Fancy Dress - A Guide To Buying Online

The most common complaints regarding buying fancy dress online are:

The costume is of low quality.
The costume is badly sized
The costume did not arrive in time.
Customer service was not knowledgable or not even available.

The main questions are...
'How do you know that you are dealing with a reputable business?' Lets be honest, you can have a web based business running from a garden shed. Well, firstly you should find out if the website runs alongside a retail costume shop. This is important because the people who you will be dealing with will know the costumes and accessories that are being sold. They would have seen the items being tried on in the shop and if you contact them, they are in a position to answer your questions honestly. An established costume shop will also be aware that their reputation is at stake. Bad news travels just as fast as good news! If the website is not based alongside a retail shop they may not be in a position to take a costume out to measure it for you.

Do they offer a money back guarantee? This shows that the business has confidence in its products. However, do check out the small print, there will be certain Terms & Conditions. Is everything covered? Some items may not be, due to hygiene reasons.

How much is delivery? The cost of the item may be lower than other sites, but is the postage higher? What type of postal service is being used? Royal Mail will not admit a recorded delivery package is lost for 15 working days, so be aware of what the postage policy is. Most Next Day Services will be for a Monday - Friday service only. Do not order your item on a Saturday and expect it to be delivered on the following Monday. Are the goods tracked. Some sites offer a very low postage price, but your item is not traceable and some sites will not assume responsibility if your goods are lost in transit.

Delivery charges will also depend on whether the consignment is traceable throughout the delivery process. Is a signature required? Most courier companies will not leave a consignment unless a signature has been obtained. Can you get the item delivered to your place of work?

Can you contact this company by telephone, or do they charge more for this service? We believe that you should be able to contact us 7 days a week, either by telephone or by email, whichever you prefer and we do not charge more for a telephone service.

Do order your item in plenty of time. No matter what postal service is being used, once the item has been sent, it is basically out of the sender's control. So reduce the risk of being disappointed by giving yourself enough time. At peak times, such as Christmas, deliveries will almost certainly be slower, so please give the company a chance to make sure you have your items in plenty of time for your function.

Be realistic. If you are purchasing a low cost costume, the costume will not be to the same standard as a more expensive one. Cheap, budget costumes can look fantastic with the correct lighting

Costume sizing has been and is still an issue. Luckily manufactures are waking up to the fact that not everybody is a size 10 and larger sizes are now being catered for. Do not assume. Unless the costume description actually states what size it is I would double check with the company. A good company will happily measure (or have this information at the ready). Be honest about your size.

Any good company will give their contact details very clearly and WILL allow you to ring them up and talk to a 'real' person as sometimes this is exactly what you have to do even if it is just to put your mind at rest.

Check when the company is available to take your call, or email as you will want an answer quite quickly to your question.

From a business owner's point of view, I want to get it right first time. A costume that has been sent out and subsequently returned, costs me money. My company would rather spend a bit of time with you on the 'phone, or via email, to make sure that you get exactly what you want.

Let you imagination run wild, you can be whoever you want to be.

Fancy dress parties get going straight away, there is no need to wait for the alcohol to start flowing. Fancy dress is also very good at getting people to mix, so is a great idea for engagement parties and other functions where guests will not know each other very well.

Choose your theme carefully. Think about the age range of your guests, and also the different sizes. You can't ever choose a theme that will suit all of your friends and family, but try and be realistic. If they need a very strict theme, give them one, but if you know that they will happily 'think outside the box' you could try a more obscure theme such as a Letter party, or London Underground Tube Stations.

You May Find What You Are Looking For On eBay...

Interesting a third of you (so far) have purchased a fancy dress costume online in the past. However, nearly 80% of you were not happy with the costume.

I am going to add another question to try and find out why you were not happy.

The quality of costumes online is increasing all the time. With great lighting even the poorest costume can look fantastic. Please be realistic, if the costume is very cheap, it probably is being made to a budget price and you cannot expect too much. the description of the product should also explain this.

If the problem is poor customer service, I can understand your frustration. Problems do occur, but comminication is the most important thing. Keep your customer informed and you can then address the problem, or offer an alternative. Always try and use a website that really emphasises customer service. At Props n Frocks, we keep our customers informed throughout the entire process and do not presume the sale is complete until the goods have been received and our customer is happy with their item. You cannot please all the people, all the time, and the Returns Policy should be easy to follow and understand. I would always recommend a company that allows you to contact a 'real' person 7 days a week, by email, or if you prefer, by telephone to discuss your requirements.

Why not be a bit different and have your own costume party. As I have already said, these type of parties are just fantastic.

We have plenty of theme ideas on our other lenses (check out some of the links on this page) to help you choose your theme and we are always looking for new themes to work with. If you have a brilliant idea for a party, just pop it into the comment box at the end of the lens. We've recently been asked for advice about television adverts as a theme. So watch this space, I am sure a new lens will be appearing soon!