Great clothes at rock-bottom pricing – who doesn’t love that? That’s the dream! Unfortunately, these advertisements showing beautiful women in stylish clothes for less than the price of a cheap bottle of wine are too good to be true.
If (and that’s a big if) your clothes arrive, and you actually received what you ordered – it will likely smell of kerosene, be poorly made, and not fit, no matter what size you ordered.
Many of these retailers have become known as Chinese scam sites, with reviews calling the clothes “unwearable,” “disappointing,” and “garbage.”
Chinese scam websites IVRose and ChicMe are operated by the same company
To overcome the shady rep, many of these retailers are trying to market themselves as being US-based companies, including the websites IVRose and ChicMe .
The average consumer will look around a website, skim through some reviews, and once they have found what they are looking for, their investigation ends. Unfortunately, the consumer is then left with regret and cheap products that could barely be classified as clothing.
As online shopping ramps up with the holiday season, more people will fall victim to the deceiving marketing strategies of websites like IVRose and ChicMe .
In an attempt to prevent more people from losing money, we’ve done some digging and will shed light on the two websites.
Where are IVRose and ChicMe Located
Let’s start with IVRose. On their website, on their About page, FAQ, shipping, and contact information, it does not indicate the company is based in China and that products are shipped from there. The average consumer would assume it is an American company.
The ChicMe website looks almost identical to IVRose, and the exact same information is posted under their info pages. Their advertisements also lead consumers to believe they are US-based.
Further, IVRose has a few different Facebook pages that indicate a different location, e.g., IVRose_US or IVRose_UK. This, however, is not the case.
IVRose advertisements on Facebook
Both IVRose and ChicMe are owned by the same Chinese company, Shanghai Jigao Information Technology Co., Ltd. A simple Google search of the company will show Shanghai Jigao Information Technology Co., Ltd. runs the Facebook pages for both brands.
The company also owns Clothmyths-us, Chiquedoll, Makeyou Chic, Boutiquefeel Fashion, Ladishoes, Joyshoetique, Bellewholesale Official, and Wanna.
A look at each website, and you will see that the policies, look of the website, advertisements, and products are the same.
Joyshoetique is another website operated by the company behind IVRose and ChicMe
If these were reputable websites, why would one company create numerous versions with different names while maintaining the same marketing strategies and product offerings? It’s very questionable, to say the least!
Facebook doesn’t police its advertisements as closely as others and has assumed that as long as the text and images in the ad follow its guidelines, what happens after isn’t its problem.
Due to some pushback, Facebook has said they will start looking into it, yet these Chinese scam fashion websites still run rampant on the platform.
IVRose and ChicMe push out several marketing campaigns on Facebook each month, usually featuring pictures of attractive women in seductive clothing, lingerie, or sleepwear, with captions like “Be the first to check out our Holiday Discount. And guess what, SALE ON SALE, SHOP NOW >>” with an abundance of emoji’s weaved in.
Shipping
IVRose and ChicMe don’t outright say where the products are being shipped from on their website. However, the shipping time to the US is a good indication, with standard shipping time taking 8 to 30 days or longer.
This is where it gets a bit confusing. There is some contradictory information that could easily confuse consumers.
Right after indicating the shipping time, there is another category for Shipping Delays where it says the following: “Shipping time is estimated and commences from the date of shipping, rather than the date of order, and can take longer than expected date due to invalid address, customs clearance procedures or other causes. Usually, it takes about 30-90 days to some countries. We do offer compensation if the shipping beyond the timeframe as stated on the shipping policy.”
Make sure to read the section on shipping delays carefully
Can you imagine ordering a pair of Christmas pajamas only for them to arrive at the end of February?
The way they have written their policy is misleading, and the shipping time is way too long to be justified. As I mentioned earlier, these websites are almost mirror images of each other, so their shipping policy is the same.
Reviews
With misleading advertisements and shipping information, it’s no surprise they have earned their fair share of negative reviews. However, the company has made significant attempts at fabricating its rating through fake reviews.
If you were to search “ChicMe Reviews” on Google, websites like Trustpilot and Sitejabber both come up. Interestingly, their star rating is quite high.
This is due to the thousands of fake reviews the company has submitted. When you read these positive reviews, the falsified information is obvious. However, many people don’t look at this closely. On SiteJabber, there are over 30,000 reviews and a 4.6-star rating. For many, this is enough information to feel good about purchasing.
On Trustpilot, another popular review site, there is a large banner above the ChicMe page with the following message: “Our customized software has discovered a number of fake reviews on this domain, and we’ve removed them.”
Most reviews complain about the item they received not looking like the picture on the website.
Trustpilot has discovered several fake ChicMe reviews and has removed them
Just today, there have been multiple reviews expressing their disappointment in the products. Here are a few examples:
“The dress was poorly made, my glitter fell off with every move I made, I couldn’t sit down in a chair without leaving behind a mess, plus no one could touch me without them getting glitter all on them. It was a hot mess and embarrassing!! I will never order from ChicMe again!”
“Worst company to purchase anything from. I kept seeing these ChicMe me sponsors all over my Instagram and Facebook. The items are very misleading on pics. I finally decided to purchase two pairs of pants, and I have never been so disappointed. The “S” is basically large. Also one of the pants I received has a burnt mark on it. This company states it’s in the United States, but that’s all a lie. Items are all coming from China, yet you have to pay American dollars. Everything about ChicMe is false and misleading. I would NOT recommend them.”
The product images used on ChicMe and IVRose are also used by many other websites
ChicMe has replied to some reviews, asking the customer to email customer support to “solve your problem soon.”
It doesn’t look like that is a promising option, as others have left reviews saying they returned items and are still waiting for a refund or have been given the runaround by the company.
Here’s an example: “They asked me to contact them to resolve the issue. They offered me a 40% refund for an unusable product. So I said I’d go through PayPal. They then demanded I sent the item back to GERMANY! Luckily PayPal offers a service where they pay up to £15 to return items (SO DO NOT LET THIS PUT YOU OFF GETTING YOUR MONEY BACK like they hope). PayPal has today issued me a full refund without the aggravation of returning the item. Months later, but better than these con artists keeping it. AVOID”
A look at these 1-star reviews will show you the real company you are dealing with. When it comes to beautiful clothes at cheap prices offered by these websites, it really is too good to be true.
ChicMe and IVRose are owned by Shanghai Jigao Information Technology Co., Ltd.
Shopping for an unknown brand on a website you aren’t familiar with puts you at risk. Some consumers have had some success getting their money back through their PayPal or credit cards, but it’s not always that easy.
If you are looking to buy something from websites like IVRose, ChicMe , or the other websites owned by Shanghai Jigao Information Technology Co., Ltd., know that there is a risk.
From the information we have found, shipping is extremely unreliable, the quality is poor, and the sizing is vastly different with each item. As the saying goes, Buyer Beware!