Wanna Look Like Ashton Kutcher? Have Money To Burn? Start Your Fashion Evolution Here!
Written: Dec 05 '03
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In modern day America there exists an upper echelon of clothing manufacturers. By this statement I am not saying that their clothing, designs or overall product worth is better than others, just that the name has become assimilated with Hollywood stars, sold at trendy little shops and retails for 300 – 400% more than what it’s actually worth. With that being said, I’ll openly admit my addiction of clothing, boots and off beat accessories but even a hard-core junkie like myself might turn up an eyebrow at what the site has to offer. Now, I am not someone that hates designers or overpriced clothing, its just that I can’t see forking out all that cash on something that looks – well – ugly as sin. You can blame part of this trend on Ashton Kutcher and his undying love of all things trashy. That’s something that I just don’t get – paying a ton of money to look like crap. If someone understands the whole trucker hat thing, please explain it to me because it went completely over my head. When I saw the baseball caps at the site and the prices below them I thought that maybe my contact lenses were foggy or had a little bit of calcium build up … alas, the price of $50.00 for a baseball hat was correct. For $50.00 that cap better have a cooling system, play MP3’s and balance my checkbook.
Products
The site is small and doesn’t offer much in the way of selection however the products that they do offer are trendy, popular and on the obscene side of expensive. $132.00 for a pair of jeans? Sorry, but for that price it better come jam packed with a young Adonis who’s ready to do some housework and balance my checkbook. By far, the most popular “designer” name at the site is Diesel. I guess if you have a widely known name you can slap on whatever price tag you choose and people will still buy it. D&G was, at one point in time, featured in the women’s section but the last time I checked the line had been yanked. Maybe the prices were too high or the D&G name was competing with the other lines but the bottom line is this - are you really willing to pay $114.00 for an over the shoulder t-shirt? A vast majority of the clothing is ugly – but that’s just my personal opinion. You might go there and think that everything looks superb. Most of the selections just don’t look like they’d be very comfortable to wear either. If you are going to pay over a hundred dollars for a pair of jeans – wouldn’t you want to at least be able to sit down, move freely and be able to breathe? Looking over the jeans in the women’s section – they look more like some type of medieval torture device than active wear. Still, this doesn’t stop my friends from gently hinting that that’s what they want for a present … I guess beauty knows no pain and fashion is void of feeling.
Women’s Section
I was fully expecting to find more shoes and boots listed at the site that what I found. If you have ever seen an episode of HBO’s smash comedy series Sex In The City and fell in love with Carrie Bradshaw’s assorted footwear – chances are you’ll love what they offer. Having rather large feet myself, I might be able to fit my big toe in one of these shoes but not much more. Most of the women’s clothing is sized small so make sure you think twice before ordering something that you want clingy or you might end up with a new outfit for your favorite teddy bear rather than something for yourself. You can expect to find names like Miss Sixty, Killah and Diesel to dominate the section.
Men’s Section
Dense with t-shirts, faded jeans and thick band watches, the men’s section is just as skimpy as the women’s. The one thing I really dislike about the site is how things are arranged; instead of having all the men’s fashions and accessories grouped together they are broken down into sections and this might turn off a consumer that isn’t aware that there are other sections to look in. The man’s shoes range in price from $56.00 for Roos to $134.00 for Baliston trainers [athletic shoes]. I really had to laugh at that price because I ordered a pair for my brother a few months ago and paid half that for the identical shoe.
Outside the men’s and women’s section you’ll find accessories, watches and the listings for Diesel clothing. Sorry, no kid sized items are listed at the site but some of the women’s clothing is so small you might be able to purchase it for a child … And speaking of kids, the site has no questionable or offensive images or text [unless you are taking prices into consideration] and no pop ups. The newsletter is a great way to stay on top of things and those curious minded individuals can check out the web cam that shows various aspects of the store.
Personal Shopping Experience
All of the items that I’ve purchased from the site have been for other people. I doubt that anything they carry would fit me since I’m both tall and have an athletic build. Even if I were to order something for myself, it would have to be something that I would be able to really get my money out of and from the looks of the products I ordered and received for others – they might last me a month. I’ve ordered and received shirts and jeans but when I placed an order for a watch I was a little disappointed that it showed that it was available at the site but received an email about two hours later saying that it was out of stock. They did however offer me any of the other watches [a few were 20 – 30 dollars more] at the same price to make up for the error. When I placed orders things were handled smoothly and I received an email letting me know that my order was accepted then another when it shipped out.
Shipping
Shipping fees are based on the distance from the shipping point, your location, weight and your choices of delivery method. Most of the things I ordered cost between $6.99 and $11.99 for shipping which is pretty much an industry standard for one or two items. If you need to know the specific amount of an item, call customer service or simply add it to your card and select the UPS shipping method you prefer. Large items like coats will cost a little more but if you are already paying $150.00 for a coat – a few more dollars for shipping won’t exactly kill you.
Return Policy
Unlike most sites that offer you a 30 day return policy, Urban Evolution only extends a 15 day policy to online shoppers. To make a return call or email customer service to obtain an RMA [return merchandise authorization] number and mail it item back to them with the reason you are returning it, your name and address, RMA information and if possible a copy of the delivery ticket. Refunds to credit cards usually take less than 30 days [mine took about 11 days] which is more than acceptable. Exchanges are also handled the same way and in order to receive an exchange the item must be in new / unused condition unless there is a defect to it. The 15 day policy might scare some people off but if you are forking out this kind of money for clothing I doubt most will balk and instead of returning it for a credit, refund or exchange they’ll toss it in the back of their closet or gift it out to someone else. As usual, shipping fees won’t be refunded on merchandise that is returned or exchanged unless it’s their mistake.
Contact Information
Urban Evolution
1500 Central Avenue
Charlotte, NC 28205
[800] 704-5823
www.urbanevolution.com
sales@urbanevolution.com
Payment Options
You can pay for your order using MasterCard, Visa, American Express, Discover Card, personal check, money order or C.O.D. I’ve used both MasterCard and Visa for purchases and never had any problem with double billing, errors, overcharges or authorization. If ordering by credit card you will need to provide your CV2 / CVV2 information on the back of your MasterCard or Visa or from the front of your American Express card. This is an additional anti-fraud feature that most online stores have been adopting to prevent online credit card fraud. If you have a debit card with the MasterCard or Visa logo, look on the back of the card near the magnetic strip for the printed card number, next to that you will see a small three or four number code – that’s the CV2 / CVV2.
The Bottom Line
While I do knock this site for their prices and limited amount of stock, they do have a good customer service team and have always answered my questions quickly. I’d be hard pressed to find things at the site that I’d be able to wear – or more to the point that I’d actually want to wear – but the people I have ordered for have loved their gifts. When they arrived I had to open the packages to make sure that it was the correct style, color size etc and was pretty impressed with the quality of the clothing but personally couldn’t rationalize paying that much for a “name” or “design” on a piece of clothing.
This is definitely a site for the upwardly mobile younger crowd that places more of an emphasis on how they look rather than how comfortable they are. While I did say that the clothing I ordered as gifts were high quality, that doesn’t necessarily mean that you won’t want to kill someone after wearing the shirts or jeans for a few hours. The site treats you with respect, delivers quickly and has accurate billing and I highly recommend it for those that don’t mind paying top dollar for their wears.
As always, thanks for the read!
~^V^~ Freak ~^V^~
© 2003 Freak369
Other online clothing stores …
Trashy.com
Midnight Classics
Playboy Enterprises Online Store
T Shirt Hell
Recommended:
Yes
What product did you purchase or try to purchase? Clothing, accessories, gifts.
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