Forever 21 is known for thrifty offerings at economic prices. They started in 1984 as a 900 square foot space in Los Angeles and grew to a company that has over $3.4 billion in revenue and 480 locations. They also have one of the largest online stores in the industry. Their modern stores, the Flagship XXI stores, have over 24,000 feet of retail space. Forbes ranked Forever 21 as the 122nd largest privately held company in the United States.
They market mostly their own brands online. Some of their brands include Forever 21 and Love 21. They have brands for children, and they also carry fragrances and jewelry.
They want to become an $8 billion company and open 600 stores by 2017.
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The Good
- Low prices and countless promotions
- Clothing options for women, men, and children
- Free shipping on orders over $50
- Transparent and helpful FAQ section
The sticker price of their items are consistently a great bargain for shoppers. It is a challenge to find clothing items priced over $100 on their site. Many of their apparel items are priced in the range between $20-$30. Not only are their initial asking prices low, they also offer consistent promotions that provide even more value. These promotions vary by time of year, but it is not uncommon to see 30% off certain categories of clothing. They also offer a sales tab that offers a large variety of other discount clothing items for purchase. These categories and products for sale also vary over time, however it is common to find quality options for men, women, and children consistently.
You are able to shop for women, men, and children on their website. This is different than some other competing online clothing stores that only provide clothing options for one or two types of customers. Women tend to have the most options of the three groups, however all three are offered a valuable shopping experience. Women can shop through countless clothing categories including dresses, blouses, shirts, tees and tanks, swimwear, sweaters, and much more. Men can shop through categories including tees and tanks, suiting, pants, shorts, sweatshirts, and more. For kids, you are able to choose between girls and boys options that have products ranging from shirts, shorts, and sweaters. Other main categories on the Forever 21 site include New Arrivals, Contemporary, Accessories, and Plus Sizes.
Free shipping is available when orders total over $50. This is consistent with other similar top online clothing stores. It is only available to customers shipping to locations inside the 48 contiguous states of the United States. Other than offering free shipping in this way, they have other competitive shipping policies. Most orders are shipped from 24 hours of when an order has been placed online. They are able to ship to all 50 states in the U.S. and do have international shipping options. They offer three main types of shipping methods; Standard, Express, and Next Day. Standard shipping typically has products arriving within 4 to 9 business days to the continental United States. Express shipping typically arrives within 2 to 3 business days to locations inside the continental United States. Next day shipping typically arrives the day after the order has been processed. Again, these polices are competitive with other top online clothing providers. Not only are their shipping policies sound, they also sport 480 physical locations across the country. This gives shoppers another avenue to get their clothing items from them.
When shopping online, if you have questions regarding seemingly anything involving your potential shopping experience you will be able to find answers right on the Forever 21 site. They have a Frequently Asked Questions section that reviews their polices and procedures for shopping with them. For example, both shipping and return policies are spelled out in great detail to provide needed information and quality transparency. They also go into detail regarding checking on order status and redeeming gift cards and e-gift certificates.
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The Bad
Their return policy leaves some customers wanting when being compared to some of the other top online clothing stores. For online orders, clothing items are able to be returned within 30 days of the original purchase date. This is not a no questions asked return policy. Customers are not able to return merchandise with gift cards, e-gift certificates, jewelry, and fragrance products. Returns must be made by mail for refunds. Refunds are issued through a refund to the original payment method. You are able to make returns to physical stores, however, those returns can only be redeemed as an exchange or store credit.
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The Bottom Line
Forever 21 provides its customers with a valuable shopping experience for a number of reasons. They have competitively low prices, countless consistent promotions, and free shipping offered when orders total over $50. They also provide stylish clothing items for women, men, and kids. Their clothing items are a great choice for those in their early twenties seeking a stylish and trendy wardrobe. In spite of all their positive aspects, we do not recommend them as an online clothing store at this time. Most online clothing stores are going to have some customer service related issues involving shipping, handling and returns. If an online store seems to not provide top service when those situations arise, it is difficult to choose them as a shopping destination over a better and more sound customer response team.