Dear future bride/Groom,

CONGRATULATIONS! You are about to start a brand new chapter of your life together! However as we all know, getting married is NOT one of the simplest things on our lives. There are too many tasks need to be prepared, appointment need to be made, and THE DRESS need to be ordered!!!

The last thing we want to happen is realizing that the dress we have ordered is NOT AVAILABLE anymore because the seller/website is either not legit or the dress is not from the authentic designers.

So the question is how can we protect ourselves from this happening. How to succesfully buy a product online or on eBay knowing that the products we ordered are authentic and correct? Before we go ahead and just order from any seller who has the lowest price, use the checklist below to safeguard yourself.

1. How to tell if the seller/website is legit?

• Does it show the real company name?

• If not, ask for it. All legitimate companies who carry designers’ brand have their zipcode and business name registered under the designer’s website. For example, if you visit Alfred Angelo website, and input zip code 10002, you will see ‘Just Pretty Bridal Inc.’ in it. ***STAY AWAY FROM ONES WHO’S HIDING ITS REAL IDENTITY***

• Does it have a retailer brick and mortal store?

• 99% of the bridal designer requires a brick and mortal (physical) store presence in order to carry their dresses.

2. Once we scaled down to the legit companies, how to best choose them?

• Customer Service

• Send them few emails with questions and see how fast, accurate, courteous the responses are. Don’t hesitate to ask questions, most of the companies are more than happy to assist to earn your business.

• Feedbacks

• Take a detailed examination of their history such as number of years in business.

• Were most of the feedbacks good vs bad? Now vs then?

• How many feedbacks total.

• Return Policies or Guarantees?

• Any return policy if the product is defective or doesn’t fit?

• Any guarantees in case anything goes wrong with the orders?

3. And other important things to consider:

• Make sure it accepts either PayPal and/or credit card. They are your best friends when it comes to protecting you from fraud transactions.

• Take your time in selecting products, don’t ever being pushed into buying which can lead to wrong decisions.

• Always allow at least 3-4 months ahead of time for ordering the dress. This way you will have enough time to find another one in case the first one doesn’t work out.

• Get a correct measurement and fitting before ordering online so there won’t be any surprise when the dress arrives.

• If buying multiple items from the same seller or website, consider bargain with them for the best prices. Most vendors will be more than happy to offer it to you for volume business.

• Don’t always look for the lowest price. Look at the whole package in determining who to buy it from.

• “IF IT’S TOO GOOD TO BE TRUE, THEN IT MUST BE ‘FAKE’”

I hope this guide will help you protecting yourself from the potential pitfull of buying dresses/shoes and everything else online. Please don’t hesitate to contact us if you have any question. Oh yea, here is one examples of what happens when dealing with a ‘bad seller’.

BAD SELLER