So I know we are now in the age where we almost buy everything online, even our groceries. There are so many advantages to buying things online, free shipping, shopping from the comfort of your couch while watching Game of Thrones, being able to buy in bulk and of course the usual lower cost! But at what price (no pun intended)? We all know the saying "if it's too good to be true, it usually is", well this is 99% of the cases we see from girls buying prom dresses online from sites that make dresses in China.
The Low Down
The whole thing usually goes down like this, we see a super amazing runway dress for $200, yes omg! Such an amazing deal, you get to buy a custom designer dress for a fraction of the cost! Shipping will only take about 2 months because things from China always take forever, but that's ok because you started your prom dress shopping early! You finally get a box and you realize its your dress!!! You rip that thing apart like its Christmas to only feel a pit in your stomach to see it that your dress looks NOTHING like the one pictured on the site....what...just..happened? It's ok, maybe if you try it on it will look better, you know how dresses sometimes look weird on hangers but look bomb when you put it on? Maybe that's whats happening, so you go and put on the dress and you realize that no, its not just the "hanger effect", your dress is a disaster! You try and email the people you bought the dress from only to find they don't reply or they say they can't refund you because somewhere they say "imitation" or "alike to designer *blank*" or they say because it's a custom dress they don't do refunds. You now are $200 down and have to find a new dress.
We see this same story happen over and over again with girls trying to buy designer dresses for a fraction of the cost of the real thing. We arn't saying don't buy online, because let's be real, those Nasty Gal and ASOS deals are amazing and are a steal. We recommend going shopping at an actual store for your dress because who doesn't love playing dress up for an afternoon with your girlfriends? You get to share that amazing experience with your girls and know that the dress you're getting isn't some sketchy dress made of bad material and fits you perfectly!
If you STILL are unsure about buying online from stores like Rosegal, JJs House etc, we compiled some of other peoples experiences with buying from sites like these. We see this thing ALL THE TIME, so please do yourself and your wallet a favor and buy local!
TLDR
Ok ok i know there is a lot of text, but thats ok! Here is an NBC segment on the very issue girls and the industry are facing:
Online Prom Dress Disasters
Expectation vs Reality
How to Avoid Dress Drama
So you want to buy a dress online, ok cool! So here are some things to think about:
Check Prices
If the dress you are looking at is at a significant discount to what you see everywhere else or what the designer has it at, then this is usually a red flag.
CC vs Debit Cards
Ok so if you find the dress you're looking for I suggest using a credit card instead of a debit card. In the case that something bad happens you have a lot more security with a credit card than a debit card.
Custom Made
So another sign you should probably be wary of the site is if you have to put in all your measurements and they have a super long list of color choices. This usually means the dresses are made in china.
If these pictures aren't enough to deter you from buying from these sites, then my best wishes are to you, i truly hope you don't find yourself in the pickle these ladies have been in. Don't forget that prom season is around so stop buy to make sure you have an amazing shopping experience!
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Have you had a online shopping disaster or know someone who has? Comment down below and share you story!!