ZARA doesn't "get me" - YouLookFab Forum

Category

General

Welcome! Read about what to wear and how to wear it on the YLF Blog. Join the YLF Forum to ask specific questions or just chat about fashion and personal style. Or check out the curated list of things we love in YLF Finds.

Outfits Ensembles Trends Advice

ZARA doesn't "get me"

Anonymous

I had never heard of ZARA until discovering Angie's blog about one year ago. We do not have a ZARA store in our locale, so over the past seven months I have ordered on-line five times for a total of twelve items - yes, keeping track like a nerd! Total items kept - zero! Last package was received/returned last week. Not even worthy of a keep/return post! The difficulty is sizing. Most items were tops and are cut just a bit too boxy for me and do not flatter my shoulder/chest area! I have also realized that it really is best when I can try on items in brick and mortar stores. I am trying to break the on-line habit, but it is difficult! I am sure everyone makes discoveries like this at some point that a
certain retailer or designer, no matter how much you like their clothes,
just does not work with your body. Care to share your insights?

General

42 replies

Latest reply was from rachylou

Peri

Veteran

The only thing I've kept from Zara is a scarf that was a gift. It got a lot of YLF love, but of course scarves don't have to fit.

The few tops that I ordered went right back. It may be their current styles being so oversized. I like loose lately, but their things are almost comically big.

deb

Veteran

I have only purchased from their B &M stores. And I gravitate to their drapey tops.

Astrid

Veteran

We do have Zara here and while I have some friends who happily shop there and find nice clothes, I never find anything. My black skirt is Zara and because I like it so much I've kept trying their stuff, but the skirt is still my only Zara item. Their cuts just don't work for my figure most of the time and I often have concerns about the quality.

Mochi

Veteran

I've also had luck, in store, with their drapey tees, and a few knit Breton-type of shirts.

I also ordered a lovely shopper bag from them. Seriously, it's my most complimented item.

But yeah, Zara does not get most of us.

Laura (rhubarbgirl)

(website)

Veteran

I've not had great success with Zara either. The quality seems really wide-ranging - some things are a good deal and some things just fall apart quicker than they should, even at a sale price. And the fit is more rectangular than I am.

Gracie

Veteran

I have a few items from Zara. There is a store not too far so I get to try things on. I love their trendiness, but the quality is dicey. I always inspect all seams. I find their items are cut small, and the arms on long sleeved tops, lately, are ridiculously narrow, with a high cut armholes. It's such an advantage to be able to try things on!

Irene

Veteran

I'm Spanish so ZARA is our very main retail store when it comes to fashion. Just in the city center I can count FOUR stores. Plus the other brands by the same company. So I know where you are coming from.

The truth is, unless you are a slim person (and by slim I don't mean at a right weight, but actually slim, as in maximum American size 4-6), you are doomed. Especially when it comes to tops and jackets. If it's supposed to be fitted, you will not be able to put it on unless you are very slim. If it's supposed to fit loose, you will have extra fabric all around your middle but it will feel too tight around your arms and along your back and shoulders (horizontally). It's been ages since I last got something from Zara, nothing ever fits.

Their sizing is crazy, doesn't make sense and leaves most of the population out. So, really, it's them, not you.

Greyscale

Veteran

I love Zara, but I have the best luck at their bigger stores where I can tell which things are in their nicer section. The quality does vary a lot between different sections of the store (my usual thing is to check the fabric content. Their all-wool trousers are quite nice for instance). And I am slim, matching what Irene said above, and she's completely right. They're targeting a very narrow (literally) range of the population.

Their Studio line (more fashion-y things, higher quality materials) is great but often comes in only one size! And that one size is always too big for me.

Suz

(website)

Veteran

<runs to duck...>

Zara totally "gets" me.

<slinks back into the room nervously>

Seriously...the quality of some items is poor..but the quality of other items is surprisingly good. You just never know. I buy online, so I send back far more than I keep -- but that is true of all online shopping. And typically the fit is better for me off the rack from Zara than from anywhere else. Especially for jackets! (I can't speak about pants because I haven't tried them. I have tried on a few dresses and quite a few tops that didn't work for me.)

Currently I own one spring jacket, one fall/winter jacket, one pair of booties, and one sweater from Zara. Among my most worn and most complimented items.

I also like that delivery is fast and returns easy.

Catnip

Veteran

There's a large Zara near me, and I've been in four times but never bought anything. Each time I found multiple items that are of very poor quality (threads hanging all over, seams puckering or crooked, unmatched stripes, fabric that feels really cheap). This has made me afraid to buy anything for fear that it has issues that are not immediately obvious. This is too bad, since their windows look great and many of their styles are attractive. Even buying a brand with a good reputation for quality doesn't mean that the quality will be there in every piece, but a bad reputation isn't worth bothering with, IMO.

Dee

Veteran

I also find Zara very hit or miss. Like Irene mentioned, their size window is narrow. I fall within their size range, but even then I find that much of their clothes are cut for someone about six inches taller than I am at that size, so everything is always fitted but then too long/tight in the hips. I've had ok luck with coats and some blazers, for some reason, but not much else.

Adelfa

Veteran

My problem with Zara is what I perceive as an unfavorable quality-to-price ratio. I am willing to own and wear items with a Zara level of quality or below. But I'm not willing to pay Zara prices for it. To me Zara doesn't seem inexpensive. H&M seems inexpensive so that's where I go when I want fast fashion at a low price.

I understand that Suz and Angie and others have found good quality items there. For some reason when I go there, the overall impression I get is of quality that's not worth the prices charged.

Anonymous

Hmmm, I've only been in Zara twice (both at YLF meetups) and their clothes fit me okay, but they are SO fashion forward that I couldn't find anything I needed that worked for my style (or requirement that the fabrics be natural and the linings breathable). It was fun watching everyone else try on their clothes though!

Marley

Veteran

I'm a fan of Zara - but, I can totally understand the issues one would have if they had to order everything online rather than try on in the stores. As others have said, sometimes the quality is iffy and sizing can be a real guessing game - but, because there are several Zara stores in my area, I have the luxury of trying on their items in-store - so, that's a huge benefit when trying to purchase things from Zara. As I write this, I am wearing a light blue blouse that I got from Zara last summer - I love it - its oversized (a lot!) so it might not be everyone's cuppa'. I would guess right now that about a 4th of my wardrobe is from Zara - everything from slacks, tees, sweaters, blouses, belts - and I'm still thinking about those navy blue leather booties! If you ever get a chance to go into a B & M Zara, I encourage you to take a look! Their merchandise changes really fast - what doesn't work for you this week/month - might work next week/month!

Aziraphale

Veteran

Yep, that's why I don't shop online. I pretty much have to live in a major urban centre so that I have access to a variety of brick and mortar shops, because I won't buy stuff that I can't try on first. I've never really understood the online shopping thing. I come home with only a tiny fraction of the stuff I try on while out shopping. I can't imagine having things mailed to me, and then having to box all the failures back up and take them to the post office!

There have been exceptions. I once ordered a blazer from J.Crew, because they don't stock petite sizes in the store, but I had tried on the regular size 0 and the sales associate convinced me that based on the fit of that one, I needed a 2 Petite. He was correct. I liked that grey blazer so much that I ended up ordering the exact same one the following year, except in black.

Also, I buy children's clothing online.

Deborah

Veteran

I love Zara online but in Australia I feel we don't get what you guys get...I could be wrong. Sizing seems all over the place and their sizing tends to make me feel like I must be the six if am elephant;(. I have one Zara piece that I love but that is all do far:)

Angie

(website)

Fashion Stylist

Very interesting. Love hearing these varying responses.

I've been shopping at Zara for 20 years precisely because the retailer totally gets me. (High five, Suz). Granted, their fits are inconsistent and the quality a little dubious at times - I completely understand the frustrations associated with the retailer. Some seasons they look awful and other seasons I just can't get enough of their glorious stuff.

On the whole though, their fits fit me extremely well, and their prices are very reasonable compared to other items I purchase. Zara is still one of my favourite retailers of all time. I love their design integrity.

Suz

(website)

Veteran

I used to work in our university's writing centre. One of my regular clients was a huge Zara fan. She even wrote a paper about it. And every time she came in we talked fashion and she showed me her new finds. I had never been in a Zara store at the time -- it took me many years to follow up on her recommendations, largely because there's no brick and mortar store in my city. But the online experience from them is among the best in Canada.

They come to your house to pick up the return if you don't feel like going to the post office!!

Mo

(website)

Veteran

I wish everyone would come to pick up returns at my house!! And print out the labels that I can't, since I have no printer, while they're at it!
I've never tried Zara. Maybe I should give a look. Seems I've tried every other online retailer lol.

Suz

(website)

Veteran

Mo, they send the labels, too. Preprinted. You don't have to do anything except put tape on the box! I tell you, it is genius.

Anonymous

I keep trying stuff at Zara, but rarely have any luck. Like Adelfa, I tend to feel like a lot of things seem a little pricey for the level of quality. And the sizing also seems off for me in the ways Irene describes. The trying-on experience is so frustrating that I end up giving up pretty quickly when I do find things to try on rather than bothering to go back for other sizes or styles.

On both of these counts, I'm glad it's not just me!

I do have a few basic sweaters from Zara that I like.

And I didn't know they pick stuff up from your house if you want to return it -- that's seriously great!

Beth Ann

Veteran

I hear you PMC! I'm a bricks and mortar girl, too. I live in the Chicago suburbs, so I can access some of the better stores, if I have the better part of a day to do it. I do have two big outlet malls near me, and I've been trying to make the most of these! By visiting the stores, I knew quickly that Zara and J. Crew are unlikely to give me a good fit. I've also learned that Loft tends to run short --- skirts and shirts -- but the Loft Outlet fits me far better. Do you have a designer or retailer you feel does "get" you?

And Suz and Angie, I remember you whenever I'm sized out of an item, or when I purchase a medium, knowing there are YLFers who are sized out on the other end.

Sveta

(website)

Veteran

I had no luck with Zara mainly due to sizing. I am not slim by any measure and on the bigger side of the sizing spectrum so I am usually sized out of it.
Actually there are quite a few of the stores which "don't get me" in addition to Zara: Club Monaco comes to mind as well. What is really annoying that we have so few retailers in Canada with a good online shopping policies that being out of those ones really hurts...:-(
Suz and Angie, I am happy that at least Zara gets you!

Karie

(website)

Veteran

I have only purchased one item from Zara, a black fit and flare skirt, and I found that the sizing ran small. I sized up, but it was too big so I just got out my sewing machine and made the necessary alteration. Now the skirt is in constant rotation!

Jaime

(website)

Veteran

I am on team Zara gets me too. Zara was the first big international chain to open in Israel and there are Zaras absolutely everywhere. The quality, sizing, everything is all over the place, the stock is different in different stores, etc. but it is my favorite retail destination and truthfully one of the few mass marketers that I will buy second hand if everything is right. I can imagine it is more challenging on line though because you really need to see the stuff to judge it.

Anonymous

Yes, I think if I had a real store nearby I might have more luck! It is precisely because of Angie, Suz and others that I keep browsing the ZARA website!

Echo

Veteran

I have never shopped Zara. We don't have any brick and mortar stores around here, and I haven't yet had the courage to try it out online. However, to the larger issue of retailers or brands "getting me", I totally understand. Different brands and different retailers tend to have different fits, so what works for one person cannot work for everyone. Actually, it is kind of nice knowing that regardless of what I might see or try to convince myself of, some brands are simply never going to be ideal for me. It makes shopping that much easier when I can cross someplace off the list.

I really like that Angie tends to give fit details about items. She never hesitates to mention if something runs long in the waist or short in the sleeves or works well for her IT or hourglass clients. That sort of information is invaluable in knowing whether to even seek out something to try on. We ALL have different bodies and different fit issues, so one brand or store will rarely work for everyone.

peacechick

Veteran

I used to get almost all my work clothes from Zara about six, seven years ago. It was the more affordable sibling of Mango, which was considered more high quality. Mango didn't get me, their sizes were tiny, but Zara did as they had more generous cuts. Recently I noticed they have become more fashion forward, and the lines have become a lot leaner, but that could just be the current trend.

Greyscale

Veteran

That's very interesting - the Mango store near me feels aimed towards younger people than the adjacent Zara, less high fashion and more like Express maybe. I wonder if they've chosen to focus on that demographic for their US stores or if they've shifted over time. I just bought my first Mango thing last week, a cable-knit cotton sweater that I love and wore three times in one week.

12