You be the judge

[creativeaccents]

Sometimes we just have to be sure to attend to the little things and control the variables that we can..kind of like quality control. Before sending the 38, My wife and I held it up to the 36 and even then measured it with a tape to do something of a sanity check. We were pleased to find that it was dead on, hence my bit of frustration in the new request for the 42. Obviously, we have no way of knowing what is going on at the other side.
For myself at least, eBay is being viewed simply as a channel of distribution in testing the waters, for learning more and maybe even ...with the excellent feedback here...assessing and developing the practices to address such in advance, well before making the larger plunge.
Looking at it from a buyers perspective, I could see the value in having an X-Mark retailers code of ethics that assures buyers of some level of expectation. This is certainly helping me in terms of a bit of level setting from the buyer's perspective.

[TheKiltedWonder]

I agree that it's a big gap. I feel that at a certain point it is up to the buyer to pay shipping. I can understand the one exchange. Kilts are something most people don't have experience with. Mistakes will be made. But I've six inches is such a big gap and you are a business and not a charity. I know you want to create a positive buying experience, but he should at least pay shipping for this final one. Especially since he had a 36 and then asked for a 38. If what he needs is really a 42 then he should have realised he needed a bigger jump than two inches...
Have I commended all our sellers yet on dealing with the general populace? Then let me do that now. And I apologize in advance to everyone, because I know I'm not immune to SOS (Sudden-Onset-Stupidity).

[Kent Frazier]

Do you know if the customer was a first time kilt buyer? This may explain some of the discrepancy in measurements. Depending on how tight I pull the tape and where I'm at in my breathing, my measurements vary from 40.5 inches to 43 inches.

Since it was a measuring error on his part, I think he should have paid the shipping both times. That's just the way I was raised.

Kent.

[Chef]

Ok. I quickly took a look at one of your ebay pages for kilts and I have a few suggestions:

First when it comes to sizing I don't think your instructions are very clear. You say "Be sure to snugly measure at the height the belly button". Measure what? It's very clear here on xmarks what that means, but I don't think it would be to someone who might be buying their first kilt. The length you list you kilts at is also doesn't have a reference. You should include proper measuring instructions. Don't assume your customer is an expert. As an aside are you sure you want to list the belly button as the reference for measuring. Most Buzz kilts I have seen are meant to be worn a little lower.

You don't list a return policy. I think you could have avoided some of the headaches on this one if you had it clearly stated. Take a look at other apparel sellers on ebay and you will find that they always have a return policy. Mostly because it is difficult to deal with sizes when you can't try something on.

I've sent you a PM with a few other notes.

[creativeaccents]

We had been communicating re the sizing, hence my sending him this piece of a communique in which I discussed sizing and returns, "These kilts are made to fit at the level of the belly button, not the normal waistline used for pants or jeans. Using a tape measure held evenly around the waist, important to keep it level around the belly button and back, should assure a good fit. They do have extra holes in the buckles for weight gain or loss." Your information re the fit of the Kidder kilts below the navel was the first I had heard of such, as I have a few myself that I wear at the navel except when it moves down after several hours at the pub, such as at last night's Atlanta get together. Would love to hear other personal views for different physiques re the Kidder fitting as it will help me in even better future fittings. One of our good brothers was there to give me a nudge to say to get it back up! By midnight even I was sitting a bit lower in my chair.

Your suggestions were spot on, GREATLY appreciated, and WILL be tended to. In fact, ALL such suggestions and critiques are always valuable, especially as I move towards a web site development project!

[Ian.MacAllan]

Another factor that complicates sizing is that much manufactured clothing measures significantly larger than its nominal size. Sometimes the discrepancy is as large as 10%. This may be a "feel good" marketing ploy that causes little trouble when the customer tries the garment on before buying it, but it's quite aggravating in the case of remote sales.

.

[Chef]

We had been communicating re the sizing, hence my sending him this piece of a communique in which I discussed sizing and returns, "These kilts are made to fit at the level of the belly button, not the normal waistline used for pants or jeans. Using a tape measure held evenly around the waist, important to keep it level around the belly button and back, should assure a good fit. They do have extra holes in the buckles for weight gain or loss." Your information re the fit of the Kidder kilts below the navel was the first I had heard of such, as I have a few myself that I wear at the navel except when it moves down after several hours at the pub, such as at last night's Atlanta get together. Would love to hear other personal views for different physiques re the Kidder fitting as it will help me in even better future fittings. One of our good brothers was there to give me a nudge to say to get it back up! By midnight even I was sitting a bit lower in my chair.

Your suggestions were spot on, GREATLY appreciated, and WILL be tended to. In fact, ALL such suggestions and critiques are always valuable, especially as I move towards a web site development project!

Your welcome.

The directions you sent him are not bad but I think you are trying to reinvent the wheel. Even though you are not selling custom kilts some of the rules still apply. Check out some of the kiltmaker's sights and se how they explain the measuring process. I think you will find a great deal of similarity in the wording. I diagram might be a a good idea as well.

Kilts when fitted properly shouldn't slide down enough to notice greatly. I would day that the reason yours did is because you were wearing it a bit high so it slowly found the height it wanted to be at. I tried wearing the Buzz kilt at the navel the same thing happened to me. With the short fell it tended to slide a bit till it found its "happy" place. Also most off-the-rack traditionally styled kilts have around a 24" length and Buzz makes his at 22.5". The lower-rise kilt is not a bad selling point for a contemporary kilt anyway. You can can always say something like "A traditionally styled kilt with a modern lower-rise for comfort". Just a thought.

One more thing. Don't put the size in your heading. You don't want someone to pass you by because you don't have their size. Especially if they have kilts and know what their length is.

[Larry124]

"...retaining water??!"

Water…
Water?
Isn't that the stuff used to rinse a drinking glass?
int:
After the first exchange I think that the gent should be paying for shipping both ways.

[M. A. C. Newsome]

We had a rental client of ours call once the day before the wedding to complain that the kilt we had sent to the groom (her fiance) did not fit. She had ordered a 36" for him. We sent a 36." His actual size was a 46".

We explained the measurments needed when she placed the original order, so we were a little shocked that there could be a ten inch difference in the measurments. Her excuse? She "guessed" when she placed the order! I felt like asking, "Lady, have you seen your fiance? Have the two of you met?" Ten inches is a lot!

We overnighted the correct size kilt to her, and did not charge her for a second rental. However, she did pay in full for the overnight shipping fee. In the end, her groom had a kilt for their wedding, but she paid easily twice as much as the original rental would have cost for that priority overnight shipping becuase she didn't listen to our initial measurement instructions.

Our general policy is that if we screw up an order, we'll always do what needs to be done to fix it (thankfully that doesn't happen that often!). But if a customer screws up an order, we still do what we can to fix it, but it may involve some additional costs on their part. Most people are very understanding of this.

[Clockwork John]

Some people just don't listen. I agree with others that the customer should have to pay for at least some of the shipping, as it was their mistake, not yours... twice.


I guess I'm a bit unusual in terms of sizing, but my kilts and my pants are the same sizes... Some are a 30, some are a 32. Is it weird that I can order kilts the way this guy tried to... by my pants size?