This is the weekly "Looking to VENT with J.Crew" post, a place to share our not-so-stellar experiences with J.Crew.If you have recently experienced a frustrating situation with J.Crew, maybe you might be willing to share that information with us in this post.
Please feel free to share your story on almost any topic— including poor experiences with purchases & orders, promotions/ offers, in-store visits, transactions with store associates, etc.
Off topic, sorry... I just went to the J Crew web site and 27590 was already populating the search field, so hoping for some kind of weird surprised I clicked on 'go' and it just led me to some linen trousers. Since when do J Crew clothes go up to size 16??? I am by no means complaining, I'm sure there are plenty of size 16 women who would love to spend their hard-earned cash on some fab J Crew clothes. :)
ReplyDeleteI got a spring newsletter-ish piece in the mail today. Called "the thread". Did anyone else get this?
ReplyDeleteI was packing away my Pilar Paisley and Suckered Gingham Perfect Shirts (in navy and gold, fall colours) away for the season, and noticed that the sleeves are pulling apart at the seams from the bodies. I couldn't have worn them each more than 7-8 times, and have washed them in my front load machine on gentle cycle. The Pilar was an immediate "toss in the bin" mess, while the gingham shirts can be babied through the next fall (fingers crossed). Thank goodness I bought them on sale with additional % off. I would never pay full price for JC silk/cotton or thin cotton shirts again. The single stitch construction at the sleeves is just senseless, and the flimsy fabric! Urgh. At least the Stretch Perfect Shirts are still fairly sturdy.
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ReplyDeleteI realize this is probably a common theme around these parts, but forgive me, I'm new here.
ReplyDelete1. In store vs online price discrepancies. Argh! Bought 2 items in store today that were nearly half off online with the sale promo code - and were full price in store! I ordered the same items online, and will be returning the store bought items!
2. Only one promo code at a time?
3. I cant swap one promo code for another, even though I called cs less than 10 minutes after I ordered!
Thanks for the space to vent!
sub!
ReplyDeleteI have actually picked up a needle and thread and am trying to learn to sew. Not because my interest in sewing has been piqued but because my Bateau tee's seams are unraveling to the point where the shirt will look ratty and I'd feel silly taking it to a tailor. I'm frustrated, disappointed, and somewhat amused that I'm taking up a craft to learn to fix the problems that occur with J. Crew clothing. My spending has dropped significantly but I still am aware the clothes I buy will need significant doctoring to stay in good shape. I actually had my mom remove and re-sew the buttons on a perfect shirt I bought last year because the thread was so cheap and the buttons were barely hanging on. I can't quit the Crew but at least I've reduced my dose.
ReplyDeleteAlexis, thank you for providing me with a place to confess my sins. It makes me feel less alone.
nomoney-
ReplyDeleteOh you're not the only one who's had to "fix up" crew items. I've had to reinforce my Tuesday trench several times because the buttons were so loose. Also a knit sweater. And not to mention the really flimsy way J. Crew attaches their brand label? I mean, I literally take out a scarf and then the green J. Crew logo hung off one thread. I've had this happen to a cashmere sweater too. =/ Some items hold up well but others never had a fighting chance. You can't be all over the board, J. Crew. What gives?
Subscribing. :)
ReplyDeleteI love J-Crew but I never buy the online clearance because they don't accept returns.
ReplyDeletenot a complaint, just an FYI: big update in the sale section today.
ReplyDeleteI purchased the Provence dress Monday for 39.99 minus the 30% promo bringing my price to 27.99. I saw this morning that the price of the dress has been lowered to 24.99 so I had a chat with the online service asking to have it adjusted. First, she said as a one time courtesy she would credit me the 3.00 difference of what I paid vs today's price. I asked was there no way she could give me 24.99 minus 30%? And she came back offering me 8.00 instead of the 3.00? What in the world?
ReplyDeleteI had been loading up my cart when the new price of the dress stopped me in my tracks. Once I finished my disappointing chat, I emptied my cart and left. All it would have taken to make me very happy would have been a 10 dollar credit and they STILL nickel and dimed me!
Very off topic, and definitely not a vent, but can someone comment on the fit of the Minnie pant in bi-stretch wool? I see they are on sale now and I am interested but don't want to waste time or money if they are not fabulous. TIA!!
ReplyDeleteOT but not really, because I bought some things earlier this week that are now cheaper TODAY:
ReplyDeleteso lots of new and further markdowns this morning.
You want to pay next to nothing, the construction quality will match the price. The downward spiral continues, cheap clothing for the skinflint consumer.
ReplyDelete@CrewGurl: I love my minnies! I have the bi-stretch in four of the five colors and have been looking for an excuse to purchase the final pair (parsley). I would highly suggest them! They're super comfortable yet work appropriate.
ReplyDeleteOne of my Kerrington ballet flats is already starting to pull apart! WTF! I've only worn them once. *grumble*
ReplyDeleteI bought the braided leather belt in chocolate and I was totally in love with it. I thought about taking off that tag on the bag of the belt because it was annoying me. So I pulled it hard (hate myself for it) and the threading unravelled! So I took it to a shoe repair shop who has one of those thick sewing machines and he did such a bad job and used blue thread and the seams are totally crooked that it looks horrible. I ruined the belt which is sooo gorgeous :( I hate myself for doing that. Ever since then, I always use a scissor to cut off the tags. I still get tears thinking about my belt *sigh*
ReplyDelete@Nancy: The quality of the clothes are the same poor quality before they have been heavily discounted.
ReplyDeleteThat's why we try not to pay full price for garments that unravel and disintegrate after just a few wearings.
The quality of clothes is the cause of the heavy discount, not the result.
And once again -- Jcrew loses a sale because of their crappy shipping policies. I'd really like another Jackie cardigan, and it's on sale in a color I've been wanting. But $8.50 in shipping and $3.50 in taxes basically negates the discount whatsoever from the LOVEIT coupon. Maybe I'll take my 20% off card to the store this weekend and try to find the cardigan in a B&M. I'm sorry but I am unwilling to pay $8.50 worth of shipping for a product that weighs mere ounces. Ridonkulous.
ReplyDeleteKate,
ReplyDeleteI saw several Jackies in those sale colors in stores in the Seattle area.
(I've been waiting for an extra %off in store to get one).
Received Jackie cardigan in my "final sale" order with not one, not two but THREE BROKEN BUTTONS! Is there absolutely no quality control at J. Crew? This is just one of the many defective garments I've been sent, including a striped bateau tee that not only had a huge hole in the armpit but was pre-worn. As soon as I opened the plastic bag, the stinky BO wafted out at me. Really, no one noticed this? Seriously?
ReplyDeleteSo my Minnies started ripping one day near the zipper and I actually got stuck in them at work! This is not the first quality issue I've had, and Jcrew has been my favorite brand for 10 of the 25 years of my life, so I wrote them an email. As you can see, they were not at all concerned or helpful, so I've passed it on to Mickey Drexler.
ReplyDeleteDear J.Crew,
Since high school, I have been an avid J.Crew fan. I have a veritable rainbow of your bikinis, Jackie cardigans, vintage cords, and since moving into the professional world I have been growing a nice collection of your suiting as well. I have loved clothes and fashion all my life, and while I don't have a large budget, quality has always been important to me. This is why I have so loved J.Crew. Not only have I spent most of my clothing budget there, but I have also turned my friends onto how amazing the right J.Crew piece can look. Yes, it's pricier, but I still have those high school bikinis and they look like new (and these were bought in 2003/2004).
Sadly, you've let me down lately. I had been avoiding you for the last year or so because prices seemed to be rising while quality was dropping, but I decided I had to have the Minnie pants you put out last spring. And I thought the old J.Crew was back! They were nearly $80, pricey for a simple pair of black pants, but they fit like a dream and went with everything I owned. I got compliments everywhere I wore them. Although it was a hassle, I treated them with care, never washing them in the machine and making sure I did not over-wear them. But then, a few months ago, I went to zip them and the zipper stuck. I took them into a store and they told me the fabric was wearing out and causing the zipper to stick about 3/4 of the way up, but if I just wiggled around enough, I could get them closed. Ok, I thought, the sales associates were very friendly and seemed to know what they were talking about. The wiggling worked for about 2 weeks until I was at an off-site meeting for work in my lovely Minnies and... the zipper completely stuck. I could not move it up or down, and it was only about 1/2 of the way closed. Thankfully I was wearing a long shirt and the meeting ended soon after that, and I could go home and try to extricate myself from these pants. It took about 10 minutes, and I pinched a piece of skin in the process, but I finally got them off.
When I went to put them back in my drawer, I noticed the pair of $12 Forever21 jeans I bought 2 years ago, wore twice as frequently as the Minnies, machine washed, and generally beat up. And the $12 jeans still fit, still zipped, and had never left me stranded in a corporate bathroom trying to wiggle into my pants. I still love my Minnies, and am debating taking them to my tailor to see what he can do to fix them, but the whole experience has been dispiriting. J.Crew has always carried investment pieces, the kind of clothes I buy and then wear for years, trusting them to last. Judging by the way my Minnies have held up, and how the last bikini bottom I purchased has frayed after only a few wears and incredibly gentle treatment (pictures of both attached), I can't see myself buying much more than sale t-shirts and the occasional headband from you until you fix these quality issues. I hate to have to write this about my favorite store, but I'm looking more into Ann Taylor, Lands End Canvas, and the like. Their customer service has treated me better, their prices are fairer, and they stand behind their products. Sorry J.Crew, you have not been living up to expectations lately and I wanted to let you know.
Sincerely,
Kathleen
Hi Kathleen,
I have reviewed your email regarding the Minni Pants and the Bikini and
I have forwarded your information on to the appropriate team for their
review.
If there is anything else I can further assist you with, please feel
free to respond to this email, or call me via my contact information
below.
Best,
Steve
1-800-591-3802
Inconsistency in customer service. I called for measurements on a crewcuts item. Was put on hold and the rep came back with them. Then I realized fabric content was not listed on the web for item. Called back and asked for type of material and just for curiosity I asked again for the measurements. The rep said she did not have those available at this time nor could she look them up later. They were not available. All depends on who answers the phone. It is becoming a game; make two or three phone calls and you might get the info. or help you want. Never go with just one!
ReplyDeleteNot a vent...but I just received an email from an online personal shopper introducing herself and complimenting me on two of the items from my recent order. Has this happened to anyone else?
ReplyDeleteEllebelle...what a stalker! :p
ReplyDeleteWeetWeetWeet! Psycho stalker! I have never been contacted randomly by an online PS, that's creepy!
ReplyDeleteEllebelle- That's a little odd that they would randomly email you and compliment you on your items! It's never happened to me before!
ReplyDeleteCrewGurl - Irl pics of the bi-stretch Minnie in this post. Atrocious on me. However, I have links to 3 other bloggers, so you can check out their irl pics and comments, too. HTH
ReplyDeletePatti - 1. Yup. The online and in-store prices differ. In most businesses b&m's (bricks & mortar stores) and warehouses are considered different channels of distribution and, therefore, operate each in a different way. JC stores tend to make cuts so they can move merch & make room for new arrivals. However, sometimes the merch is simply shipped to the warehouse and we see a large restock online.
ReplyDeleteJC online prices have rubber in them. An item will bounce to promo, then back to full price, back to promo, then drop by pennies, making it final sale. Sometimes it goes from final saleev up to promo. It doesn't happen on a ton of items, but it happens. You'd better believe if something is on promo, they will put it back up to full price if one of the 30% promos come thru. And yes, online promos don't always apply in-store and vice versa. The simplest solution, at times, is to decide the max price you want to pay for something and pay that. If it's a low price, in contrast to its original retail price, you may risk it selling out.
2. Only one promo code at a time. There's a field on the checkout page for one code. If you make an order on Sat and a 30% promo kicks in on Sunday, the cs reps usually do not want to adjust your order. You're welcome to call in and ask. You may be sternly told they will do it as a "one time courtesy" and feel like a scolded child. They will also note your account of said one-time courtesy. If the savings is small -- small to me is like $10-$15 -- it may not be worth it. Sure, it's not environmentally respectable to have UPS driving around unnecessarily, but that's what ends up happening in many cases because ppl simply re-order. And no, there is no such thing as "it's the principle" in the Crewniverse. If you feel they should do something based on principle...well, don't feel that way. It can be futile. :-)
ElleBelle - I have not received them but I have had friends who were emailed from JCrew's PS's before very similarly. It's a way for their PS's to reach out to new possible clients.
ReplyDeleteI shop at J.Crew all the time. I never received the 20% off card all the "loyalists" got. So I emailed and called and I got a big fat NO! All they said was that they'll keep it in mind for the future but the card only went to a certain amount of loyal customers and cannot be sent to everyone. I think this is such POOR customer service! I planned on buying a ton of Spring items but now I must say, I'm going to shop elsewhere.
ReplyDeleteLaurie- I just ordered the Provence dress Monday as well (just the one item), and I also noticed that shipping is now $5.95 instead of the $8.50 I was charged Monday. All in all, after tax and shipping, it's actually a ~$14.00 discrepancy for me between Monday and today. I emailed CS to see what they say. It's the principle- I can't stand when stuff like that happens! :)
ReplyDeletetricialentini - I got one but I am not going to use it. If you want one I'd gladly mail you mine.
ReplyDeletesummerillablog@gmail.com
Jess, I know! That's what I was trying to explain to the online rep. She just refused to completely honor the new price with the discount - I wasn't even trying to recoup the shipping difference. I suppose I should feel lucky to have gotten 8.00 back but I am not sure where she even got that amount?
ReplyDeleteThe French Made, I have that belt and would have cried buckets if that happened to mine. Are you speaking of pulling off the security tag or price? There is no way I have enough strength to tear off the security tag by hand. It's weird if you mean the price tag caused the whole thing to unravel.
ReplyDeleteI read about the B & M stores not carrying size 14 anymore and I was outraged! So I wrote:
ReplyDeleteDear J. Crew,
I have been a J. Crew cardholder for years, and a loyal J. Crew customer since the days of Emily Woods in the early 80's. I read a bit of disturbing news and I wish to bring it to your attention. A blog that is devoted to "all things J. Crew" reports that a female customer was shopping in a J. Crew store and couldn't find any size 14 items. When she asked a sales associate, the response was that they didn't have much demand for that size. I have to ask, can you possibly really believe that? When the average American woman wears a size 14, it seems to be retail suicide to eliminate size 14's from your stores. I understand that it may be the intent of J. Crew to "phase out" women's size 14 in brick and mortar stores. If that is your intention, then I'm very disappointed in the company that I have thought so highly of for so many decades. If J. Crew is embarrassed that women like me- an educated, fashion-loving, smart, size 14...with money, by the way- shop in your stores, then I'm not sure I can patronize J.Crew anymore.
Sincerely,
Valerie
Response:
Hi Valerie -
Thanks for reaching out. Really appreciate you sharing your thoughts with us - I'll be sure to pass this along for you and of course am very sorry for any frustration or inconvenience we've caused. Since our retail stores have a smaller space for inventory, many of them aren't able to carry our complete size selection. The sizes we offer in certain locations does depend on how in demand they are for that area - because we produce size 14 in smaller quantities, we're unable to stock this size in every store. If you're visiting a store that doesn't have the size you need, you're welcome to contact us from the red phone and our associates will be happy to place an order for you - there is no shipping fee for any full priced merchandise. While not every store will carry size 14, we'll of course continue to offer our full inventory online.
Please let me know if you have any other questions - always available.
Best,
Kat
Kat Clark
J.Crew
My response to Kat:
Good afternoon, Katrina,
I am somewhat put-off by your response: If other stores that are comparable to J Crew in price structure and inventory, such as Banana Republic, carry size 14's and XL's in their stores, then why wouldn't J Crew? I believe, from personal experience, magazines and feedback from my "shopping friends" that you have similar clientele so, the demand for sizes should be similar also. Since women will spend their money where they know they are wanted, (i.e. a store that carries size 14), of course the demand won't be as high for size 14 if women have gone shopping at a J Crew store in the past and have come out disappointed, or worse yet, humiliated because they were told, "We don't carry sizes that large."
I have always been able to find my size, which is 14 or sometimes XL, in my Mall of America J Crew, but when I travel to Madison, WI, it is harder to find size 14 ( in the land of beer and cheese? What? Limited distribution of 14's??). I truly hope that this isn't a misguided attempt by J Crew to "upscale" your clientele.
Please reconsider if your decision is to "phase out" size 14's from your brick and mortar stores. I, as one of America's "average" women, would be very pleased!
Best,
Valerie
The customer service at Copley Place in Boston is less than stellar. Those SAs are always either hovering to give unsolicited fashion advice or completely unhelpful/not available when assistance is needed. I was there yesterday and the personal shopper was just too busy chatting up some customers to help me find a fitting room. Also, when I am making a single return on a three hundred dollar order, please don't give me attitude, since I spend more money at jcrew than every other retailer combined. Given that they are located right next to Neiman Marcus and Barneys, I would have thought that the level of customer care would be completely beyond reproach.
ReplyDelete@Mamavalveeta03 I feel the exact same way as you do about them not carrying a size 14 in stores. I recently traveled 3 1/2 hours to the closest J.Crew store to where I live. I live in Northern Michigan, so when I get the chance to go downstate to go shopping, you better believe J.Crew is one of the first places on my list! I was wanting to purchase some shorts and summery clothing for a trip to Mazatlan, Mexico that I was getting ready to go on. I searched high and low for size 14 shorts, but there were none in sight. I finally asked the sales representative, and she let me know that they don't carry size 14 in store anymore. I have also noticed recently that a lot of the dresses and shorts that J.Crew has online only go up to a size 10 or 12 (and this was the first day they were on the website). I really wanted the Oleander lace shift dress for a wedding I was attending while in Mexico, but they of course don't make it in my size. I even contacted my awesome personal shopper Amelia about it, and she felt bad having to tell me that they never made it in my size 14. I also notice that the size 14s seem to be gobbled up right away, so obviously there is a demand for that size. I understand you said they make a smaller quantity of size 14s, but why would they want to do that when they always run out of that size so fast? If they made more, they would make a lot more money! Why can't they just make the same amount of 14s as all the other sizes. Also, I don't see how there wouldn't be a demand for a size 14 in Grand Rapids, MI? After all, Michigan is the most overweight state there is! I think their whole demand based on location is a crock. I shouldn't have the choice to chose whatever item I want from the store or website I so choose, just like everyone else. Instead, I have to search around and choose something I might not like as much, just because it is offered in my size, and my first choice isn't.
ReplyDeleteKat, I think you summed it up. It's like a chicken-egg situation, did the demand for 14s drop because the store stopped carrying them? Or did the store stop carrying them because there were no size 14 customers? The latter seems improbable since, as you pointed out, size 14 is now the average size for a woman. If they have 14s online they should have them in the stores, period. Considering that there are always racks full of the tiny sizes on the clearance racks, it hardly seems like a demand issue. Maybe they should cut back on those sizes and add one or two 14s for each garment.
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ReplyDeleteElleBelle, yes, that happened to me. I was randomly reached by a PS who noticed that I placed a large number of orders online. I politely declined her services.
ReplyDelete@Mamavalveeta03 Amen! I was really disappointed the other day. I often choose XL sizes as I like my cardi's to be larger, and they can be hard to find in store. And size 14 is available everywhere else, why not JCerw??? Pretty frustrating.
ReplyDeleteI don't know what you guys are talking about! My Personal Shopper is great, she holds all the things I want that are in the store and will order me things that I want from online with no shipping charges!
ReplyDeleteThe only problem I have in the store is when I get a nasty Red phone agent... So I just let my personal shopper do it for me!