Zappos is an online fashion store for both males and females. It specializes in providing shoes and clothing as well as accessories for everyone. The birth of Zappos began with an unsuccessful shoe buying experience. The founder Nick Swinmurn couldn’t get what he wanted both in brick and mortar stores and online.
Some stores will have the right style but not the right colour, and others will have the right colour but not the right style. So Nick decided on starting an online store that specializes in shoes, which will offer a variety of brands, styles, colours, sizes, and widths of shoes.
The site launched in 1999 with the name “Shoesite.com”. That name alone said everything about what the site offered – Shoes. It was in July of that year that their name was changed from ShoeSite to Zappos. However, the new name still screamed shoes because Zappos was simply derived from “Zapatos”, the Spanish word for Shoes.
That Zappos quickly made a name for themselves in the shoe business is an understatement. In just one year, they earned over $1.5 million in gross sales; and the following year, they earned over $8.5 million in sales.
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In 2007, Zappos made the decision to expand by including clothing, accessories and kids’ merchandise in their inventory. A year before the expansion, Zappos had earned over $840 million in gross sales, and the expansion was billed to bring in an additional $1 billion in revenue. Amazon (the retail giant) completed the takeover of Zappos in 2009, and Zappos has operated since as a subsidiary of Amazon.
Zappos draws items from over 1200 brands which include popular brands like Adidas, Aerosoles, Calvin Klein, Converse, Dolce and Gabbana, Frye, Gucci, Lacoste, Nautica, Reebok, Saint Laurent, and Versace.
If you’re a shoe lover, then you know that Zappos is the holy grail of online shoe shopping. With an unbeatable selection of brands and styles, Zappos is the go-to source for footwear fashionistas everywhere. But what’s the verdict on Zappos? Are they really as good as they seem? Today, we’ll be taking a closer look at this online powerhouse to find out if their shoes are really worth the hype. Stay tuned!
Zappos is from Zapatos, which means shoes in Spanish. This tells you that this store stocks footwear of all kinds – even if it doesn’t specifically say so on the site! The company started as a shoe retailer and has continued to focus exclusively on them for many years now although they’ve expanded their inventory over time too- along with other items like clothing or accessories (though we still think most people know us best by our awesome deals).
Yes, Zappos is legit. And it is not a scam because they will never take your money without shipping your ordered products to you. Zappos is owned by Amazon.com which is a reputable and number one destination for online shoppers.
So, saying that Zappos is a scam is like saying that amazon.com is a scam.
“Who doesn’t want to live and deliver wow? Well, if you’re going with your hard-earned money on any product then I’d say it’s important that whatever gets delivered meets expectations. We’ll find out soon enough whether Zappos can really do this or not because they have launched their latest campaign: Living & Delivering WOW!”
But does Zappos offer quality materials?
If they do have the product; what about the service? Do they offer easy ordering and payment systems, fast delivery, easy return process, effective customer service, and the other services that you’ll expect of an ideal store? In the first place, is Zappos material genuine?
This Zappos review will examine Zappos in order to provide the information that will help you answer these questions and more.
Yes, Zappos is a legitimate fashion store. It is not a scam because they are owned by Amazon which is a world reputable company.
The best shoe store in the world is right here! You can get your favourite shoes, clothing and accessories with free shipping at Zappos. They are owned by Amazon which means you know they’ll be safe to purchase from because of how reputable it already has been as an online shopping destination for years now- no matter when this new business started back up or what kind of technology breakthroughs took place during its lifetime so far.
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They have been online and selling high-quality products for a very long time without a problem. According to our findings, while writing this review, Zappos have a very good number of positive feedback from its customers, which is a number feature of a legitimate fashion store.
There really should be no asking why you must do transactions in only legit platforms. There are just too many fraudsters in cyberspace, and every day they rip off unsuspecting persons using scam stores designed to lure customers into paying for non-existent goods that will not be delivered.
There are many ways to determine the legitimacy of a store. The first is legality; that is, being recognized and permitted to operate by legal jurisdiction. In this regard, there is no doubt that Zappos is legal. The website is operated by Zappos IP LLC, which is a company duly registered in the US, with headquarters in Las Vegas.
Suffice it to say that Scam stores do not seek any form of company registration. That Zappos is now owned by Amazon also lends a voice to its legitimacy talks. This is because stores that are backed by heavyweights are less likely to disappear.
Another way of determining the legitimacy of a store is the fulfilment of orders – legit stores fulfil orders while scam stores do not. Zappos ticks every box. First, they have a physical presence (warehouse and fulfilment centre) with millions of merchandise which means they have the capacity to fulfil orders.
Remember that scam stores do not fulfil orders because the merchandise is non-existent. Secondly, their almost 20 years of existence and over $1 billion turnovers show that the store does fulfil orders. Suffice it to say that no store can operate for years collecting customer’s payments and not delivering their orders.
Another way of determining a store’s legitimacy is checking for its reputation amongst the industry watchers. In this regard, Zappos has, on a number of occasions, been listed on the Fortune Magazine’s list of “100 Best Companies to Work For”, even boasting a top ten finish in 2010 when they featured in the sixth position. Suffice it to say that industry watchers call out scam stores, so no scam store will gain the recognition of an A-list magazine such as the Fortune Magazine.
Since Zappos is 100% legal, has a record of fulfilling orders, and has the endorsement of industry watchers, there’s no doubt that the store is legit. If you do not like Zappos, you may try out its alternatives: Bellelily.com and Asos.com.
Zappos are also safe. It is not enough that a store is legit; a store should also be safe. A safe store is one that protects whatever information customers share with it. While a legit store will not rip you off; if it isn’t safe, sensitive information (such as credit card details and personal data) will be captured by fraudsters.
And with such information as credit card details in the hands of cyber fraudsters, ripping you off is guaranteed.
In terms of data security; Zappos says what almost all fashion stores say, that they “incorporate physical, electronic, and administrative procedures to safeguard the confidentiality of your personal information”. Administratively, they restrict access to personal information, reducing the likelihood of such data being compromised.
Another measure (technical) used is SSL (Secure Sockets Layer). SSL is the industry standard for creating a private connection between devices and their web servers, such that any data transmitted when using the website is shielded from unauthorized third parties. SSL also uses encryption which ensures that even if the data is captured, it cannot be read by the hackers.
With these measures, it’s safe to say that Zappos is safe. However, it should be said complete security is not something that exists anywhere whether online or offline. Stores can only use the best methods to prevent breaches and react quickly if a breach does occur. That said; Zappos is one of few online stores that have suffered a data breach. The breach which occurred in the early part of 2012 compromised the personal information (but not credit card details) of some 24 million customers.
The products offered by a store make the store. So when checking stores, some important product elements worth considering include product range, inventory size and product quality.
You want a store that holds a variety of products. This does not mean that the store should be a hold-it-all. The ideal store will have a niche and focus on making different products within that niche available. That way the store will be a one-stop-shop for getting all items within the niche.
A one-stop shop where you can get all your related products provides a lot of advantages which include saving you the hassle of checking other stores for some items; and cost savings from bulk purchase discounts or paying to ship one order from the store as against paying to ship different orders from multiple stores.
Zappos provides fashion pieces for the whole family – women, men, and kids. They are better known for being a shoe shop; because they started by selling shoes, and the shoe business still makes up the bulk of their business. However, they are now a full-blown fashion retailer and offer all fashion products from clothing to fashion accessories, and to home items.
When shopping on the website, you’ll find that items are separated into three categories: women, men, and kids. In each category, you’ll find different product types; and in each product section, you’ll find the different styles offered. The different product categories (and the items you’ll find in each) are as follows:
Women
Bags and Handbags – Handbags (Crossbody, Totes, Clutches, Hobo bags, Shoulder bags, Bucket bags and more), Backpacks, Wallets (Bi-folds, Tri-folds, Checkbook Wallet, Coin and card cases, money clips), Satchels, Duffel bags, Travel and Luggage, Laptop bags, Messenger bags, Hydration bags, Fanny bags, Diaper bags
Accessories – Jewelry (Necklaces, Bracelets, Rings, Earrings, Watches), Scarves, Gloves, Hosiery, Belts, Socks, Watches, Bags and Wallets, Tech Accessories, Stationery and Desk Accessories, Drinkware, Bedding and Blankets, Beach Towels, Hats (Beanies, Baseball Caps, Floppy Hats and Cloches, Earmuffs and Headbands, Trapper and Winter Hats, Balaclava and Face Masks), Eyewear (Sunglasses, Reading glasses, Goggles)
Men
Kids
You may also choose to shop by department, where you’ll see products listed by occasion such as Athletic, Outdoor, Luxury, Yoga, Wedding and more. You may also shop by brand; and if you want to cheap on the low, there’s the sales page. In each product section, you may also shop from the petite collection or plus-size collection.
We like stores with a large inventory of each product type, as this ensures that no matter what product you’re purchasing from the store, you’ll have a large selection to choose from. Making a choice from a big pool means that you’ll be more likely to find what matches your taste and budget. Thus, the ideal store should have a range of products, and also a large inventory of each product type.
Zappos ticks the box in this regard. As this is primarily a shoe shop, let’s start with their shoe section. At the time of writing this review; Zappos had over 35,000 items in the women’s shoe section. This included over 7,300 boots, over 7,750 heels, and over 2,200 flats. The men’s shoe section was also impressive. Men’s oxfords were over 2,350, Sneakers and Athletic shoes were over 9,350, and boots were over 4,350. Also, there were over 7,500 girls’ shoes and over 5,400 boys’ shoes in the kids’ category. It can be seen that Zappos is well stocked in the shoe section.
In the clothing section, Zappos does admirably well, given that clothing is not its primary business. In the women’s clothing section, they had over 4,250 styles of dresses, over 7,700 styles of tops, and over 3,000 styles of coats and outerwear. In the men’s clothing section, they had over 7,000 shirts and tops, over 1,900 pants, and over 1,150 Hoodies and Sweatshirts. This also shows that Zappos is also well-stocked in the clothing section.
With thousands of items to choose from in every product section, you’ll be sure to find something that you like and that fits your budget.
Having a range of products and a large inventory of each product type is very important, but having quality products is even more important. You want the products in a store to be top-drawer quality so that you won’t have quality issues with any item(s) you order from the store.
Zappos ticks the box in this regard because they do not offer brands’ seconds, first-rate items from the brands. You’ll find top-quality shoes and clothing pieces made well, and from the best materials. The hallmark of quality is durability, and you’ll find many reviews on independent platforms of customers satisfied that Zappos pieces are long-lasting.
The price of items in a store is one of the most important considerations when looking at a store. This is because you will not want to buy from stores whose prices are unreasonably high. Thus, the ideal store will be one that gives value. That is, quality items, at low and affordable prices
In this regard, Zappos comes out as so-so. Comparing their prices with other stores; you’ll find that while Zappos items are reasonably priced, their prices might not be the best in the market. For example, we found that most of their women’s boots started at $64.94 and ranged to $278.
Also, many of the heels went for $74.95 – $265, though there were some that pushed to get into four figures. Flats started at $55and spilt into the low hundreds. For men’s shoes, you’ll need at least $100 to get an oxford, while some pieces will cost you as much as $620 – $780. But the bulk of men’s sneakers and athletic shoes ranged from $60 to $200.
For the clothing, we found women’s dress styles starting from $39.95; though some were as expensive as $595 – $795, you’ll find thousands of styles under $100 and just over $100. You’ll also find women’s Tops starting at $21.95 (especially the Tees), while you’ll need about $60 and more for blouses. For men’s clothing, most of the tops were available at $20 – $50; pants start at about $35, while almost all were under $100.
That said; it’s safe to say that Zappos items are affordable. For certain items, you’ll find really low prices. However, if shopping-cheap is the first concern, you may find lower prices for similar items elsewhere.
You want a store with a lot of cost-saving opportunities. Promotions give you these, as it allows you to get items for free or for less than the items’ full prices. Thus, the ideal store will run a lot of promotions.
Zappos does run promotions. Most of the promotions are time-specific, so you’ll have to keep checking their website (or sign up for their newsletter) to know what promotion is running at any particular time. However, it must be said that while Zappos does run promotions, the company did not appear to us as one that’s very generous with promotional offers.
You don’t want to have a headache when paying for your orders, so you want a hassle-free payment process that starts with a range of payment methods.
In Zappos, you can pay for your order using credit and debit cards. They accept only Master Card, Visa, Discover, and American Express. This is not the long list of payment options we’ll want. For example, there is no support for PayPal or any of the web wallets. However, since this is a US-facing store, with the supported card options, you’ll be able to make payment for your order anywhere in the US.
Online purchases differ from purchases from brick and mortar stores in that you do not simply walk out of the store with your package. Rather, the package will have to be shipped to your door, or wherever else you’ll receive it. As such, one of the most important considerations in online purchases is the shipping policy of the store, especially the shipping destinations, shipping times, and shipping costs.
You’ll want to check the locations that the shop ships to. If the store does not ship to where you are resident, it will be difficult to receive delivery of your order. Thus, you’ll want an online store to ship to many locations across the globe so that your location will more likely be served.
In this regard, Zappos is a US-facing. That is, they serve only the US market; they do not ship internationally. Thus, except if you are resident in the US, or in any of the US territories, Zappos will not ship you an order.
You do not want to wait forever to receive the delivery of your package. Thus, you’ll want a store with fast delivery. In the same vein, you do not want to pay over the top to ship your package. This is because shipping charges are added to the total spend on an item, and when the shipping charges are too high, the total amount of obtaining the item may be deemed too high. Thus, you’ll want a store with shipping costs that are as low as possible.
Zappos has three shipping options – Standard shipping, 2 business days shipping, and 1- business day shipping. The Standard Shipping takes 4 – 5 business days and is free for all orders.
As their name suggests the 2 business days option will deliver your package two days following order placement, while the 1 business day option will deliver the package the very next business day following order placement. The former cost $15 per order, while the latter cost $25 per order. However, this expedited shipping is not available for orders going to Hawaii, Alaska, US Territories, P.O. Boxes, or Military APO/ FPO addresses.
It should be said that Zappos has some of the highest ratings for a store’s shipping. First, they offer free shipping; also, there is no minimum purchase requirement. Most often, we see that shops that offer free shipping will require your order to be up to a particular amount to qualify for free shipping. However, Zappos gives all orders free standard shipping.
Another good thing about their shipping policy is that where free shipping is not applicable (for the expedited shipping) they charge flat shipping rates. With flat rates, what you pay for shipping will not increase with an increase in the weight or size of your order.
The only left thing to say about Zappos shipping is that the cost of their expedited shipping may be higher than some other stores. For example, you’ll definitely find a lot of stores offering Next Day (1 business day) delivery for less than the $25 that it is offered in Zappos.
However, many people do not have to pay for expedited shipping in this store because Zappos go far and beyond to deliver quickly. That is, though their advertised standard shipping time is 4 – 5 days, customers typically report receiving their packages in less time, sometimes even the very next day. Think of expecting selecting the standard shipping option, and expecting your package to be delivered to your door in 5 days, but only for it to be delivered 1 or 2 days following order placement.
Mostly because online purchases are characterized by blind purchases where you do not get to physically assess the item before you pay for it, there’s the possibility of not being satisfied with the item when it is delivered. Also, fashion items are sized items, which means a wrong fit may be ordered.
Thus, it’ll be criminal for an online fashion store not to allow returns; as that will leave you with an item that you do not like and/ or cannot use. The ideal online store is one that allows you to return any item that you are not totally satisfied with, and that’ll give you a refund or another item in exchange for the one you returned.
Thankfully, Zappos allows returns. In fact, one of the strongest points of Zappos is its return policy.
Typically, fashion stores only accept the returned item if it is returned within a time period from the date of delivery. Thus, you’ll want an extended period so that you’ll not have to race against time when making your returns.
In this regard, Zappos beats the chasing pack by miles. While the industry average for returns windows is about 30 days, Zappos allows up to a year. If you do not like any item in your order, there’ll be no rush whatever to beat the deadline when returning it to the store, because you have a whole year to do that.
You don’t want the return process to be cumbersome. Thus, the ideal store will offer a hassle-free return process. Zappos ticks the box in this regard.
To return an item, you’ll only need to log into your account, find your order, select the items you wish to return, state why you’re returning the item (using the dropdown menu provided), and choose how you’ll want to receive the return label (print or email).
The whole process is easy and straightforward. We liked that you can simply select an option from a dropdown menu when stating reasons for the return instead of having to write texts. However, the simplest process will eliminate this field (asking for reasons for returning items) entirely.
It is also our opinion that the simplest process will eliminate having to print a returns label by including a returns label in your package. In that case, returning the item will simply entail affixing the label on your return package. However, this is not to take anything away from the simplicity of the return process of Zappos.
One of the complaints against fashion retailers is the high cost of returns. In some, you’ll pay a return shipping cost; while some will even charge a restocking fee. It becomes problematic when these return charges are significantly high because such could lead customers to hold onto an item(s) that they’ll rather return. Thus, you’ll want the cost of returns that are as low as possible.
That is exactly what Zappos provides – the lowest possible cost of returns. That’s not $1.00, but $0.00; that is, free returns. Nothing will be deducted from your refund as the cost of the return label.
Items to be returned must be in certain conditions to be accepted by Zappos. It does not matter that they give an extended one year period for returns; all returned items must be in the same conditions they were in when delivered to you. That is, items must be unworn, unwashed and unaltered.
Also, items must have all tags intact and must be returned in the original packaging. The last one is very important, as items not returned with original packaging may not be accepted.
You do not want to wait forever after returning an item before you’ll get your refund. Thus, you want a store with fast return and refund processing.
Zappos also does okay in this regard. After receiving the returned item in their fulfilment centre, it takes the store 5 – 10 business days to process it and issue the refund to your credit card. Then depending on the financial institution, it’ll take additional 2 – 10 days for the bank to reflect the funds in your statement.
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The 2 weeks returns processing time of Zappos means that they’re among the fastest in issuing refunds; however, this is a time that they can still improve upon.
How many times have you heard the statement that customer support makes or mars an organization? This cannot be truer, as some of the most scathing reviews of online stores have been directed at their customer support service.
Some customers will have questions about a store and its service, while others will have issues with orders; thus, it’s important for a store to have an effective customer support service for addressing customers’ questions or complaints.
Once again, Zappos ticks the box in this regard. First, they provide a lot of options for getting help. The first stop for getting help on online platforms is usually an FAQ page. Zappos provides this; and it holds articles that’ll answer most of the questions you may have, especially about ordering, managing your account, shipping, and returns. If you’ll rather contact a customer rep of the company; they provide all the popular contact channels, which include an email service, a telephone service, and live chat.
For the email service, you can send your email submissions via the site. Zappos promises to respond to emails as quickly as possible. However, if you’ll rather have an instant response, you may use the live chat feature or the telephone service.
For the live chat, you’ll almost always find an agent online, and the service is available 24/ 7. The telephone service can be used both for calls and texts. The call service is available round the clock, but the text service is active only between 6 am – 11 pm (PST).
It should be said that having many options for getting help is always a good thing; thus, it scores points for Zappos that they support a wide range of support options. Another important thing in customer support is responsiveness, which is the time between your submission and receiving a response. Zappos is highly rated in this aspect because they respond very quickly to customers’ enquiries and complaints.
Though, Zappos does not give an estimate of its response time; independent online reviews show that customers are largely satisfied with the response time Zappos customer support service. You can expect to get a response within an hour, or within a few hours after your submission.
By far the most important measuring stick of a customer’s support system is the helpfulness of the response received. In customer reviews online, you’ll find significantly more customers satisfied with the service provided by the customer support department than customers who’re not satisfied.
That said; by supporting a range of contact channels, offering 24/ 7 support, affording quick response, and furnishing really helpful support, it’s safe to say that Zappos has an effective customer support service.
Zappos is a legit and safe online fashion store for the whole family – women, men and kids. They’re better known as a shoe store, but they also offer clothing and fashion accessories.
Zappos is owned by Amazon (the retail giant); however, they are not just living off their parent company. Zappos operate as an independent subsidiary and has shown to be a giant in its own right. Though their shoe shop accounts for the bulk of their business; they hold a wide product range (that includes different clothing items and accessories), as well as an extensive inventory of each product. This is because they draw items from different brands in the business.
Apart from having the product, Zappos also offers prices that are affordable; and they also have the service to boot. Zappos not only offers free standard shipping, but they offer the very fastest shipping service we’ve seen amongst retailers; the only dent is that they ship to only the US.
Also, with a 365-days window to return any item, an easy return process, and with no charges (free returns), Zappos boast of one of if not the very best returns service in the fashion retailing business. And to cap it all, if you need to contact customer support, you’ll find: many channels to do so, including a 24/ 7 support service, a service that responds speedily, and whose responses are helpful.
There are few if any reasons why you shouldn’t go to Zappos if you want to get your shoes, clothing and accessories online.
Have you made a purchase on Zappos before? How was the item you ordered, and what is good or bad? Kindly use the review section below to give us your Zappos review.
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If you want quality shoes then Zappos is the best. I love the store and will continue buying from them.
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I love shopping at Zappos. The site is easy to use with great specs, sizing, product details and multiple images and/or photos of the products. They have a great selection of basics as well as high end fashion and some home items, good prices, incredibly fast, free shipping and excellent customer service. They also have special sales and deals frequently and many opportunities to earn rewards. The only "negative" is I wish the rewards were higher, but it's my favorite online boutique for myself, my husband, my friends and even my dog and has many great gift options. Zappos definitely got it right for 21st century living!