I recently discovered the fashion subscription service, Nuuly, created by URBN. If you haven’t heard of URBN before, the family of brands include Free People, Urban Outfitters and Anthropologie. These stores just happen to be some of my favorite places to shop– and they aren’t exactly the cheapest to shop it. So of course when I discovered the service, I had to test it out! I was pretty stoked to pick out the items for my first order. Unfortunately it didn’t quite live up to my expectations. BUT, with that being said, I think Nuuly has potential to be something really cool! Anyways, let’s break down this Nuuly review, shall we?
My First Experience with Nuuly
How Does Nuuly Work?
So every month you receive 6 items for $88 (plus tax). Your month starts when you order and your items have to be back before the month is over, so more like a little over 3 weeks of use. During the month you can’t exchange items– no matter if they don’t fit, arrive damaged, or aren’t what you expected. This is important to note because when I was first told about Nuuly, it was compared to Rent the Runway, which offers unlimited items switched out during the month.
At the end of the month you can decide if you want to keep anything and purchase it at a discount, or you can send the items back. The $88 covers shipping the items back (and receiving them), as well as any damages + dry cleaning of the items after you use them.
My First Nuuly Order
Here are the 6 items I ordered for my first Nuuly:
- High Demand Faux-Fur Jacket by Apparis. Retail $255.
- Domi Midi Skirt by Maeve x Anthropologie. Retail $110.
- 311 Shaping Skinny Jeans by Levi’s. Retail $89.
- Foreign Travels Robe Dress by Chufy. Retail $590.
- Leopard Print Smock Dress by ML Monique Lhuillier. Retail $445.
- Ombré Fringe Rancher Jacket by Levi’s. Retail $228.
Of my 6 items, 2 were damaged and 3 didn’t fit. The jeans fit (well, by the end of 1 wear they were too big, but for sake of this conversation they were wearable). The duster fit— but was damaged in multiple places. I didn’t notice the damages until I was frantically getting dressed at 6am to present at Texas Travel Ideafest, and I decided to still wear it because I didn’t have anything else ready. The cute leopard dress arrived with issues in the seams and didn’t lay flat (was such a bummer because this was what I originally wanted to wear to present). I also got 2 jackets and a skirt- none of which fit… WOMP.
I’m hopeful as more people start using the service, more reviews on fit will help other gals when picking items. But when you’re in-between sizes/sizes aren’t the same across the board, it can be a bit of a gamble.
What Happens if My Nuuly Items Don’t Fit or Arrive Damaged
Unfortunately neither the things that were damaged or didn’t fit could be replaced. So my first order I wore the jeans twice and the duster once- and spent just under $100 to do so. Kinda rough considering the jeans retail for $89… I could have just bought them for the price of the month. And I would have worn the duster more had it not being damaged.
Hopefully not being able to get replacements for damaged items is something they can work through in the future, but right now they just offer a discount on future orders (25% is what they offered me).
My Overall Thoughts + Nuuly Review
There are a ton of great pieces available to choose from— jeans, jackets, dresses — and amazing brands to choose from. I think they have quite a few kinks to work out- especially not being able to make good for items arriving damaged. I’m hopeful that sizing will start to get better as more reviews come in… but I wish they could provide more substance for shoppers when trying to figure out if the items will fit. I also am not hugely impressed with the selection of items for size 14 and up, but I feel like the inventory will grow with time. I’ll be sure to update my Nuuly review with any major changes as time goes on, too.
If you try the service, I’d love to hear your thoughts/see what you pick out! Tag me on Instagram, @StreetsBeatsEats or leave a comment here.
[…] not I leave feeling defeated. For these reasons, I’ve become the freakin’ queen of both online shopping and the “grab and go to try on at home method”. Sometimes I regret that I didn’t […]