Reviews
Rent The Runway
Experience
Was an early adopter of RTR back in 2010. It was a dream brand then... amazing customer service, access to super cute, trendy, special occasion dresses that were perfect. When they grew, I tried the Unlimited subscription for a few months during a time when there were many weddings, business events, travel opportunities. Although there were some hiccups in swapping items (it took forever to get a new piece), the value was still better than going out to buy new clothing. Today, I guess now after 10 years, the RTR experience is barely recognizable to me. It's difficult to access the best pieces, there are too many crap items on the website to sift through, and Unlimited is not worth the money. Customer service is impersonal and sometimes completely incompetent. Although I will say that the reusable garment bag has been improved quite a lot!
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Better customer service, smarter and more personalized database of items, faster returns/swaps.
LIVELY
Experience
The T-shirt bras are a staple. The cross-back hook makes them very versatile. They're comfortable and flattering.
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The no-wire bras are significantly less comfortable than the wire ones. The edge of the bra just digs in! Hopefully that can be fixed in future iterations.
Allbirds
Experience
I was a very early adopter of Allbirds. An Instagram ad got to me! The product design and mission turned me into an instant fan and advocate. I listened to a podcast about how the Allbirds founder got started, which is a great story that you I want to root for. But then after a while, everyone got a pair. One time while waiting to board a flight from LA to NYC, literally 10 other 20 or 30-something-year-olds had the same shoe on while carrying the towing the same Away carry-on. It was embarrassing LOL.
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The tongue would often curl into itself, which made wearability a little less comfortable. Not exactly sure what makes that happen, but that's probably my only complaint.
Dagne Dover
Experience
Neoprene makeup bag is my travel staple. It holds everything and is light (the key to make the cut for my carry-on). I also have the midi tote and clutch in Oxblood, my favorite of their colors. Super luxe and well made.
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The newer designs veer away from the timelessness and clean silhouettes that first attracted me to the brand. They feel way too trendy to invest my $ in. To keep my business, go back to the classics.
Appointed
Experience
Got the planner from my 2020 Thingtesting Secret Santa ;) and I've enjoyed using it to keep my work organized! The quality of the notebook is wonderful. Paper thickness and smoothness is exactly what I like.
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An extra "notes" section in the annual planner would be helpful.
Act+Acre
Experience
The Cold Processed Scalp Detox is innovative and worth the money. However, I found the Shampoo and Conditioner quality and bottling to not be worthwhile. The pumps that arrived didn't really function well. They screwed on a bit off-centered and just looked cheap. The pumps were also difficult to get all of the product out of the small containers. I ended up just having to remove the pump and keep the container upside down to make sure that could use up every last bit of product.
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New bottle design. It would work so much nicer as a squeeze tube with a bottom opening.
ButcherBox
Experience
Started a Butcher Box subscription just a few months after the first 2020 lockdown, after finally getting off the waitlist (1 month). I really like the flexibility of the custom box, where I can pick and choose what I want. The packaging is what impressed me immediately. Box arrived more compact than expected and everything inside remained frozen. Nothing was damaged or broken. This was the case for the first 3 or 4 orders. Nearly all of the proteins met or exceeded my expectations. High-quality, well-packed, and delicious. Most favorite: pork shoulder. Least favorite: chicken breast. The bonus packs of bacon were also nice! The biggest challenge was making sure that I had enough freezer space to hold everything. I don't feel like Butcher Box replaces my trips to my neighborhood butcher for premium meat and specialty products, but it does give me the option of buying higher-quality beef, chicken, pork than what I can find at my usual grocery store for a reasonable markup.
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Nothing.
Scout
Experience
I really, really want to love the product because I am an avid tinned/canned fish user and sustainable seafood supporter. The mission, packaging, and brand are excellent. But the product itself falls short, at least for me. The lobster meat texture was too soft, borderline mushy, and the tuna was just so-so. The oil didn't taste great and meat was a bit dry. Having lived in Madrid and getting to try all of the tinned/canned fish brands of Spain and Portugal, I know what the quality and potential of this format of preserved seafood can be.
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Product quality, taste, texture, flavor. There needs to be some more calibration or maybe research to get this product to live up to its wonderful brand image.
Usual Wines
Experience
Great, easy-to-drink wine in a fun and stylish bottle. Love the single-serving nature of it. It's a great gift to give and receive.
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Nothing, really!
Nick's
Experience
I first learned of Nick's through a good friend who helped launch the brand in the US. Product-wise, I prefer Nick's over other "light" icecreams. The calorie and carb count seemed honestly too good to be true at first, but then I dug into their product story and learned all about the use of allulose as the sweetener. After trying the icecream, I was hooked. The Triple Choclad is ESPECIALLY tasty and by far my favorite. Receiving icecream in the mail is tricky. As an early user, I definitely got a box or two that wasn't packaged perfectly or the product had par-melted. Their customer service was very on point, however, and was able to re-ship immediately. Price point is a bit high, but it helps to manage my icecream consumption ;)
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More Triple Choclad-like varieties please :)