attract as a result of the competition on Redbubble. You should back up your art with marketing skills so you can be on top of the game. Your price should not be too high so as not to chase away customers then start asking the question is Redbubble legit? when you do not make what you expect. It wouldn’t hurt to create special and attractive designs that can be used on different kinds of products.

As soon as a customer buys any of your designs, you will be sent a notification via email by RedBubble that will tell you that you have made a sale. It will have every detail on it including the selling price, which design was purchased and your commission. You should note that your deal is only completed when the product has been shipped to your customer. Your client will make a choice of whether to place your design on a sticker, on clothing, a mug or any other product they seem fit. The printing is done in two to three days while the shipping is determined by the address of your customer.

Products available on Redbubble:

Redbubble Stickers:

Redbubble Clothing:

Redbubble Device Cases:

Redbubble Wall Art:

Redbubble Home Decor:

Redbubble Accessories:

Redbubble stationery:

Redbubble Gifts:

The platform gives you different kinds of products and they make sure that they offer the highest quality to satisfy their customers. Another good thing is that their printing quality is quite better among their competitors out there. You have the choice to pick different products under the categories that will be listed for you.

They are; Women’s, Men’s, Kids and infants, gifts, stationery, device cases, wall art, bags, stickers and home decor. You have the ability to pick as many categories and products as you like and the designs will reflect on each of the products.

It is advised in this Redbubble review, that you pick different image sizes of art as the size of the product varies because an art that looks great on your T-shirt may not be the same size with that of a mug so keep that in mind when you are uploading or choosing so you don’t think it is a Redbubble scam.

Pricing on Redbubble:

This platform has a simple pricing policy. Every product found on Redbubble has a base price which all customers can see and the designers can set. You can choose to have a percentage markup applied to every product and category. For instance, a ten per cent markup on every product your design appears on. You can also place the markup percentage on just one particular category, such as ten per cent for phone cases, fifteen per cent for clothing etc. Finally, you may pick the number based markup on some items or categories or every product. The only part Redbubble collects is the base price, everything else is yours.

Payment and withdrawal options on Redbubble:

It does not make sense for you to put your design on Redbubble and not cash out when someone likes your product. It is for this reason that this platform has a good payment process. When it comes to payment I’m sure you want to know –

is Redbubble legit? Within every payment cycle which starts from the fifteen of one a month to the same date as the next, you get paid. This platform pays you by directly depositing your money in an account at the bank which is only available in some specific countries, you can also be paid via PayPal. You should ensure that you include every pertinent account detail so you don’t have any issues when you want your money.

Sometimes, the designer’s payment can be slightly complicated because this platform takes a service fee, charges shipping costs as well as the manufacturer’s fee. GST, taxes and VAT are added in some particular orders which has an effect designer’s fees. Basically, you should be alert so you can comprehend all you need to know about your future earnings and we would explore more of that in this Redbubble review. The platform calculates the payments of the designer by making use of a base price as well as a markup price.

What is the base price? This is the price of a product excluding the designer’s margin. It includes both the manufacturing and service fee. The markup percentage, however, is the combination of the base price and designer’s margin that is set at twenty per cent. To calculate the designer’s margin, multiply your base price and markup. If a product possesses a base price of about $125, then your designer’s margin is twenty per cent of $125 that equals to $25. As a result of this, your item’s retail price is $150 while the designer will get $25 because the other amount is for the shipping, manufacturing and service fee. It is worthwhile to note that the platform does not possess any minimum payout threshold so that is not an issue.

Shipping on Redbubble:

One of the most frequently asked questions is how long it takes an item from Redbubble to arrive after being shipped. This platform prints and produces for the buyer so when a customer orders something, it gets produced, printed and then shipped for that particular customer. This is done for every single buyer so it may take a little bit of time. The production and printing can take about one to three days to process. Usually, the time taken depends on the design and the kind of item that is being done. But give or take, it takes three days then the product is shipped to the customer so you don’t have to worry about a Redbubble scam.

The time of shipping is different and it depends on where the item is being shipped from, the kind of shipping that was selected by the customer, and the place where it is being shipped to. All shipped items can be tracked easily through the page called (Where’s my order) on the platform. It gives you well-informed tracking information about your order and makes it easy for clients to find their items no matter where they are in the world. Is Redbubble legit? Continue reading this Redbubble review to learn about the user experience.

Does Redbubble Offer Free Shipping?

This platform does not give customers free shipping, instead, they give you an above standard shipping service that makes your money worth it. Your shipping cost is calculated right on your checkout page, and your clients can include the items to their carts and see how much it would take to ship. Customs, as well as other charges, are usually not added in the overall costs, so it is recommended that you remember that.

What is the User Experience on Redbubble like?

This platform is really straightforward, clear and easy to use so newcomers can get the hang of it without stress. However, the user-friendliness needs a bit of touch up in the deselecting of products as well as uploading designs since it takes a little while to get used to. It is still friendly especially for people who are not really tech-savvy because it used features and icons that are self-explanatory.

What is the Customer Support for Redbubble like?

This platform has a very responsive and capable support team on hand to respond to you within four hours. To contact them, you just need to submit your request on the contact us section of the platform and Redbubble’s team will contact you as soon as possible. When you get in contact, your fear of this question – is Redbubble legit? will definitely be laid to rest. Additionally, the live chat option is available for customers on the site so queries that require immediate answers can be asked through the live chat because it is the fastest option.

You can also contact them via Twitter during weekdays, so if you are on the platform, you can tweet your questions and they’ll answer you by replying to your tweet. They have a big knowledge base that can be found in their help centre. It is useful for designers and customers by giving answers to frequently asked questions which this Redbubble review has tried to answer.

How do you edit and upload your creations on the platform?

You are allowed to add your logos, designs and pictures to Redbubble and then print those custom creations on as many items as you like. From stickers to phone cases, your designs can be printed out on any product that can be found on Redbubble. If you want to upload your creations, you simply need to sign in to the account you’ve created, open your profile icon, which can be found right in the top corner of your screen, then click the option for adding new work, and you will be able to add your work.

With the upload button, you can pick your desired artwork. Once you have uploaded it, you will see various product choices. When you click on enabled, that particular item you have chosen will reflect your artwork.

You have the liberty to pick whatever item you want your art to reflect on. You could pick hoodies, t-shirts etc. You should also pick a name for the artwork, including an eye-catching description as well as some tags so that your clients can easily find your work. After that, click save, and they will be added to your portfolio. When that is done, you can begin to sell your items from the website.

Sites Similar to Redbubble:

• Printify
• Printful

is Redbubble legit?

Of course, it is; there is no Redbubble scam. It is a legal company that prints on-demand and gives excellent services to artists and clients. You have nothing to worry about when using the platform because everything is taken care of.

All you need to do is upload your artwork and pick the items that it should reflect. The manufacturing, as well as shipping, is not your concern because Redbubble takes care of it. It is very secure, and your money is always safe. Timely payments will be made to your account anytime you reach the minimum line in earnings. It doesn’t matter if you are a client seeking a custom-made t-shirt or phone cover; Redbubble has got you covered. To wrap up this Redbubble review, let’s take a closer look at the advantages and disadvantages.

Merits of purchasing items on Redbubble:

Quality of the item: This platform possesses a plethora of items that are created from materials of high quality. The artwork is printed using high-quality ink which is guaranteed to last for a long time.

They guarantee safe transactions: The platform makes use of the latest protocols as well as a 256-bit SSL kind of Encryption which protects your data when you are buying something.

You can get unique designs: Every logo or design that is put on the platform is made by independent artists. Even though designers can make use of their design on a variety of items, your product will certainly possess unique traits.

They print on request: With different kinds of logos and artwork reflecting many products, you can choose your preferred style as a gift or for yourself.

Demerits of purchasing products on Redbubble:

The major disadvantage is that your chosen designs have the tendency to look different when you get them. Shadows, shapes and colours can be changed by a screen, and you may have something you didn’t expect to get. Sometimes, your products can take a while to arrive.

You may have chosen to check out Redbubble after going through this review and answering the pertinent question which says is Redbubble legit? Go on, it shines amidst competitors and you will not be sad you did.

Have you used Redbubble before? If yes, kindly use the create your own review click below to tell us your Redbubble experience.

Fairy Season is a fashion online store based in Hong Kong. It is exclusively an online store, so it does not operate retail outlets. It operates via its website www.fairyseason.com. The website is operated by BestWo International Co. Limited.

True to its name Fairy Season features many season-themed fashion products. On the landing page of the website, you’ll find categories like Thanksgiving Outfits, Christmas Sneak Peak, Halloween Fun, Summer items, Autumn items, and more.

Fairy Season advertises that its “commitment is to provide a wide range of high-quality trendy fashion clothing at stunning factory direct prices, along with a class-leading customer service experience to its worldwide community of customers”.

Fairy Season is an online fashion store based in Hong Kong. Its mission, according to the website, is to provide “a wide selection of high-quality modern fashion clothing at attractive factory direct prices.” That’s a promise of fashionable designs at reasonable rates with excellent quality.

This raises many questions. This first will be whether Fairy Season actually offers trendy fashion clothing. If it does, another question will be whether Fairy Season actually offers its trends at stunningly low prices. If it does, yet another question will be whether the quality of these trendy styles offered at low prices is any good.

And if Fairy Season ticks all those boxes, questions will come up about its service. Does Fairy Season offer top service that we’ll want from an ideal online store (such as easy ordering, fast delivery, easy returns, effective customer service, etc)? In the first place, is Fairy Season legit, or just another scam store?

Yes, Fairy Season is legit. It is not a scam site because they will never steal your money or not send you the item you purchased from the store.

This Fairy Season review will examine FairySeason.com in order to provide the information that will help you answer these questions and more.

Fairy Season review at a glance

• Website: fairyseason.com
• A Hong Kong-based online fashion store
• Offers women’s products (apparel, swimwear, shoes, accessories), men’s apparel and home items
• Features very low, rock-bottom prices
• Ships to about 30 countries of the world
• Free Standard and Expedited shipping is available to every location
• For unwanted items, return requests can be submitted within 7 days of delivery
• Customer support is available via email (service@fairyseason.com)

Is Fairy Season legit?

Fairy Season is legitimate. Given the prevalence of internet fraud, it is wise to determine that an online platform is legit before using it (especially for purchases). Thus, the big question is whether Fairy Season is legit or just another scam store. Given the numerous complaints against Fairy Season, you may find some reviews calling it a scam. However, we’ll not rush to place the “scam” label without an objective look.

Our first objective check of a legit store is legality. This is because online stores that are backed by a 100% legal company are less likely to be a scam. Fairy Season actually ticks this legality box. The website is operated by BestWo International Co. Limited, which is a Hong Kong incorporated Company (CR Number: 2702869). Suffice it to say that, scam stores do not seek company registrations.

Another objective check of a legit online store is industry-wide recognition and the test of time. This is because the scam stores operate in the shadows; also, with time scamming operation is exposed, and with such exposure, the store disappears.

However, Fairy Season actually ticks this recognition box and passes the test of time. Fairy Season is widely known as a low-cost store where fashion items can be gotten at ridiculously low prices. Also, it has been operating for over a decade, which is enough time to be exposed as a scam if it were.

However, the ultimate objective check of a legit online store is fitness for purpose. This is because a legit store will deliver on its mission. In this regard, like a fashion store, you’ll expect Fairy Season to fulfil orders, and with real and functional items. As the complaint section shows, Fairy Season does not leave a lot to be desired in terms of fulfilling orders with satisfactory items.

However, that does not mean that it does not fulfil orders. Actually, you’ll find some customer who did receive their orders and was pleased with them. Thus, Fairy Season does not come out as a scam store that’ll never fulfil orders, or that always delivers worthless items. It comes out as a legit store that is simply plagued with serious problems.

That said, though it has many failings, it is safe to say that Fairy Season is legit. Being 100% legal, having industry-wide recognition, and having over a decade long operating record of fulfilling orders with real products confers on it the legit seal.

Is Fairy Season safe?

Fairy Season is safe. A legit store is not enough; the ideal online store also needs to be safe so that customers’ sensitive data (such as credit card details) will not leak out to unauthorized third parties. To this Fairy Season states “we are 100% committed to protecting the privacy and security of our customers and site visitors… We’ll always keep your data safe and secure”

Though the details of the measures taken to ensure the protection of data are not given, there is nothing to suggest that Fairy Season is not safe. For example, though there are many complaints against Fairy Season on the online platforms, you’ll be hard-pressed to find a complaint about compromised payment card information. Thus, it’s safe to say that Fairy Season is safe.

Products

A store is defined by its products. The ideal online store will feature a wide range of products so that it can be a one-stop shop for a wide range of needs. Such stores are appealing because they save you the time and effort of checking out other stores, and there could also be cost savings from bulk order purchases or from shipping one order instead of shipping multiple orders from different stores.

In this regard, Fairy Season does relatively okay. It focuses on providing women’s clothing; but it throws in some men’s wearables, as well as home and garden items. When shopping in Fairy Season, the product categories that you’ll find, and the items in each category, are as follows:

Fairy Season Tops:

Hoodies and Sweatshirts:

Fairy Season Dresses:

Fairy Season Swimwear:

Fairy Season Shoes:

• Tops – T-Shirts, Blouses, Tanks, Shirts
• Hoodies and Sweatshirts
• Dresses – Mini Dresses, Casual Dresses, Maxi Dresses, Bodycon Dresses, Christmas Dresses
• Swimwear – Bikini Sets, One-Piece, Tankinis, Cover-Ups,
• Shoes –Boots, Flats, Sandals, Heels, Slippers, Sneakers, Wedges,
• Men – T-Shirts, Long Sleeve T-Shirts, Hoodies, Sweatshirt, Sweaters, Long Sleeve Shirts, Long Sleeve Blazers
• Accessories – Socks, Hats, Jewelry (Earrings, Necklaces, Anklets), Sunglasses, Eyebrow Tattoo Pencil, Gloves,
• Home and Garden – Blanket, Aprons, Tableware, Mugs, Hooded Blanket, Decorations, Bath Rug, and more

You’ll find that the accessories of Fairy Season are really striking. For example, you’ll find a host of items to throw into your Halloween costumes like Skull studs earrings, Weird Screw Stud earrings, modern witch hat, and more. You’ll also find a host of fancy items, which include 3D printed casual socks, glowing necklace pendants, and more.

If you like fancy words on the sole of socks, you’ll find many featuring cheeky statements like: “Do not Disturb, I’m playing Fortnite”, “If you can read this, Bring me a glass of wine”, “Mom is taking a break, do not disturb”, and more. Like the accessories, you’ll also find that many of the Home and lifestyle items are also strikingly fanciful.

Pricing and Related Policies

Pricing

Fashion moves at breath-taking speed, such that keeping up with trends can easily be cost-prohibitive. Thus, fashion stores that feature reasonable prices are usually very appealing.

Fairy Season does very well in this regard. Remember that its commitment is to provide a wide range of high-quality trendy fashion clothing at stunning factory direct prices. The latter part of that commitment promises that Fairy Season will feature very friendly prices, and the store really lives up to that promise. In fact, when shopping in Fairy Season, you’ll continuously find prices that are too good to be true.

For example, in the dresses section, you’ll find gorgeous picks for about $15 or less. In fact, there are not too many dresses over $20. You’ll also find tops for around $10. Shoes do not feature the rock bottom prices of apparel. However, they are still priced very low, as these are priced at $20 – $30.

Fairy Season explains that it is able to offer low prices for many reasons which include: having extensive knowledge of vendors and suppliers, buying large quantities directly from suppliers, having very few middlemen, having invested in a cost-effective distribution system, and is optimized for cost control at every level to minimize overheads.

However, unlike other stores with a commitment to low pricing, Fairy Season does not offer price adjustment or price matching. The former means reimbursing you the balance if the price of a purchased item falls within a specified time after your purchase, while the latter means giving you its item at a price lower than it is listed if the item can be found elsewhere at the lower price.

Promotions

Another thing to like about Fairy Season is that it runs many promotions, so you can actually score very good deals. Like every promotion generous store, at the time of writing this review, its homepage advertised a lot of price slashing offers.

There was a “Halloween Fun” promo which promised $8 off orders over $69, $15 off orders over $129, and $30 off orders over $199; there was a “Stripe and Plaid” promo which promised $8 off orders over $65; there was another which we couldn’t quite make out which promised $5 off orders over $49; and many more.

Like in every online fashion store, these promotions are time-specific and only run for a limited time. Thus, you’ll need to keep checking the store to know what promo is running at any one time. Alternatively, you can subscribe for its email alert, and you’ll not miss out on promos. Even that is incentivized, as you’re rewarded with a 5% off coupon for subscribing.

Payment Methods

You’ll want to find a range of convenient payment methods so that paying for your order will be without hassles. In this regard, Fairy Season does not blow us away with a range of payment methods, but it supports generic options that you conveniently use from any of the supported countries. This includes PayPal and popular credit cards like Visa, Discover, and Mastercard.

Shipping

After placing your order, it’ll have to be moved from the fulfilment centre of the store to your shipping address. Thus, shipping is an important consideration in online purchases. The most important shipping considerations are shipping destination, delivery times, and shipping cost.

Shipping Destinations:

Except for online store ships to your location, receiving delivery of orders from it may be difficult. Thus, in terms of shipping destination, you’ll want a store to ship to many countries of the world so that your location is more likely to be served.

Fairy Season does not soar high in this regard. This is because only about 30 countries are available in its delivery service. These countries include Australia, Austria, Canada, Croatia, Czech Republic, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Ireland, Italy, Latvia, Malta, Netherlands, New Zealand, Norway, Poland, Portugal, Puerto Rico, Russian Federation, Slovenia, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, United Kingdom, and the United States.

Delivery Times

After placing an order, you’ll not want it to take forever before it is delivered. Thus, the ideal online store should feature fast delivery.

Usually, delivery time is made up of order processing times and shipping time. The former (order processing time) is how long it takes from when an order is placed to when it ships; while the latter (shipping time) is how long it takes from when an order ships to when it gets to the shipping address of the buyer.

Fairy Season advertises that the processing time varies depending on the product, but that its average processing time is 4 business days. However, sometimes order processing can take 5- 10 business days; especially when there are stock availability issues.

In terms of shipping times, Fairy Season offers two shipping options – Standard Shipping and Expedited Shipping. The shipping time for any purchased item will depend on which of these two options is selected, as well as the destination country.

For Standard Shipping: US orders take 10 – 12 business days; Canada orders take 10 – 15 business days; UK orders take 4 – 7 business days; Australia orders take 6 – 10 business days; while orders shipping to every other country takes 10 – 2- business days.

For Expedited Shipping: orders shipping to the US, the UK, Canada, France, Spain, Germany, Italy, Portugal, Poland, Norway and Finland take 3 – 7 business days; orders shipping to Australia take 6 – 10 business days; while orders shipping to every other country takes 8 – 15 business days.

Taking processing time and shipping time, and factoring in some lax for unforeseen occurrences, Fairy Season says that you should contact them if you do not receive delivery of Standard orders within 25 – 30 business days or your Expedited orders within 8 – 15 business days.

Order tracking is available. The tracking number will be received in the order confirmation email. However, one thing we didn’t like (with tracking orders in Fairy Season) is that the tracking number may take 1 – 3 days (from the shipping date) to become active.

Shipping Cost

You’ll want a store that features low shipping costs. This is because the total cost is inclusive of shipping cost; such high shipping costs can make even items that are acceptably priced too expensive to acquire.

In Fairy Season, shipping cost varies depending on: the shipping method selected (whether Standard shipping or Expedited shipping); the destination the order is shipping to; the number of items in the order, and their weight and size. The shipping cost is automatically determined during checkout. However, you’ll find that Standard Shipping starts at $4.99, while Expedited Shipping starts at $9.99.

Interestingly, Fairy Season offers free shipping; and to every location, it ships. Also, unlike most fashion stores whose free shipping offer is only available on the relatively slower Standard Shipping, Fairy Season’s free shipping offer is available on both Standard Shipping and Expedited Shipping.

However, the minimum order requirements apply. Interestingly, these are relatively low, so you won’t be pressured to spend over the top in chase of free shipping. All orders over $69 are available for free Standard Shipping, while all orders over $119 are available for free Expedited shipping.

Return Policy

There are times when customers are less than satisfied with an online purchase. Since throwing your money at items that’ll be worthless to you is close to being ripped off, the legit online store will allow you to return unwanted items for a replacement or refund. Thankfully, Fairy Season allows returns.

Return Process

You won’t want to add the annoyance of a frustrating return process to that of being delivered an unwanted item. Thus, you’ll want a hassle-free return process.

In this regard, Fairy Season is like many other sites that must approve any return. That is, if you receive an item that you are totally not satisfied with, you’ll have to first contact its Customer Service via email. This must be done within 7 days of receiving the product. In the e-mail, you’ll have to state your claim and include pictures supporting your claim.

It is only when the Customer Support team gives approval for the Return that you can then proceed to package the unwanted item and ship it back to them. The return shipping address will be provided in the Returns Approval communication, along with shipping instructions.

Eligible Return

Not every item can be returned back to Fairy Season. This includes bodysuits, lingerie, sleepwear, swimwear, jewellery, and accessories.

It should be noted, that this is not peculiar to Fairy Season. The online store generally puts restrictions on some of these items for health and hygiene reasons. However, the blanket no-no on the returns of these items by Fairy Season may come out as unfriendly. This is because there are some stores that will accept the return of these items as long as their hygiene strip is not broken.

That said; items that are eligible for returns will only be accepted back by Fairy Season if they meet certain conditions. They must be in the condition they were when delivered to you – unused, unwashed, undamaged, and unaltered; they must also be returned in their original packaging.

Cost of Return

You’ll not want a situation where you receive an item that you’ll rather return, but are forced to keep it because of the prohibitive cost of making the returns. Thus, you’ll want the return cost to be as low as possible.

The lowest possible return cost is zero; that is the free return shipping. However, Fairy Season does not offer free return shipping. While the store will gladly take back an unwanted item, customers will bear the cost of shipping back the item.

However, because the return address is in China, customers will find that it’s relatively expensive to return a Fairy Season item. The store even acknowledges this in one of its Return FAQs, stating that “if you send back an item, you will be subject to a shipping fee that may cost more than the product itself”.

Return Processing and Refund

After returning an unwanted item, you definitely will not want to wait forever to receive your refunds. Thus, the ideal legit online store should process returned items and issue refunds as fast as possible.

In this regard, FairySeason advertises that it processes Returns within 7 days of the receipt of the item. The refunds are dispatched immediately. However, it’ll take your financial institution some time to do their own thing and for the funds to be reflected in your account. This will be 3 – 7 business days depending on your bank or card issuers.

If Fairy Season delivers on these times, it’ll be considered relatively fast in issuing refunds. This is because there are stores that take relatively more time to process returns and issue refunds. However, as we’ll see in the complaint section of this review, the Fairy Season does not quite live up to these relatively fast refund times.

Customer Support

Murphy’s Law reminds us that no matter the system, something will go wrong. Thus, in online stores, there’ll always be customers who’ll have issues with their orders. Others will have questions to which they need answers. Thus, the ideal online store will have an effective customer support service for handling customers’ questions and complaints.

In this regard, Fairy Season supports the usual self-help channels and direct contact channels. In the self-help corner, there’s a shopping FAQ, which provides answers to many of the questions that people have asked in the past. To aid navigation, these self-help articles are well categorized as follows: Order Issues; Payment, Promos and Coupons; Delivery; Returns and Refunds; Product and Stock; and Technical.

For direct contact; the primary channels are email (using service@fairyseason.com) and Facebook (from the page www.facebook.com/fairysesoncom). Fairy Season promises that it’ll respond to a submission within 48 hours. However, a telephone number is also supplied (0086-17318077672); and a postal address is supplied (RM 1409 BLK C 14/F TAK WIN IND BLDG 3 TSUN WEN RD TUEN MUN NT HONG KONG).

Complaints

True, there’s hardly a company that you’ll not find one or two complaints against. However, complaints should not overrun the legit online stores. That is, the complaints should be few and far in between to come as one-offs or weird coincidences.

However, in the top customers’ review platforms like Trustpilot and Sitejabber, there are numerous complaints about FairySeasons that they come out as anything but one-offs or coincidences. For example, in Trustpilot, FairySeason is rated 3.0 out of 5.0 (by 1,253 reviewers), and in Sitejabber, it is rated 2.5 out of 5.0 (by 1,840 reviewers). Some of the complaints you’ll find include late delivery, poor quality, difficulty with making returns, poor customer service, and more.

Late Delivery

One complaint that you’ll find about China-based stores is late delivery. Unfortunately, this complaint can also be found in the Hong Kong-based Fairy Season.

For example, in Trust Pilot:

• Marta V started with “Worst shopping experience ever”. The review continued that “I bought several T-Shirts, but I’ve never received them! After a month of waiting, I contacted them and they only asked me if my address was correct…”
• Kalyn Marie started with “Terrible Company”. The review continued that “I made an order on September 1^st and paid for fast shipping. It’s currently September 15^th and I still have yet to see my order. I messaged them on Facebook a week ago and they sent me my tracking number which has yet to leave the location that it originally told me…”
• Brooke says “…with me reaching out I came to find that one of [my orders] was out of stock; and so a simple order on a shirt will take over a month to get when I was promised 8 – 12 days and paid for 8 – 12 days”

There were an alarming number of complaints of late delivery that comes out not as a small glitch but as a real problem. Another significant thing to note is that, in most of the reviews, it is mentioned that FairySeason responded that delivery was delayed because the item was out of stock. That raises the question of why the item continues to be shown as available on the website.

That said; when ordering from FairySeason, it’s very likely that your item will be late in coming. Thus, it’s safe to say that you should not order from Fairy Season when you are in a rush.

Poor Quality

Most often than not, fashion stores that feature low pricing are plagued with quality issues. Unfortunately, it seems that FairySeason (which also features low pricing) is not immune from the poor quality brouhaha. In the independent customers’ review platforms like Trustpilot.com and Sitejabber.com, FairySeason is not highly rated.

There are many negative reviews; with poor quality significantly jumping out at you. These reviews citing poor quality ranged from items different from pictured to items made from poor quality materials.

In Trustpilot, some of the many reviews citing poor quality include:

• Lena started with “Clothes are not what I expected”. The review continued “very low quality. I can find better at Walmart”
• Candace Sealey started with “Do not order from this company”. The review continued “Not only are the items completely different than pictured but…”
• Marla Geiger Kitzan started with “Not even the same shirt”. The review continued “Ordered the cute sunflower shirt pictured on the Facebook page and received an ugly cheap shirt that doesn’t look anything like the photo”
• Linnea says “I ordered four blankets and was shocked at the quality when I received them. They are thin T-shirt material…”
• Kacy Turpin started with “Don’t even think about buying from here”. The review continued “I bought a few tops and a dress here. All cheap material and very small… How different they really are from the pictures”
• Myra started with “Worthless”. The review continued “I got my order, and out of 6 items one is acceptable… The material of the tank tops is CRAP”

In Sitejabber, some of the many reviews citing poor quality include:

• Kacy T started with “Cheap and refuses returns”. The review continued “I ordered 5 pieces from Fairy Season and when I received them, they were the cheapest of materials and very small… Their clothes are polyester and not the quality of how they look in the pictures”
• Amy S started with “Terrible”. The review continued “Clothes look nothing like the pictures and they are junky”
• Alisha P says “Horrible product and company. They sent a junk pair of shoes that were $35 and worth $2. They look nothing like the pictures. 100% misrepresentation”

Granted, there are some reviews of customers satisfied with the quality of their orders. However, the sheer volume of reviews mentioning poor quality makes “poor quality” comes out as a real problem. Thus, FairySeason comes out as one of those “Buyer Beware” stores. When your order arrives, there’s a real chance that it’ll feature poor quality.

The difficulty of making returns

Given the many poor quality reviews, it is not surprising that the company will receive a lot of requests for returns. However, while FairySeason advertises that it is happy to accept back any unwanted item, there are many complaints featuring customers having to struggle to make Fairy Season approve returns.

For example:

• R.C in Trustpilot says “The company’s return policy is bogus. I tried returning three items because the quality was poor and didn’t follow the size chart on the website. Their suggestion was to give it to a friend; instead of allowing me to return the items and get my full refund”
• Robert James in Trustpilot says “The XXL shirt they sent fits like large. When I told them about my issue, they told me to give it to a friend and buy a different size!!”
• Remember Linnea in Trustpilot who received four blankets with “thin t-shirt materials”. The review continued that “then I tried to get in contact with them only to be ignored”
• Remember Myra in Trustpilot who said, “the material of the tank tops is CRAP”. The review continued that “I had to open the individual bags to try the garbage on. So since I opened it, I can’t return it. Your company ripped me off…”
• Kimberly P in Sitejabber received a dress that was “a different colour than the picture online, very cheap material, had no tags and came with no packing slip” After requesting a return and sending the required pictures, “the customer person told me it looked nice and that I should consider keeping it. Then he told me they won’t take it back because shipping to China would cost them something like $35. He asked if I would accept $3.00 to keep it. I referenced the “money-back guarantee”, but he didn’t respond. Instead, a different person contacted me to see if I would take $10 to keep it. I haven’t heard from them since I refused that”

It should be said that this “difficulty of returns” is one reason why some online reviewers write off FairySeason as a scam. If an unwanted item is received, but one is able to return it and get refunded, one will not feel ripped off; but the difficulty with returns makes some customers feel ripped off.

Poor Customer Service

Another complaint you’ll find is that of “poor customer service”. Though, FairySeason promises a relatively okay response time of 48 hours; many of the complaints feature either no response to support submissions or a very long response time.

In our opinion, not responding to support submission is a basic Customer Support failure. In other reviews, though Customer Support responded, the responses were largely unhelpful.

For example, in two of the comments above in the “difficulty of return” section, instead of approving the return, the Support personnel suggested that the unwanted item be given to a friend. In our opinion, that is poor customer support service.

Pros:

• Offers a relatively wide range of products that includes women’s apparel, fashion accessories, swimwear and shoes, as well as a collection of men’s clothing and home items
• Offers rock bottom prices
• Runs a lot of promotions that further slash prices
• Offers convenient payments via PayPal and popular credit cards (Visa, Discover Card, and Mastercard)
• Free shipping is offered on both standard and Expedited Shipping and to every location
• The minimum order requirement for free shipping is relatively low
• Various support channels (Email, Facebook, and Telephone)

Cons:

• Ships to only 30 countries
• Delivery is frequently late, with stock unavailability cited as a reason
• Most often than not, the quality of products is poor
• Too many complaints of the company not approving Returns requests
• Too many complaints of not getting refunds

Conclusion

FairySeason is a legitimate Hong Kong-based online fashion store. As its name suggests you’ll find many season-themed fashion products; ranging from Christmas apparel to Halloween accessories, and more. It’s a relatively wide range of fashion products includes women’s dresses, tops, swimwear, and shoes, as well as a few men’s products and home items.

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FairySeason says that its commitment is to offer quality trendy fashion clothing at stunning factory direct prices. It sure lives up to the latter part of that commitment. You’ll find rock bottom prices in the store (think of gorgeous dresses for about $10, or exquisite tops for about $5.00).

FairySeason also runs regular promotions which further floor the prices of items. Fairy Season also does well on the shipping front. It offers free standard and expedited shipping to every location, and the minimum order requirement is relatively low.

One bump on the shipping road is that Fairy Season ships to only about 30 countries, so its product is not available to customers across the globe. Also, most often than not, delivery is usually late.

However, shipping issues are not the only bumps on the road. Fairy Season says it is committed to offering quality trendy fashion clothing; however, there are many complaints that its products feature poor quality. Worst still, reviews show that getting refund request approved and getting refunded is more difficult than customers will want.

Thus, when buying from Fairy Season, there’s no doubt that you’ll find top styles at ridiculously low prices. However, chances are high that you may have to wait longer than expected for the delivery; chances are also high that when your order is delivered, you’ll find the quality to be poor; and chances are also high that you’ll be unable to return it and get refunded.