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.
All of the things launching on the main load of their website is getting to be almost as obnoxious as Old Navy, why can't they have a clean and consistent menu. To see any new arrivals you have to click twice to get there and things seem to keep moving around. Maybe it's because I'm not there as often as I used to be but it seems very messy, and unprofessional looking.
ReplyDeleteCompletely agree with your comments, TeriLynn13! It's hard to keep up with all the strange changes to the website... and each change seems to make the website look cheaper and cheaper. There's just a general feeling of a lack of coherence across the board with J Crew these days. Messy and unprofessional sums it up well.
DeleteToday's email from J.Crew boasts 11 new arrivals. 11. Including the pink polartec fleece that's already been in stores for several week.
ReplyDelete*weeks
DeleteAs well as the vcut tunic (just in more colors). I hated it the first time i ordered. No need to hit me with more (boring) colors.
DeleteOh my gosh, I saw this email and literally LOLed. What? 11? Hold on to my shorts, we’re in for a wild ride...
DeleteThe store I visited over the weekend was pretty grim. They need to get some new arrivals in there quick (and not polartec fleece) to inspire people to spend gift cards. As cute as they are, I'm over the word t-shirts, too. How about some new cute knits/prints?
ReplyDeleteI have not purchased any of the "statement" t shirts. wish they would go away...
DeleteJust got the puppy in a shopping bag thank you email. Wish this would go away.
ReplyDeleteI got it yesterday. Wtf. It’s not clever, cute or funny. What the heck do they think I’m an 11 year old girl?
DeleteThey appear to be dying a slow and ugly death. Very sad.
ReplyDeleteYes. As sega61 says, it is very sad. But I still find J Crew the best "match" for me in terms of style and value. I know that many JCAs have been disappointed with the lower quality of items and may disagree with my use of the word "value", but there are often incredible deals. Even with the changes in pricing policy, I've recently gotten Martie pants for less than $20 and super 120's pencil skirts for less than $30 (and that's Canadian dollars)! I've looked at other retailers (Boden, Talbots, Lands End, Banana Republic, Nordstroms, Shopbop etc). They all have the occasional item that I might be interested in, but I have to work a lot harder to find stuff I like and a couple of them are a lot pricier - no $30 wool pencil skirts there, let me tell you. There's also the "fit" aspect as well. Although the J Crew sizing is inconsistent, most of the clothes fit me (when I get the correct size sorted out). I've tried Talbots, Banana Republic and Lands End recently - the fit seemed off no matter what size I tried, even in things as simple as t-shirts.
DeleteSo I am hoping that J Crew pulls through. Because it's still the best for me.
I agree Toronto Modern
DeleteI agree too with Jcrew being the best match for me. This past summer I tried some items at Talbots for the first time and while the quality was decent the fit was off for me. Same for Ann Taylor and I really don't even look at BR because it seems everything is poly. Jcrew fits me the best and luckily I've found quite a few items to love this past holiday season. I'm praying for them to succeed.
DeleteIn the list of retailers I have considered and (so far) rejected in favor of J Crew, I forgot to include Loft, Ann Taylor and Club Monaco. The styles, colors and patterns at Loft and Ann Taylor also seem "off" to me so I don't even get to determine if fit is there. Club Monaco doesn't seem to believe in color or pattern at all and the pricing always seems high.
DeleteAnother plus for J Crew - they still offer petite suiting. I know that much of the work world has moved to business casual, and, thank goodness, my environment has too, but every now and then, I do need to look more pulled together. It's really hard to find reasonably priced and made suiting in petites. But I will be the first to acknowledge that business attire for petite women is a very small market and is not the part that is going to help them make it. In fact, I am in fear that this is the sort of thing that they would axe in an effort to cost costs and increase efficiency.
So, J Crew, I need you to make it - and I need you to maintain your range of petite suiting and blazers :-)
I agree that I like the way J Crew fits. Their pants fit me better than any brand but I did buy a pair at French Connection in New York and have worn them at least 20 times since October. I bought a cute jacket too. They fit very well. I hope that J Crew will return to it's roots. I love my vintage J Crew clothes.
DeleteI agree with a lot of the sentiments shared above - I can't seem to find the same groove at other retailers. I do still find things at BR (lined lightweight wool pants for example) but end up back at Crew.
DeleteI know a few others have mentioned Brooks Brothers - I stopped in to a BB outlet store over the holiday and found several things I liked - some things have a Talbot's feel for me and a little too preppy but I did find a nice A-line wool lined skirt that reminded me of old Crew and 100% merino wool sweaters.
Not a vent: New silk Drake PJ top (G7445) in olive. I don't love the green + orange color combo but I like the contrast piping in black. Don't love the price though - $30 more than the last Drake silk PJ top in essentially the same style. The model photo doesn't have a matching bottom so curious if it'll be wide leg or easy pant style.
ReplyDeleteI like the print and style but not the colors. Or at least, not the orange.
Deletenever have been a fan of Drake prints...I like the liberty prints much more...
DeleteFinally! It’s released!!
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Delete@eeps is it indeed silk, or cotton as the copywriter from space describes?
DeleteNevermind, I just saw the description was corrected to silk!
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DeleteThanks for posting! I like the print, though I do wish it included more colors. The black piping is very striking. I'll pass regardless, I'm over the pajama top thing. Come on J Crew, new silhouette please.
ReplyDeleteI stopped by both J.crew and Madewell for a few returns.
ReplyDeleteJ.Crew seems a little mixed up, regarding offerings. I don't get the pink polartec. Doesnt north face/Patagonia/LL bean, etc do enough of that?
Loungewear seemed big. But then there were items I've seen for months that haven't moved and they were full price.
And for the first time I picked up the cable knit sweater with that fringe/cut. The sweater itself is substantial, a nice weight and seemed well done, but why the fringe? I don't expect to like everything but it's just a detail on a cable knit sweater I don't appreciate, especially when it's SO HARD TO FIND a nicely made, well fitting classic sweater. The fringe just makes it look so mish mash to me. Kind of like that other embellished cable sweater with those little ginkgo shaped felt pieces. Just make a nice sweater that fits, then worry about adding extra stuff to it.
Sigh...
Agree with everything. If I want performance fleece at $118 I'm looking at Patagonia. I'm actually surprised that was a strictly J. Crew piece and not a partnership.
DeleteAnd I passed on the fringe for the same reason.
I'll be at bother stores to do returns this weekend. I need to decide whether I'm keeping the rivka or ella pumps from Madewell.
So, my earlier vent a few weeks ago about my VPS not returning my email seems to be because he’s left the company. Probably saw the writing on the wall, or maybe they’re laying people off. Either way, I’m super sad about it. They’ve transferred me to someone new, so we’ll see if it’s a match or not.
ReplyDeleteIt took my VPS 2 weeks to respond to my email with holiday wishes. Needless to say, I didn't get one from her before I sent one. I have yet to find a VPS I love since my in-store one left 3 years ago, and tbh it makes me feel like my business is not appreciated.
DeleteCall Tiffany @ext 63365 she is fabulous and will hunt things down no one else seems to be able to locate. Never a problem with price adjustments, will waive all shipping and overnight things and is always accessible while at work. I have used her for 3 years now and she has never let me down. Lover her to pieces!! I will continue to use her when I move back to Monaco.
DeleteHi Lynn - for some reason my response didn’t post, but - thank you! I remember you praising her before and I’ll definitely contact her. Just wondering if you might have her email contact as I have weird hours at work and try to do most of my communicating through email.
DeleteHere’s her email: Tiffany.Copeland@jcrew.com
ReplyDeleteAll the best and she’s in today. Happy New Year
You’re awesome, thank you so much!
DeleteThank you very much for the compliment however it is Tiffany who is awesome. I love her honesty and the fact that she won't attempt to sell you something if you ask her opinion. She will be back in on Sunday morning so I hope you connect with her and again enjoy!
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