If only all high street shopping was this easy (riverisland.com)

Member Name: karalouk

Product:	riverisland.com
Date:	12/08/09 (300 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: Nice layout and easy to navigate around, fast delivery, free returns, some lovely clothes

Disadvantages: Some sizes sold out, cant try before you buy, have to pay extra for delivery, no codes, bit pricey

I recently visited a River Island store and saw a gorgeous dress. I wanted the dress for a funeral which I was attending 4 days later but it was also something that I could wear plenty of times afterwards. They only had one dress in my size and it had a damage to it. I asked if they had anymore and they said no and pretty much sent me on my way (don't even get me started!). I then visited another River Island store the next day and they had none at all. In a last ditch attempt I visited the website - RiverIsland.Com.

I have visited the website before but never with the intention of ordering anything. I usually just browse the website and if something catches my eye I go in store and buy it.

The website loads up very quickly, as does each page and each link. The site is well laid out and easy to navigate around.

At the top of the homepage are three links - 'women', 'men' and 'info'. When you click on 'women' it brings up a menu which includes 'just arrived', 'get the look', 'sun shop', 'tops', 'jeans', 'dresses/skirts/playsuits', 'knitwear', 'leggings/trousers/shorts', 'jackets/coats/leathers', 'swimwear/lingerie/loungewear', 'bags', 'footwear', 'accessories/gifts', 'jewellery' and 'sale'. You can then click one of these links which brings up another, more specific menu. For example if you click on 'jeans' you then get a selection of 'skinny/straight', 'boyfriend/slouch' or 'bootleg/kickflare'. This is a great way of doing things as it means you don't have to sift through pages of things that you don't want.

The mens menu includes 'just arrived', 'get the look', 'sunshop', 't-shirts/hoodies', 'shirts', 'knitwear', 'brands', 'jeans', 'shorts/swim shorts', 'suits/trousers', 'jackets/leathers', 'footwear', 'accessories' and 'sale'. It has exactly the same lay out as the womens.

The website doesn't model clothes on people which means you can think about how things are going to look on you rather than some size zero model. The clothes are also set on top of a white background which makes them really stand out and allows you to get a good look at them. Most womens garments come in size 6 - 18 which is great as long as you're no bigger than a size 18! There is usually more than one page per catagory and you can scroll through all of the pages via arrows (and page numbers). The pages slide across the screen which looks quite fun but I wouldn't concentrate on it too hard as it makes your eyes go a bit fuzzy!

River Island is quite a modern, trendy and young store. The website also has a link to a 'style insider' page which includes blogs, competitions and celebrity looks. Although I'm not a total fashion fanatic that cares what celebrities are wearing, I do tend to see things in River Island every now and again that just catch my eye. It's abit of an all rounder as they have some really girlie stuff, some quite plain and practical stuff, some retro stuff, some unique stuff and quite 'out there' stuff etc.

The downsides to the website is that you can't try before you buy - you could end up with something that doesn't fit or suit you. Some River Island garments are also quite expensive and might not be suitable for those on a tight budget, plus the added delivery charge which you wouldn't have to pay if you brought in store. I have also noticed that quite a few sizes are out of stock, particularly on super nice items and sale items.

I have looked around for promotional codes (money off/discounts/free shipping etc) but have never found any. From what I understand River Island never do codes which is a little bit dissapointing.

You need to set up an account to buy from RiverIsland.Com, which includes a few personal details and doesn't take long at all. Once you are registered you can log on to your account any time you visit the website. If you have placed an order you can also see its status from your account - eg. pending, dispatched. You are also sent an order number to your inbox so you can track your parcel after it has been dispatched.

Something which I find excellent is that returns are totally free, no matter what the reason. Items can be returned to any store, returned via free parcel collection service or returned by freepost (there is a peel-off returns label in with your invoice).

The website also has a very good help and info section and should be able to answer any of your questions.

Anyway, back to my story! I found the dress I was looking for on the website, it was priced the same as in the shop but I had to pay extra for delivery. Standard delivery costs £3.95 (for an entire order, no matter how big) but I needed the dress within 3 days so I chose express delivery which costs £6.95 (for an entire order, no matter how big). Standard delivery takes around a week and express delivery takes around 48 hours. I ordered the dress at 11.30am and at 11.30am the next day my dress was sitting on my doorstep in a lovely (100% degradable), bright green package!

Overall I had a brilliant experience of RiverIsland.Com and won't hesitate to order from them again (assuming that I can't get what I need in store). I found exactly what I needed and they got it to me super fast - well in time for my important event.

And all from the comfort of my own sofa!

Summary: Shopping in my pyjamas, yes please!