Still good reviews for eShakti.com?

August 19, 2021 2:47 AM

Asking for a friend. I passed along the website, often mentioned here in the past, to a friend who enjoys dresses and she is thrilled. Then I realized I have never utilized it myself. Has anyone purchased from the site recently and been happy with the customization? Fabric? Service? Delivery time? If you don't care to answer here, memail or the email in my profile will reach me. Thx so much, I don't want to steer my pal wrong and... so much could have changed, ya know?
posted by alwayson_slightlyoff to Clothing, Beauty, & Fashion (14 answers total)

I order from eshakti regularly and still love it. I order custom sizes and they generally fit perfectly (it's been a couple of years since I had a minor miss).

I will say that I only order knits, because I need some stretch in my clothes. But I've ordered at least three new dresses this year and they were still the quality and service I would expect, and a bit cheaper, I think.
posted by gideonfrog at 4:37 AM on August 19, 2021 [2 favorites]

I similarly recommended eShakti to my mother without ever having used the site myself! She was looking for some special occasion dresses and was frustrated by the lack of sleeves in stores, so she ordered a couple of dresses from the site. She’s very pleased with everything she ordered, and I can vouch that the quality of her dresses is great. We were both pleasantly surprised because the price points made us skeptical. I’ll definitely consider ordering from the site for myself as well.
posted by katie at 5:17 AM on August 19, 2021 [1 favorite]

I should add, since you’re concerned the site might have declined over time, that my mom just ordered her items in June. The whole experience was top notch! And she is picky about fabrics, fit, and quality… she usually purchases her dresses at Bloomingdales, Lord and Taylor, Nordstrom, etc.
posted by katie at 5:21 AM on August 19, 2021

I last ordered a couple of years ago, dresses were as specified on website customisation for height was good, no problems with delivery. Plan to order again in future, but haven't needed work dresses for a while due to pandemic.
posted by plonkee at 5:41 AM on August 19, 2021

They had a line for awhile that was called eShakti Basics or something like that which was deliberately cheaper items, and the one thing I bought from that line was pretty terrible, but it isn't on their website anymore, so other people must have agreed with me.

There are still variations in eShakti quality, and I tend to avoid things they describe as lightweight knits because I think they are often not great.

But on the whole, I think that if anything, their quality has improved over time, not decreased.
posted by jacquilynne at 6:35 AM on August 19, 2021 [1 favorite]

Bought a dress from them a month ago; great fit and lovely.
posted by A Terrible Llama at 7:06 AM on August 19, 2021

Bought a skirt a few weeks ago. My experience was just as good as everyone else's here. Will be buying again from them soon.
posted by angiep at 7:14 AM on August 19, 2021

My wife has ordered from them often and loves it. Her one complaint after losing weight recently was that her eShakti clothes no longer fit, because they were her favorites*. I reminded her that, on a positive note, she gets to order more clothes from them, which she is looking forward to.

(*She knows she can get them altered, but decided to donate them to a local "Dress for Success" charity that helps people gain employment.)
posted by The Deej at 7:53 AM on August 19, 2021 [2 favorites]

Response by poster: Oh that is excellent news! Thank you all so much for your detailed comments, that is just what I needed to hear, and I feel comfortable relaying the good news to my friend. She rarely orders online, as opposed to me, so this will reassure her. And who knows perhaps I will break down and order a dress lol Imagine being able to order 3/4 sleeves, or raise a neckline!
You folks are great, as always!!
posted by alwayson_slightlyoff at 10:49 AM on August 19, 2021 [1 favorite]

The only person I’ve known who was unhappy with it didn’t check the fabric type before ordering and got a synthetic, so if that matters to your friend mention it.
posted by clew at 12:27 PM on August 19, 2021

I have atypical measurements (plus size lady with a smaller bust, flat butt, and big tummy) and haven't had the best luck with custom sizes. But I might be measuring wrong. The garment quality itself has been fine.
posted by rivenwanderer at 12:33 PM on August 19, 2021

I order from them regularly - I also prefer the knits to the poplins (the fabric seems sturdier to me). I’ve found that I probably return about half of what I order. I’ve found that sometimes the sleeves run tight, if that’s a concern, but you can specify measurements on that as well.
posted by Mchelly at 3:34 PM on August 19, 2021

Response by poster: Okay, those last are good points -- I know I frequently have an issue with tight sleeves, not sure if that might be a problem for her. But I did notice that you can specify measurements on that.

Thanks!
posted by alwayson_slightlyoff at 7:44 PM on August 19, 2021

Rescinding my recommendation - I had to return something and after months of checking in with them they "can't find it [the returned item]".

I had the return authorization e-mail in the box and sent through UPS. I was happy to take a gift card or whatever. Months after the fact, they wanted my UPS shipping number. No, I didn't have it. I also had to pay extra for shipping initially ($25) because I neglected to use their QR code label on the return. So I ate that cost in addition to the cost of the item.

If UPS had been unable to deliver it, I would have gotten it back by now.

And what I got was just 'we can't find it, we'll let you know.' And then they ceased all communication.

It was a bummer.
posted by A Terrible Llama at 3:43 PM on September 25, 2021