My experience was good (marshallward.co.uk)

Member Name: justathought

Product:	marshallward.co.uk
Date:	29/07/09 (29 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: good website, good price, quick delivery, happy with my purchase

Disadvantages: price increased in the 2 days I looked at my item

I had previously thought Marshall Ward was an 'old lady' shop, so when I was looking for a decently priced swimdress, and one from Marshall Ward came up in my search, I was surprised that it was quite nice.

Marshall Ward is a brand of the Shop direct group, whose other brands include
* Additions Direct
* Choice
* Empire Stores
* Great Universal
* Kays
* Littlewoods
* Very
* Littlewoods Ireland

Strangely, all of these seem to have the same products, but either at different prices, or some have a delivery charge and some don't, so if you were going to buy something, I'd check which of these had the smallest price!

The website is very easy to navigate; the phone number is clearly shown at the top, there is a search bar, and buttons with all the different categories (Women, Men, Kids & Nursery, Sports & Leisure, Home & Garden, Furniture, Electricals, Gifts & Jewellery, Toys & Games, and Offers).

Once you have clicked on your item, a clickable picture of the product appears, which can be zoomed in on. On some of the items, there is more than one image of the item (to show alternative colours, how it looks from the back etc). Many of the items have been given a rating out of 5 (5 is the highest). Under the rating is the number of people who have rated the item (e.g if 10 people have rated, it says '10 ratings'). On some of the other shop direct sites, there are customer reviews of items, which I find very useful to check as if an item fits badly, you'll know in advance not to buy it.

After choosing your size and colour preference, you can 'add to basket'. As I didn't have an account, I had to first register, then enter all my card details etc, which was quite simple and easy to do. Delivery cost £3.95. I think the delivery charges are higher for large goods - furniture etc, and for next day delivery.

Something strange happened though while browsing. The first time I checked the item description on the site, it was £12. The next day, it was £15. As that was still cheaper than anywhere else, I still bought it, but it did make me a little annoyed.

I was sent email confirmation for registering and a separate email confirming my order and telling me how to track my order. I ordered on a Friday night and the estimated date was for the Monday, which I was pleasantly surprised with, as it did arrive on the expected day.

I also clicked through from a cashback site (Quidco) as an extra bonus (ok it was only like £1 cashback but it made me happy!)

Overall, I was really happy with my experience of shopping at www.marshallward.co.uk and if they were cheaper than other sites for the same or a similar item, I would use them again.

Summary: a decent online shopping store. Good overall experience for me