Here at ProvocativeClothing.com we don't just affiliate with any
old merchant who offers us a commission. You don't see ads for
credit cards, wireless phones or casinos on our site because we
don't let 'em on here. We only accept merchants that we have
personal
experience with or those that have a good enough reputation that we
feel safe recommending them to you.So, when I took
on LadyBWear, a
merchant in the UK with what seemed to be a really great line of
clothing, I was surprised that after four months time,
1,600 of out visitors went to their site and not one single sale had
been made. I put Steph, our daredevil test model on the case. (It
may sound silly, but it's against the rules for me to shop my own
merchants.)
The Test shopping begins
First, we went to the LadyBWear site and cruised
the listings looking for something good that was in stock in her
size. Steph is a size 12 and can pretty confidently buy anything off
the rack in that size. We found a hot looking catsuit, US size 12,
ready-to-ship. She paid, and got an order acknowledgement back
quickly. They estimated five days until it arrived from the UK. Five
days later, the package showed up. I like predictability.
The garment itself was well made -- finished
seams, good stitching, strong zippers. The PVC is heavy; the sort of
material you'd expect in luggage, not like the thin material used in
mass-merchant fantasy clothing. Clearly the garment was made to
last.
The problem was, Steph could barely fit into it.
She looked shrink-wrapped. That wasn't a problem for me, but she
felt she should be able to sit down while wearing it, so we went back to the site and checked the
size chart. They have a great size chart that lets you cross-ref
sizes to inches. We took out a tape measure and found that Steph was
a bit bigger than what they considered size 12. D'oh! I'd heard this
about European clothing before and should have thought to check the
size chart before we ordered.
Sometimes a problem is an opportunity in disguise.
Since the garment was too small, we contacted LadyBWear and arranged
a return, which gave us a chance to check out their customer
service. They had us mail it back in the original packaging, clearly
marked "return" so the customs folks wouldn't levy a duty on it. We
mailed it, they got it, a credit was issued on Steph's card. No
problems.
Now, we went back to the site and found another
catsuit in the larger size, ready-to-ship. We ordered it, it came in
five days and the fit is certainly roomy. (See photos.) Now comes
the question is it too roomy?
The final analysis
We found LadyBWear to be a good merchant to deal
with. Their clothing is excellent quality, their customer service is
good and the buying experience would have been totally no-hassle if
we had checked the size chart in advance. LadyBWear makes its full
range of clothing in a wide variety of sizes from US size 4 to US
size 34. They also offer both men's and women's cut for all their
clothing.
Steph's Dilemma
So, what's Steph's dilemma? She doesn't think she
looks good in the catsuit. I told her, we'd ask
for opinions. Should she keep it or send it back? No kidding, we
really want you to vote. We'll compile the results and report back
in next month's newsletter.
