A Fresh Site Featuring Out of This World Prices and Nowhere To Be Found Policies
Fresh
I recently tried a sample from Fresh and I had to check out the website and see what the product cost in the full size. Wow. Fresh is expensive but that didn't stop me from shopping on the site. I had heard the quality is as high as the prices.
What the Site Sells
Fresh sells skincare, make up, bath and body products, fragrance, hair care, gifts, candles, accessories, and more. All of the items are made by Fresh from what I can see. There are no "brand name" products other than those made by Fresh, a large and respected skin care and bath and body company.
Navigation
This is a very sophisticated site that catches the eye and draws a shopper in. You can look through the categories of items listed across the top and then hone down what you want via sub categories. You can also search for something specific.
When you see something you want to explore further, click on the thumbnail. A new smaller window pops open giving you the info and price of the item. I don't particularly like the little window popup method of exploring items but it isn't a huge deterrent.
Add items to your cart and watch your total rise quickly. When you are done shopping, you go to the checkout and fill out your personal info. No shipping costs are shown at that time. I really don't like not knowing what my shipping costs are before I give all my info to a site but it is becoming more prevalent these days.
Before you get your total, you have the option to purchase gift wrapping for a small fee. If you don't want that, just click past it and keep on going.
Finally, you can see what your shipping costs are. You can choose from UPS Ground, two day, or overnight shipping. The faster shipping costs are crazy expensive ($36.00 for overnight for one tube of mascara!). Ground shipping is about the same as most websites that use UPS. My one tube of Supernova Mascara was $6.00 to ship.
Tax, at least for me, is also added. The prices are killer as it is, and with shipping and tax, whew. Even I got nervous about shopping on the site despite their great reputation and reportedly great products.
My mascara cost $33.09 with tax and shipping. I plead insanity.
You use a major credit card and then get an order confirmation email. You will also get a shipping email when the item ships (usually very quickly). The order will arrive within the timeframe you chose as far as a shipping method. I chose ground and my item arrived in about six days.
My Experience
Although I got a sample of something totally different from what I bought, I chose to buy the new Supernova Mascara because the photos grabbed me and I am a huge mascara fan. This was the most expensive mascara I ever bought although the Christian Dior mascaras I bought come close as do the Lancôme ones. This was more expensive due to shipping and tax.
I wasn't really thrilled with the little pop up window that came up to tell me about the mascara because it is only about one fourth of the size of the page or less and made seeing the product and even the writing a bit tough. Not so tough that I didn't click to add to my cart though!
There are always three or four suggestions at the bottom of the little window that you can add to your cart that compliment the product you are buying. Obviously, I didn't go for it although I would have if the prices had been lower.
Checkout was painless. Seeing shipping and tax wasn't. Yikes.
I don't like that Fresh doesn't give you any info about their shipping, tax, or returns policy on the site. I did notice after my purchase that there is free shipping for orders over $60.00. I would have probably spent the extra to get free shipping but it was fairly well hidden and I totally over looked the fact that I could have saved on shipping with a little bit more in my cart.
On Sephora, they always stop you before you go to checkout and remind you that you need only add a certain amount of dollars to your order to receive free shipping. I wish Fresh would adopt that policy.
I am not sure of the free shipping for orders over $60.00 is a special promotion or an every day thing.
I can't find a returns policy anywhere on the site.
Nonetheless, my order arrived in about six days, nicely packed and very rich looking with a couple of foil samples of products included. The mascara is good but not $33.00 good.
I did not need to contact customer service or return anything.
I am not ultra impressed with this site because I expect more info from a site like this. A returns policy is a MUST and I didn't see one. The "Contact Us" link is virtually invisible. While my order went through OK, I am turned off of the site even though I know some of the products are excellent. I may shop there again sometime if there is something I just HAVE to have and can't find elsewhere but this isn't going to be a regular favorite of mine. The prices are just too high and the uncertainty of the returns policy leads me to shop elsewhere.
Shipping and Returns
Shipping is dependent on location and weight and is by UPS. You have three options — UPS ground, 2-Day, or overnight shipping. You won't find out your costs until you checkout which I hate but that is how it is. They DO charge tax, at least in my state of New York. I assume they only charge tax in states where they have stores but I am not sure.
The Returns Policy is not on the site. I could not find any information on what could be returned, if anything could be returned, or any mention of "satisfaction guaranteed". This is a huge negative to me. I don't care how good a site or manufacturer's reputation is, they should clearly state their returns policy on their site. I suppose visitors can contact the site and ask what their policies are but should we have to? It takes a few minutes to write out a quick policy and add a link.
I can't give you the returns policy but I do believe they accept returns under certain conditions.
Contact Info
According to Fresh:
For customer service and questions regarding your order please call Fresh website customer service 1 800 FRESH20 (9am - 5pm EST) or fax your requests to 617 482 3734 or you can email us at inquiries@fresh.com.
Recommendation
If you love Fresh products and want to get something from the site, go for it. If you never tried their products before, be wary. Not only are the prices very high, but there is no returns policy on the site. I would hate for anyone to spend $100.00 on something and find out they can't return it if they don't like it. The best advice I can give is to try Fresh products before ordering or contact them and get their policies in an email so that you can produce that email if you need to return something.
Fresh products are loved by many and some of my friends swear their high prices are because their products are superior to others. Maybe. However, as far as the site goes, there are some negatives that only make it average. The popup windows, the lack of returns policy, and not knowing shipping and tax until you pay are but three of them.
3 stars with a recommendation to shop there but to do your homework first on the products and know what you want before buying - and contact the site to find out if you can return your order if you have a reaction, problem, or just don't like what you bought.
I doubt I will shop there again but would love to try some of their products. There is no Fresh store in my area (although there are several in New York) so I guess will have to seek out other sites that sell Fresh products. (The links below this review will lead you to some of those sites.)
Prices are the same whether shopping on the Fresh site or on sites that sell Fresh products so I will go where the shipping is free and there is no tax next time!
Recommended:
Yes
