Mini Boden has the cutest clothes (good) and British humor (bad).
Written: Sep 29 '03 (Updated Apr 27 '04)
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About six weeks ago, I got the cutest catalog in the mail for children's clothing from Mini-Boden. Curious, I looked for their web site and found that Mini-Boden offers clothing not just for children, but men and women also.
The Company is well-established in the U.K. but new to the U.S. It seems they have made a big marketing push here and are doing quite well. Unfortunately, their systems don't seem to be completely prepared to handle U.S. business.
WEB SITE
The web site is hard to shop. When you look at one item, there are no links to the matching item. Several of the women's items I ordered looked slightly different in person than on the web site. The pictures of the children's styles were accurate.
The pages load slowly, even with my high speed internet connection. Several times, I got frustrated trying to find a matching skirt for a shirt I liked and took a break from the site. Luckily, your selections remain in your shopping cart for several days after you choose them.
There is no way to clearly scroll through all of the offerings quickly. You can't sort information by price or popularity. The colors are also confusing: will the mocha skirt match the brown blouse?
The one thing I liked about the web site: they had cute text and descriptions of their items. There were some attempts at humor. They have letters from customers on the site that are also cute.
CUSTOMER SERVICE
I ordered a catalog for women on the web site and, after 4 weeks, it still hasn't arrived.
I e-mailed customer service regarding sizing information because I noticed the company was British and knew their sizes are a bit different than U.S. sizes. Customer service responded in about 24 hours. They told me items on the U.S. web site followed U.S. sizes. As it turned out, items run small. I had to return a shirt that I ordered a size too big because it was too snug.
I got an automatic email when the company received my order. The email included all of the items that I ordered and the final price. Then, at the very bottom of the email it said "Local duties may be payable on receipt."
I emailed customer service about that last bit. Again, they responded in about 24 hours. They told me that rarely customers are charged duties at the time the package is delivered but the company would reimburse me if I was charged. It turns out the packages were delivered without a charge. However, I still find their sneaky email disclaimer alarming. They should be very up front about surprise or hidden charges. It erodes customer trust when you think an order is final and then you are charged more money.
BACKORDERED ITEMS
I fell in love with a sweater (jumper in Mini-Boden British speak) and it was backordered 7 weeks according to the web site. It showed up two days after the rest of my items and about 10 days after I placed my order. It was a pleasant surprise, but I don't think they have a good handle on their inventory.
PRICES
The Mini Boden prices are high. A boy's t-shirt with cute felt appliques cost $22. High quality girl's corduroy pants were $44. However, the styles are cute and unique. The quality is also high. I thought it was worthwhile to get a few pieces but I wouldn't get a whole wardrobe here. I hope they add sale merchandise to the U.S. site soon.
BEWARE OF SIZING
I ordered up two sizes in shirts and the fit was still a bit snug. I ordered up one size in a skirt and got the correct fit. The clothing sizes for children seemed accurate or possibly, a teeny bit on the small side.
SHIPPING
Items are shipped from the U.K. This creates some problems. First of all, it takes longer to ship items from the U.K. Secondly, it seems that you can be charged duties. Lastly, there are no express shipping options.
The shipping rates are as follows for standard shipping to the US:
Up to $25.00 $5.00
$25.01 - $50.00 $7.00
$50.01 - $75 $9.00
$75.01 - $100 $10.00
$100.01 - $150 $12.00
$150.01 - $200 $13.00
$200.01 and up $15.00
PACKAGING
My items were packaged in blue plastic bags. They looked pretty beat up when they arrived with lots of pokes and scratches although the plastic was not torn. Each individual item was also packaged in a plastic bag.
RETURNS
My invoice inside the package had a sticker with a return label. You can reuse the bags that the items came in to send them back to Mini Boden. The bags will need to be sealed with packing tape however because they don't completely reseal themselves.
The following is returns information from the site: Please take your parcel(s) to your nearest post office and send them to Boden, 3580 NW 56th Street, Fort Lauderdale, FL, 33309. We process returns as soon as they arrive, however during extremely busy periods please allow 28 days for your return or exchange to be processed.
NO STEALS AND DEALS
There are no items for sale on this site. I checked the U.K site and found lots of good deals but thought it was too much of a hassle to order from abroad.
I couldn't find any internet coupons and the company doesn't seem to offer any other deals.
FINAL RECOMMENDATION
I really like the Mini-Boden clothes. The clothing for kids is well-made and stylish, although you pay a considerable price for it. I liked the style of clothes I got for myself but found the sizing a little off. I strongly suggest getting a catalog because it is hard to shop the web site. The shipping from the U.K. and potentially waiting 28 days for them to process a return are a bit of a hassle. Overall, I hope they improve their processes because I liked the clothes and would consider buying more. Most importantly, I hope they add sale items to their site. I am recommending this site because my items did show up when promised and I wasn't charged the surprise fees.
DO YOU LIKE TO SHOP ON THE INTERNET? HERE ARE SOME MORE REVIEWS OF WEB STORES:
Clothing and Accessories: Talbots; The Gap; CWD Kids; Hanna Andersson; J. Jill; Tote Le Monde ; Blu Pyxie ; One Hanes Place; Nordstrom; Gymboree.
Clothing and Home Goods: Land’s End; Bluefly; Soft Surroundings; Garnet Hill; Sundance; L.L. Bean.
Home and Garden: Smith & Noble; Restoration Hardware; Gardener’s Supply Company; Unicahome; Homeclick; FaucetDirect; Gardens Alive; West Elm.
Books and Magazines: Amazon.com; ValueMags; Magazine Values; Dover Publications.
Office Supplies, Furniture and Services: Staples; Officemax; Topdeq; Efax.
Electronics: HP Shopping; Buy.com.
Travel: Amtrak; Hotwire; Orbitz; Hotels.com.
Discount: Overstock.com.
Miscellaneous: Babystyle; Shutterfly; 1-800 contacts.
Recommended:
Yes
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