Review Alert: www.myntra.com

Myntra.com is yet another one of the rapidly multiplying online retailers bringing you at home delivery of the big name brands when it comes to clothing and accessories. Their website offers Western brands such as Nike, Levis, and Converse and also offers Indian traditional wear from household names such as Biba, W, and FabIndia.

 

After deciding I wanted to add to my kurti collection, I logged on and spent several hours browsing their offerings. It seemed that while they had a wide variety of items, the sizes were somewhat limited. For example, when filtering on my size, the options for kurtis/kurtas drops from 2452 to a mere 1725, excluding 30% of their stock. Still I should be able to find something amongst 1725 options, right?

 

Speaking of 30% - While browsing, I received a pop up that offered me a 30% discount on my first order, if I registered on their site. Figuring that's a great savings, I went ahead and registered. Little did I know that the 30% coupon would expire an hour later! It would have been better to register right when I was ready to place my order in order to avail the discount, however because the website doesn't allow you to put more then a handful of things in your shopping cart without creating a profile, I had to register in order to add to my wish list of items. Only I took too long building that list, and lost out on my 30% discount.

 

Part of the reason it took me so long to complete my selection, was because although there's plenty of filtering options on the website, it does not retain your search options when browsing. That means, every time I added something to my cart, it would take me to the "Review your order" page. If I clicked on the "Continue Shopping" option it would take me back to an unfiltered main webpage. If I used the back button, I sometimes received a notice that the previous page had expired, and other times got taken back to a main page sans my selection criteria. I found this to be really frustrating.

 

After sifting around on the site for a few hours, I made my final selection and set off to place my order. Although I no longer had the 30% off coupon available to me, they had provided me with a 20% off coupon but I couldn't find any place to enter the coupon code. Within a few quick clicks, my order had been placed without any discount. So I did what any savvy online shopper would do I made a note of all the things in my shopping cart and I cancelled my order. I then immediately logged back in to re-place my order. It seemed like a good plan.

 

When I was placing my order the first time, one of the items I selected must have been the very last one in my size, because when I went to refill my order, it wasn't available. The website said that they would send me an email letting me know when they restocked the item. I knew full well the reason it wasn't available was because I had ordered it and it was part of my now cancelled order. So I continued on replacing my items and was a lot more vigilant this time when I got to the shopping cart page and saw where I had to enter my 20% off coupon code. After applying the coupon, I saw that it only offered a discount on a single item. It wasn't a flat 20% off and to be honest, I wouldn't have ordered a few of the tops I had if I didn't think I was getting a discount. I decided then and there that it just wasn't worth it. I had already invested considerable time on their website due to a horrible navigation system, had lost out on my 30% off, had seemingly also lost out on what I thought was a flat 20% off, and missed out on my favourite kurti from that order due to stocking issues. It was time to call it a day.

 

Now I just had to figure out what to do about the money they credited to my online account after cancelling the first order. I didn't plan on placing an order on their website so having a considerable online credit wasn't going to do me much good. I used the online form to email their customer service asking them to refund the amount to my bank account, so long as their wasn't a fee in doing so. I asked them to call me before taking any action so I could confirm everything. I got the standard "Thanks for contacting us" email and was informed someone would respond to me within 24 hours. I did get a call the next day confirming there was no fee to refund my money to my bank account and with my confirmation, they'd proceed and I should see the refund in 10-15 business days.

 

The day after I spoke to their customer service about my refund, I got an email telling me my previously unavailable kurti was now in stock. Sigh.

 

When I told Z this story, he reminded me that he had ordered from that site previously. One of the items was a "free size" bracelet for me but it was too tight. When he looked into returning it, he found not only do they charge a restocking fee, but the customer has to pay the currier charges to return the item. The website says they'll reimburse the buyer for the return shipping charges up to rs100, but they also provide a list of items that are non-returnable and bracelets are one of those items. That's why the bracelet is still sitting in my closet.

 

Myntra does offer a referral/rewards program which provides an online credit of rs500 when your friends sign up and another rs1000 when they order something. You have 15 days and 30 days respectively to use the credit, and your order must be a minimum of rs2000.

 

If all this sounds so amazing you can't wait to log in and place your first order, please note that currently www.myntra.com is only shipping within India.

There's No Such Thing As Free Size!



Patiala

Before I moved to India, I shopped like a fool. I was really worried I wasn't going to find much in the way of western wear that would fit. Even by US standards, I'm not a half-pint. I generally prefer an XL size and was certain that an XL in India was NOT the same as an XL in the states. I was right. When it comes to Indian clothing dubbed as "traditional wear" I don't struggle too much. I can find kurtis, leggings and patialas that suit me just fine, although some run a little short as I'm taller then you're average Desi. Overall though it's not an issue. Generally when shopping, I immediately seek out the largest size available and see if that will work. As is the case everywhere, size by brand varies, but I've found some brands that fit really well and try to stick to those.

What is an issue, however, is this concept of "free size." The only thing that should be dubbed as "free size" are handbags and scarves. Nothing else should be in that category. Yet in India, when I ask the sales girl, "What's the largest size you have?" I often get a response like "Okay madam, no problem. It's free size." It's a dress, there's no chance it can be free size! I've been given this response when shopping for everything from anarkalis (see Say Yes To The Dress) to t-shirts. That's the same as saying what fits my 5'8 XL frame is going to fit my sister in laws 5'2 S frame. It's not gonna happen!

One size does not fit all!

Today I was browsing an Indian retailers website, searching for some long sleeved t-shirts. They had an awesome collection and offered what I was looking for in every color of the rainbow. The problem: the t-shirts were "free size." Take a look at the photo to the left and tell me if the mannequin and I wear the same size? The same website has full sleeve shrugs, which is another item I've been searching for. Again, in free size. I'd be like the hulk trying to get out of this thing!

I can assure you, one size does NOT fit all. I really can't understand why clothing manufacturers would even have such a thing. Especially clothing manufacturers that specialize in women's clothing when half the allure of the outfit, is in how it fits! Granted tailors are abundant here and you can always have something taken in or hemmed, but you can never make it bigger and I can assure you, you itty bitty sales girl, there is no such thing as free size and it is a problem!