Every year consumer online shopping and spending increases. The average online purchase is now approaching $250 with consumers becoming more confident in buying higher ticket items such as electronics to cars, even homes. Online shopping has no closing time, it’s open 24/7 and retailers have significantly reduced shipping times. Loyalty programs that promote retailers offer incentives for shopping online, such as cashback, gift certificates and point redemption for merchandise.
The vintage clothing sector has benefited from this increased activity as well. Several retailers have simply closed their physical brick & mortar establishments to setup online. A worldwide customer base and less overhead expenses are a significant attraction to running an online website. With the current fashion trend of vintage clothing and vintage inspired clothing being seen on major catwalks, as well as the important efforts for saving the environment, the future for vintage websites is a healthy one!
SomeLikeItVintage.com has been selling vintage clothing & housewares online since 2005, first starting on ebay. In 2006, we re-launched with a brand new website. Establishing consumer confidence and trust is what we have successfully achieved by offering exceptional customer service.
With an online store, customer service must be assured as there is no face to face contact between consumer and retailer. Even a large, well known retailer with an encrypted, secure website needs to be re-assuring their customers. It can still be nerve wracking to make a purchase online. Not being able to actually try clothing on before a purchase is a shift in consumer behaviour and they must be able to trust the online retailer. By taking detailed photographs and listing detailed descriptions of our items, SomeLikeItVintage.com puts a consumer’s mind at ease when making an online purchase. The more information they have, the more comfortable they become while online shopping. A full refund policy also makes shopping risk free. That dress may look great in the photos but not on you! Send it back and receive a full refund, no hassles. Most, if not all shopping websites have customer service phone numbers to call if you just don’t want to key in your credit card information over the internet, but still wish to make that purchase.
During the design phase of our website, we looked at hundreds of other shopping websites. Many websites are simply not easy to navigate with too much information hitting the consumer right away. We wanted to eliminate the rush of information overload and allow our customers to get to what they wanted to see, as quickly as possible. Our filtering system allows customers to choose how they wish to browse: by price, by size, by style of garment, or simply type in a word in the search box. If a store in a shopping mall just threw all their clothes onto the racks without sorting, customers would quickly become discouraged and leave. We found many vintage sites lumping all their clothes into era-specific categories, and while this is helpful, one must sort through all the dresses to find one that would even be close in size. It simply takes too long. Our website was designed to be user friendly, efficient, safe and quick to navigate.
The owner of SomeLikeItVintage.com is a woman who has had over 20 years experience in customer servicee. No request is too small or too big to accomodate and everything possible will be done to fulfill it. She has also decided to donate 10% of all her sales to local women’s shelters in Toronto, Canada. Having been a victim of severe domestic abuse, she survived being held hostage by her fiancé for 18 months whereby he physically and mentally tortured her, trying to kill her dozens of times. He is currently serving a 15 year sentence in a Canadian prison.
As well as monetary donations, Ms. Cizmar volunteers her time at a local women’s shelter, inspiring other women and their children to be courageous and strong in the face of domestic violence. Working toward her black belt in Wado Ryu karate also keeps this busy lady physically and mentally strong!
Vintage clothing has been a longtime passion for Ms Cizmar, as well as the idea of reducing waste. Born to parents who lived through the depression, re-using, reducing and recyling was simply a way of life. Ms. Cizmar currently expands on this philosophy not just by finding fabulous vintage items to re-love, but re-creating stunning garments from vintage clothing. This private label, “Creative Vintage” gives another life to an otherwise unwearable garment. Less landfill, less waste, no emissions. Simple.
SomeLikeItVintage.com ships worldwide, and has several promotions throughout the year. Contests, free shipping days, bargain bin deals and a wonderful, large selection of vintage and retro items.
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Shop.org is the network for retailers online. Its 600 members include the 10 largest retailers in the U.S., and 70 percent of the Internet Retailer Top 100 E-Retailers. It’s where the best retail minds come together to gain the insight, knowledge, and intelligence to make smarter, more informed decisions in the evolving world of the Internet and multichannel retailing. Founded in 1996, Shop.org became a division of the National Retail Federation in January 2001. Shop.org programs and activities include benchmarking research, events and networking communities.
Ten Tips for Shopping Online This Holiday Season
1. Plan Ahead. Having a set list of gifts you intend to buy helps minimize confusion, especially if you intend to make multiple purchases through several websites. Shop.org encourages consumers to start their online holiday shopping at www.cybermonday.com, a site which will offer current promotions of more than 400 online retailers throughout the holiday season.
2. Shop safely online by using common sense. A golden rule of online shopping is that if something seems like it’s too good to be true, it probably is and you should avoid it. Shop with retailers that you trust. If you aren’t familiar with an online retailer, look for privacy and security seals, which indicate that their security and privacy measures have been verified.
3. Make sure your gifts arrive in time. Check retailers’ shipping deadlines, which are featured prominently on most retail websites. The information ensures that customers understand the last day when they can place orders for arrival by Christmas or Hanukkah. After standard shipping deadlines pass, many retailers will offer shipping upgrade promotions with later deadlines.
4. Know the retailers’ return and exchange policies. Return policies vary, so knowing ahead of time whether or not you will have to ship back returns or exchanges or if you can return them to the physical store in your area will help in the long run. Also be sure to find out who covers the cost of shipping if you need to return or exchange an item.
5. Ship gifts directly to the recipient. Most online retailers can ship items to a different location than your billing address. During the holiday season, when many people are traveling, take advantage of this feature by sending gifts ahead of your arrival. Some companies can even ship to multiple locations so you don’t have to lug holiday gifts all across the country.
6. For instant gratification (or holiday procrastinators), buy online then pick up in the store. Many retailers offer a “buy online, pick up in store” option. Check with your favorite retailers to see if this is a service they offer, then skip the crowds and head straight to the customer service counter where your items will be waiting.
7. Read the fine print. Retailers list important information such as privacy policies, warranty information, item descriptions, terms of agreement and company information on their websites. Much of this information is very useful, but is displayed in a smaller font.
8. If you aren’t comfortable paying with a credit card, research other payment options. Retailers place a tremendous importance on keeping their websites safe and protecting customers’ information. But for shoppers who are still nervous about paying by credit card, other options are often available. Online retailers offer a variety of services, from letting customers fax in an online order to accepting third-party payment options. Some retailers also allow gift cards to be redeemed online.
9. “Check it Twice” before confirming purchase. Before you complete an online purchase, double check billing and credit card information, shipping address and total cost of the order. This will eliminate any potential panic after you’ve hit the final “confirm” or “submit” button. And remember not to click “submit” twice.
10. Start a file folder. First, print and save all confirmations of your purchases. This will help in many ways, from returning or exchanging items to verifying credit card or bank statements. Also, write down each purchase. It’s easy to forget how much you’ve spent if you don’t keep track of it. This will help both budget holiday spending and balance your checkbook.
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