V.e.r.y. s.l.o.w... (double-d.com)

Member Name: NCG1

Product:	double-d.com
Date:	27/03/02 (160 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: comprehensive website, good range, useful section for blokes

Disadvantages: slow, poor communication

I'm a long term Bravissimo fan, but then I found they no longer stocked my current favourite bra (you know, the one you wear every day and give up very reluctantly to be washed at indecently infrequent intervals, then snatch back from the drying pile when still a bit damp). So I decided to branch out.

I searched the web for the exact size and make of the bra I wanted, and found double-d.com. I was initially put off by their rather garish home page, but persevered and found the site easy to use. It was actually better than Bravissimo's in some ways, because the pictures were larger and so it was possible to see details of trim. As I was looking for a particular bra, this was very handy.

You can search the site by size, type (evening wear, everyday etc) colour and make. They have all the standard makes (Fantasie, Charnos, Freya) plus a few that are rarer (Rigby and Pellor - bra-makers to the Queen!). It is easy to use and fairly quick, though I the colour scheme is a bit headache-inducing and the pages are rather crammed full of information. There is a particularly useful bit of the site devoted to blokes, with really sensible advice about what to buy that will a) fit and b) not be pushed to the back of the drawer as being silly rather than sexy.

So finding the right bra is easy. Now, personally I don't buy bras without trying them on (I only buy 'extras' of bras I've already got and that I know fit well over the internet), but if you did want to risk it double-d.com do the standard 'return within 14 days and get an alternative or your money back' though, unlike Bravissimo, they won't pay for the return postage.

Having decided that the price of the bra I wanted was reasonable (less than I paid in a department store, from memory, though the postage does add a bit) the next step was to work out whether I trusted them enough to provide my credit card details over the web. So I had a look at t
heir payment system. Now, I have a friend who knows about these things, and he assured me that the credit card company used by double-d.com (WorldPay) is probably the safest one around. I had a look at their paying pages, and they seemed OK (and user-friendly), so I went ahead. But if you're wary of paying on line, they also take payment over the phone or by cheque (though for the latter you must have a UK bank account).

At this point I was still feeling positive. So why the low rating, I hear you ask. Well... I read on the site that delivery should take place two working days after the order, unless the item was not in stock. Nearly a week later, I was still waiting, and wondering if my postman had a hitherto unspuspected liking for lingerie. Then I got a confusing e-mail saying that there would be a delay (no reason given), but they hoped to deliver in the next ten days. Finally, I got another e-mail saying the item was out of stock, that it wouldn't be in for nearly a month, and did I want to hang on or to get a refund. Now, if they'd said this to start with I wouldn't have been cross. But the time it took them to work out that it wasn't in stock (surely, just a matter of checking a computer) and the confusing manner in which they told me about this (why did it take three e-mails?) are both very irritating.

So, I would recommend this website to anyone looking at their options in large bra sizes. But I would be very wary of ordering from them again.

Summary: