Aromaleigh - great products, awesome sampling program
Written: Jan 03 '09 (Updated Jan 03 '09)
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I have been an Aromaleigh customer for approximately five years. I am very much a MAC girl but I keep coming back to their foundations (and more!) because the quality of product is so superior to the vast majority of what is available on the market now.
Disclaimer: I do not work for the company and I am not one of the rabid fans who will defend everything this company and its owner does. There appears to be a lot of controversy on this board and I'm really not sure why. Ultimately, my review is unbiased and truthfully reflects how I feel about the company and its product.
The Aromaleigh Website
I think it's a given that any internet based company should have an excellent website; one that is both aesthetically pleasing and easy to use. Aromaleigh's website accomplishes both.
The main page of the website showcases the featured products and sales. The left hand column has all of the pertinent links, such as: New items, Coupons, Samples, The owner's blog (which is useful for finding out about upcoming sales or products), Photo galleries, Shop by color, and finally the makeup itself.
The makeup is broken up into the following sectons:
Makeup FAQ
Sets + Kits
Face
Cheeks
Lips
Eyes
Gothic Lolita Collection
Elemental Lustre Collection
Rocks! Sonic Cosmetics
Traditional Cosmetics
Other sections include brushes, fragrances, and jars (for mixing your own formulations).
In five years of ordering I have never had a problem with the website. In my experience it is always running and always up. This is a plus as I get so frustrated when I spend time selecting items only to go to my cart and have the site fail.
The Products Themselves
Ultimately, this is what keeps me coming back again and again.
The foundations are amazing. I love me some MAC and I have tried pretty much every high end brand of foundation that is available in Sephora or department stores, but Aromaleigh is hands down the best that I have used. My skin tends to be oily and even though I am now 23, still a bit acne prone. This foundation does not break me out or upset my skin at all. In fact, the foundation makes my skin look great! Great without looking "cakey" or like "a mask" that is. The best thing about the foundations is the extremely wide range of colors they come in.
There are some other standout products as well. Aromaleigh is great at "knocking off" brand name products for a much lower price. Examples include their Nocturne night time mineral treatment (compared to Bare Escentuals Rare Minerals) and their Silk Powder (compared to Make Up For Ever's HD Powder). Both are excellent. The cream concealers are amazing - I use them everyday. Much like the foundations, the eyeshadows come in tons of colors. There are over 500 colors available in all of the various eyeshadow collections Aromaleigh has.
With that said, there are some products that I have tried and were not fond of. The lip products are a definite weak area. I have tried several - the lip balm, the lip glosses, the lipstick, etc - and really don't care for any of them. The lip balm and lipstick I find to be very "waxy" and the lip gloss is gloopy.
Aromaleigh does not engage in animal testing. All of their products are cruelty free. This is something that is important to me and I'm sure it is for many others as well. Also, all products are made in the USA.
Ordering, shipping, and delivery
Ordering is very easy; it is done through Yahoo and payment can be made by credit card or via Paypal. There is a choice of shipping methods - USPS, UPS, or Fedex. Rates are calculated based on what you order versus a flat rate. I actually prefer this method because I want to know and pay exactly what it costs to ship versus a company charging a "standard" rate that is really just an extra profit center for them.
Shipping has never been a problem for me. Aromaleigh's policies include 3-5 days for order processing. This may be alarming to some and I admit I was a little shocked. However, all of my orders have been shipped within 1 business day of ordering. They are quick and they are efficient. I have never had a problem with any of my orders.
Since the order processing is so quick, delivery happens to be quick as well. I usually receive my orders in three business days and I live on the other side of the country from Aromaleigh headquarters. The products are packaged well, cute even, and I have never had anything arrive damaged.
Policies
There have been many complaints regarding Aromaleigh's policies, specifically regarding telephone calls (or lack thereof) and returns. I find them to be a bit "stricter" than most companies but to be fair, this is a small, family-owned company. You can't compare Aromaleigh's return policy with that of Walmart or Target fairly.
The policies are clearly posted, with a link to them at the top of every page on the site. I have copied a link to the policies as well as their return policy below.
As with any company, I strongly recommend that you fully read and understand the policies prior to purchasing. If you do not agree with them in any way (which is your right), then don't buy anything. It will save yourself a lot of trouble in the long run.
http://www.aromaleigh.com/arcussercen.html
Aromaleigh Product Return Policy
Your business is extremely important to us! Our shipping staff triple checks your order for accuracy and we carefully wrap and pack everything to ensure safe transit.
If you receive damaged or incorrect merchandise please let us know immediately- within FIVE days of your package receipt. We will be happy to correct the discrepancy via standard shipping.
If something has been damaged in transit we need to claim damages from our carrier, so please hang on to all packing materials and products while the claim process takes place.
We regret that we are unable to accept returns on brushes, fragrances and full sized, mini sized or sample sized cosmetics or skincare.
In lieu of offering returns on our mineral cosmetics and other products, we offer a generous and affordable sample program in which you can purchase samples of the majority of our cosmetic products.
We encourage you to sample our products first, as products are non-returnable.
Bottom Line
In my experience most of the products are fantastic and definitely worth trying. The samples are inexpensive and have free shipping. There is a weekly sale with approximately 10-15 rotating items. Everything is on sale at some point.
There has been a lot of controversy regarding this company, but I feel that the superior products speak for themselves. Read the store policies, take advantage of the sample program, and give it a try.
Recommended:
Yes
What product did you purchase or try to purchase? Several
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Epinions.com ID:
daintycake
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Reviews written: 3
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