EastEssenceReviews 104

Horrific company I will never do business with again. I placed an order, realized an error, and attempted to cancel. It was a weekend so I couldn't call. I sent e-mails to the info e-mail address listed and through the "contact us" page on the website. They claim they never got either of these after I could finally reach someone via chat today. None of the links in their FAQ work so clearly this website has known issues. But because of the error with THEIR OWN website, they refuse to take responsibility. They will not allow me to do a return either despite the fact the items are brand new, just arrived today. Again, none of this should have happened to begin with because I had requested a same day cancellation. I have proof of this e-mail too but it's being refused as "we didn't get it". Okay, so there was a system error on the part of your website. You'd think they'd do the responsible thing and at least let me return the items then but no they won't. I have no choice but to escalate this through my bank now because their support will be of no assistance. Buyer beware. This is clearly not a Muslim owned company.

I sent them a PM, email, online chat, anything I can find after I made an order with express shipping and then I cannot log into my account, my email no longer exists. It has been a few days and no one at all even bothered to reply and help. Delivery is supposed to 5-8 Nov and it's now 6 Nov and I cannot even check if the order has been shipped out, I've not receive any emails from you as well about shipping. This is extremely stressful and I truly regret ordering from them.

I've ordered quite a few times from EE, and each time has been interesting. I've received gorgeous and lovely abayat, ones that I've had for years now and still wear on a day to day basis (the quality is astounding for a few of them). I love their abayat. Now, one thing to be careful of is the fabric, make sure you know exactly what fabric you are buying, and how it looks in real life, because pictures can be deceiving. But this is also true for any online shopping, just be careful. The kashibo is a strange fabric, not one I think looks particularly nice, but it does keep you cool, which is a plus. The only bad experience I've had with them was through the 'marketplace' section. I bought a dress that I'd hoped to wear for my Nikkah, and paid quite a bit for it, but what came in the mail was something that vaguely resembled a grocery bag and looked nothing like the photos. The sleeves only came to my elbows and were sheer, even though I paid for lining on the inside. There were no refunds given, but that was my own fault, I knew the items were final sale but took the chance anyways, so always make sure to purchase something that you would have the ability to refund if you were dissatisfied, otherwise its your own fault.

So, to sum it up, stay away from the market place! Anything else that is produced outside of that area I have had good luck with and enjoyed my purchase. Many of their products I have had and worn for years, great quality, even the cheaper abayat and jilbab. The only reason for three stars is because of the horrendous customer service when I reached out, I actually ended up crying afterwards. I was very disappointed with the unprofessional attitudes of the staff I spoke with and being talked down to. It was a disheartening experience.

I ended up getting a refund in the end, not from EE, but from American Express. I emailed the picture of the dress from the website, and then the picture of what I received. The customer service rep I was talking with from Amex laughed for about five minutes straight at the difference, told me I had definitely been scammed and refunded me every penny since I was a bride-to-be.

I have ordered clothes several times from East Essence over the years. I have noticed that cheap items (less than $20) look cheap and never end up looking like the website photos. I have had better luck with pricier items (I ordered a georgette fabric abaya for $69 a few years ago, and it's beautiful). However, you are taking a gamble that if things don't work out perfectly, you will have to deal with their horrible customer service. Their website says they are based in Newark, Ca, but everything I've ever ordered comes to me from India. After dealing with customer service yesterday, I also believe they are located in India. I had an issue with a package being delivered to the wrong house by DHL. I didn't know what to do, so I emailed customer service to tell them what happened. Someone named Rashmi K. Emailed me and began her email "Dear Customer." She then attached links to DHL's website showing delivery and signature of my package. I had already explained that was my issue! I responded to her and asked if her company makes an effort to help customers in situations like this, and she sent me another "Dear Customer" email that simply said they would contact DHL and let me know. Luckily, DHL sorted out their error and got my package to me. The order in question was a $14 sale tunic. I wasn't looking for a refund. Some empathy would have been nice. Now I know where I would be calling/emailing if I had a real issue with an order. Nope. I will never do business with East Essence again.
***Edited after site response***
Shazia, I appreciate your response. The fact that the escalation process was explained to me here instead of during my interaction with customer service is precisely my issue. When I contacted DHL directly, I was addressed by name, not "Dear Customer." The representative assured me she would assist with the lost package and asked me for additional details. This is why I incorrectly assumed they were the ones who corrected the issue.

Bragging about your excellent customer service record to someone with a complaint is not helpful. It would have been reassuring to know about your order replacement policy while I was corresponding with Rashmi.

Where do i start. Well I've bought a bunch of items from "worst essence" with "express order" and I've received my package a month later with two items missing, ironically the most expensive item of them too.
My issue was I spoke with these untrained
"Worst essence" costumer service for 10 times! Yes folks ten times! I've emailed about my items several times I've messaged about my items too.
To add into my frustration the representatives in "worst essence" closed the phone on me, I called back since I'm in the east coast I know damn well they are 3 hours ahead but suddenly they closed the line when I called back?!
And the the most infuriating of all is when the Half a$$ package arrived the clothes smelled horribly it was also damped as If it had been damaged by water or something of that sort, never mind the cheap fabric. IM NEVER, EVER BUYING FROM THIS UNPLEASANT AND SHADY BUSINESS.
* who ever reads this trust me you'll thank me later!

I recently ordered 130$+ worth of dresses for Eid. They did deliver on time but the sub-standard quality of the dresses (not as good as they were shown in pics on the website) put me off to the point that I went ahead and used my fresh set of washed clothes for Eid. I am terribly disappointed and also upset with their return policy. When expressed my concerns they did not even bother to make an exception to win back my confidence... i will never shop here again.

Other than taking too long to process, they do not even send you the free shipping code for your next order even though that is what they promise to entice you not to request your money back. Having to email them about it does not count as them doung what they promised in the first place. This happened to me twice. Also they are either incompetent or dishonest. I had to return an exchanged item because it still did not fit the 2nd time. I had ordered an extra item, and now they are trying to only give me credit for those extra pants and not the abaya I paid for with the credit! This is stealing around $30 from me not to mention having twice having to spend $13 to ship back stuff that does not fit. That means I completely lost $60 and have NOTHING to show for it. And now I'm stuck with $16.94 credit for a horrible company I no longer want to be doing business with. If I could afford to give away $80 I would spend it for charity and not to this company.

I have been shopping at EastEssence for years now. I am impressed again and again with the quality of the fabrics and the design. I am tall and big so I always need to special order the sizes. They always work perfectly. The hems fall right where I want them. The sleeves are always long enough for me. The coverage is always modest. I am so pleased. I spend too much money there and yet I only get a few things each year and have not gotten many of the items that I really want. Like the really beautiful abayas. You have to watch your fabrics but this is true for any store. I find the cottons much sturdier and higher quality than most cottons from other stores. One time they got my order wrong on one item and I didn't bother to return it because their return policy is complicated and not worth the trouble. The only complaint I have is it takes forever to receive my order, usually 3 weeks. So don't try shopping 2 weeks before Eid in hopes of getting your new Eid clothes on time. Plan ahead.

I ordered a "halal" swimsuit online. They have PRESET measurements. I chose "regular", ensuring the pant length would be good. When I got it a month later (their promise: 7-12 business days), the Tunic was 31" and so short it barely comes to the crotch line! Unable to wear in public! When I contacted them, they were more interested in repeating that they don't take returns nor exchanges on swimsuits (I get that), and would Not allow me to buy a longer Tunic (only come as a set and a longer tunic meant longer pants (hemming would ruin the pattern) nor would they send extra material to add to the tunic. When I pointed out ALL the models on the website show the tunic hem comes to just above the knee, they only wanted to insist I am not the same as the model!
PS. The $49 suit, plus the extra $4 for the larger size (apparently not longer!), ended up costing me Over $100 Canadian with shipping ( that took a month!)! I will NOT deal with them because of their rigidity and refusal to help Fix the problem! Who ever designs their swimsuits, obviously doesn't understand "Halal" lengths! They should allow you to measure yourself and Tell them what you want in a tunic and in a pant separately!

Literally one of the worst online shops ever. I ordered 2 abayas, only 2, and one of them weren't even the listing that I ordered. It was a poor quality, too short, and an ill fitting abaya that was so far off it looked like I made it in my house with sequins and glue. I wanted to recieve them for the Eid and it completly ruined my mood. I live in the south so I have zero options for stores I can go to for an abaya and since it literally came 2 days before Eid, I didnt have time to order one from a different site. So I payed express shipping and the entire tracking process was disorganized and confusing. They do not pay your shipping return fees, they are slow to respond, and the quality of the abays were pure trash. I probably would have gotten a better deal on Ebay. I can't give zero stars so I gave them one.

I reverted to Islam 2 years past. I needed appropriate clothing. I am also a clothes hog so buy at lot of clothing. East Essence is fantastic. They have excellent prices and each year I shop there they have gotten better and better both style wise and with the fabric. The kashibo is the only fabric that is a bit odd, and it is fine for cloaks and over garments. The only reason I gave EE a 4 star is because it does take a while to get Items so you have to plan if there is an occassion. I have had to do returns and they went smoothly. I love EE and they are the only place I shop. The last thing I would like to say is EE has clothing that is halal but some have a Western flare. It's great if you are newly Muslim, and if you work. You can feel confident your clothing is modest, but with enough Western flare it doesn't cause issues at work.

Hello
I'll be honest, In this case you kind of get what you pay for. I have bought many items from EE, some are good and some are bad. The most important thing is look at the fabrics they are made out of on the description. Also, if it says a lining is recommended, wear the lining because some of the fabrics are pretty thin! Some are pretty thick also and kinda make swoosh noises when you wear them (kashibo?) But overall if you are a money conscient muslimah and need something to wear, I'd go with EE. BUT like I said be careful, read the descriptions, know what fabrics you like and dont like, know what fit you want modest or not, be informed or you can make some kinda dumb purchases here, like me. I accidentally bought some batwing jilbab too big since I wasn't being aware of the sizing. So be careful. Overall, I think the higher priced items are higher quality. I bought some cheaper things there and they ripped, the stitches ripped, they werent sized well, too thin, et cetera. But overall I'd recommend this site to anyone looking for new islamic clothes. The best point is they cater to all sizes. I wish sometimes their prints were more for the younger women and not so floral old fashioned.

I love everything at Eastessence. I have shopped here since 5 years and the Abayas I bought 5 years back look just the same. My closet is just filling up with their clothes because the old ones are not fading or tearing. I especially like Koshibo as it is very durable and needs no maintenance. Las year they launched the Korean items briefly and I managed to snap a couple. The quality was superb and the fabrics feel so soft and comfy. The garments are TRULY modest ( and I mean truly modest because most of the other Islamic stores have no idea what modest is)
I have so much from Eastessence now that I will have to conduct a donation drive at my local masjid before I can buy more. Bad business for them but good for muslimahs on budget. LOl.
Love Eastessence.
P. S Just wanted to let others sisters know that they are a Non profit. So it is just plain garbage when you read people saying they cheated them. I have returned a ton of stuff several times and got my full refund each time. As long as the tags are on they never complain or question. So sisters get real. Stop maligning a good company which is a Non profit working for muslims. I guess the number of good reviews prove my point.

I bought 5 Abayas from them. 4 of them were garbage. First they sent me something completely different than what I bought. Second the material were plastic. The Abayas even smell like burning plastic. So I decided to return 2 of them because the other 2 I removed the tags and I couldn't return them. The 2 I returned, I never got my full money back. I got back 70% what I paid. If you want to buy from them, use Paypal. Just be careful with this company. They are not what seem. And remember if you return something, they will not refund the TAX or SHIPPING. And they will make up other ways not to refund

I placed an order and the items came from india. They lied about value of items in the package to avoid paying duty. They put value down as 10% of what I actually paid. When I contacted them I was told what I would get as a refund if I returned. With return postage it worked out I would get back 30% of what I paid. You don't get back shipping costs, fair enough but why should I pay for duty if they didn't. I have the dhl slip proving they paid no duty. I am so fortunate I paid using paypal. I opened a dispute and was told to return items for a full refund. As soon as tracking showed items were delivered paypal paid the full amount back into my account and they actually paid me the amount I paid for return postage after uploading proof. So I was not out of pocket. Please avoid this company. They are lying to dhl about the value of items... I have kept proof of this and they do not deliver what you pay for. None of the items looked the way they did on the site. If you do buy from they use a payment method on which you know you can claim back what you paid.