I may not have bought it all in 2007, but rest assured, if the "it" to which we're referring was a short-sleeved ruffle-front blouse, a cropped swing jacket, a slim leather bomber jacket, a 3/4-sleeved Winter coat, a classic Fall/Spring trench, a box clutch, a pair of skinny trousers, a pair of ultra dark-wash skinnies, a pair of black satin boyshorts, a pair of almond-toed pumps, a pair of prick-point platform pumps, a cocktail dress, a little black dress, a backless dress, or anything else you can think of in the colors gunmetal or wine with a high-waist, an exaggerated funnel-neck, or with "Alexander McQueen" affixed to the label, I found it - along with 10 others similar but not identical to it - during one of my hours-long online boutique binges.
The benefits to immediately knowing where to buy what style in what color with what promotional coupon are obvious. Not only have I become the go-to person among my friends for everything from advice on specific brands ("Is a Generra tee really worth $88?") to providing clarification on return policies ("When heels.com says they have '115% price protection,' what does that mean?") to weighing in on the ever-difficult "I love this, but I don't need it -- should I break the bank to buy it?" dilemma, but I have also developed a discerning eye for the good, the bad and the getting-there when it comes to online boutiques.
If you're a regular reader, you probably already know to which websites I'm partial based on how frequently I link to their merchandise. For those who are new to ASJiNE, as well as for those who haven't paid close attention to the vendors, please take a moment or two to peruse my inaugural 'best of'/'worst of' online-shopping review in the five critical categories of layout, customer service, volume of merchandise, volume of new merchandise and model quality:
Best Layout:
www.shopbop.com
- clear navigation instructions
- fantastic merchandise
- high-resolution photos
- every item shown in every color at every angle
- great styling
Worst Layout:
www.yoox.com
- chaotic homepage
- photos extremely tiny during 'search' phase
- offers only front/back photos
- has a very "bargain basement" aesthetic
- poor styling
The benefits to immediately knowing where to buy what style in what color with what promotional coupon are obvious. Not only have I become the go-to person among my friends for everything from advice on specific brands ("Is a Generra tee really worth $88?") to providing clarification on return policies ("When heels.com says they have '115% price protection,' what does that mean?") to weighing in on the ever-difficult "I love this, but I don't need it -- should I break the bank to buy it?" dilemma, but I have also developed a discerning eye for the good, the bad and the getting-there when it comes to online boutiques.
If you're a regular reader, you probably already know to which websites I'm partial based on how frequently I link to their merchandise. For those who are new to ASJiNE, as well as for those who haven't paid close attention to the vendors, please take a moment or two to peruse my inaugural 'best of'/'worst of' online-shopping review in the five critical categories of layout, customer service, volume of merchandise, volume of new merchandise and model quality:
Best Layout:
www.shopbop.com
- clear navigation instructions
- fantastic merchandise
- high-resolution photos
- every item shown in every color at every angle
- great styling
Worst Layout:
www.yoox.com
- chaotic homepage
- photos extremely tiny during 'search' phase
- offers only front/back photos
- has a very "bargain basement" aesthetic
- poor styling
Getting-there Layout:
www.revolveclothing.com
- fantastic merchandise
- clear navigation instructions
- extremely detailed 'advanced search' options
- every item shown in every color at every angle
www.revolveclothing.com
- fantastic merchandise
- clear navigation instructions
- extremely detailed 'advanced search' options
- every item shown in every color at every angle
Best Customer Service:
www.net-a-porter.com
- instant e-mail notification of order
- purchases arrive in 24 hours, including Saturday delivery
- superior packaging
- clear return instructions with enclosed pre-paid shipping label
- instant e-mail notification of returned item's arrival
- five-day reimbursement turnaround
www.net-a-porter.com
- instant e-mail notification of order
- purchases arrive in 24 hours, including Saturday delivery
- superior packaging
- clear return instructions with enclosed pre-paid shipping label
- instant e-mail notification of returned item's arrival
- five-day reimbursement turnaround
Worst Customer Service:
www.barneys.com
- delayed e-mail notification
- unpredictable arrival date
- unpredictable reimbursement turnaround
www.barneys.com
- delayed e-mail notification
- unpredictable arrival date
- unpredictable reimbursement turnaround
- "contact us" hours very limited
- hand-written "thank you" note
- arrived sooner than anticipated
- arrived sooner than anticipated
Best at Putting In-Store Merchandise Online:
www.nordstrom.com
- the only shopping destination, in my opinion, that has more available on its website than it does in-store
- much larger (and better) sale section online than in-store
- though unrelated, I love their 'sort by color' option
Worst at Putting In-Store Merchandise Online:
tie: www.bloomingdales.com/ www.urbanchiconline.com
- both stores easily carry 10x the merchandise in-store that they do online
- what they offer online is not their best - or newest - merchandise
Getting-There at Putting In-Store Merchandise Online:
www.clubmonaco.com
- that's what a little bird in the Georgetown store told me last week!
Best "What's New" Merchandise:
- items organized by the week they were added
- option available to only view that week's newest additions
- inventory updated every week, regardless of how few/many new items there are
Worst "What's New" Merchandise:
- rarely and sporadically updated
- newest additions lumped in with months' worth of other "new" items
- only able to search within "what's new" section by designer
Getting-there "What's New" Merchandise:
- frequently updated
- section is of a manageable size -- nothing stays for more than two weeks
- option to arrange items by designer, price or addition date
Best Models*:
- their poses are varied, their expressions are pleasing and overall, their photos have a very 'fashion magazine' quality to them
Worst Models:
- these poor girls look like they were picked up at a mall, given no styling, plopped in front of a camera and told to "work it"
- though the clothing at both stores is high-end, the low-end-edness of the models can't help but detract from the overall shopping experience
Getting-there Models:
- if you can't find or can't afford professional models, do us all a favor and do it the N-a-P way: use mannequins
Feel free to chime in with your own opinions in the comments section!
*just like no one wants Tammy Faye helping them at Sephora or Queen Latifah motivating them in a spinning class, who wants to look at a funny-looking, overly ordinary, greasy-haired model while contemplating a three or four-digit purchase?
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