My apologies for the late posting- there was an issue with my shipment. Although I was disappointed at first, I decided to make the best out of the situation and take the opportunity to evaluate Ipsy’s customer service.
When I received my Glam Bag, the contents had “exploded,” with cream being all over inside the bag. At first, I thought it was the Dr. Brandt product, but noticed there were two different shades and consistencies of white. Then, when I started removing the products, there were streaks of color throughout. Both tubes were crushed at the lids, the liquid lipstick lid was crushed, and there was a crack in the lid of the eyeshadow. Cream had gotten all over the bristles of the brush, but I got that cleaned up pretty well. So, the brush was useable, and the bag may have been useable if I wanted to take the time to clean it out. But, the bags are the thing I care about least, so no problems there. Strangely enough, the bubble envelope it was shipped in was perfectly fine with no damage. I’m wondering if the damage was done prior to the Glam Bag being packaged? Perhaps it had dropped or got stuck under something, and no one noticed since it was all inside the zip-up pouch.
On October 16th, I contacted Ipsy about the problem. This was not an easy task; it was somewhat confusing trying to find the link to contact them on the website. Additionally, it states in the FAQs that if a product arrives damaged, it can take 45 days to get a replacement. There is also no phone number to contact them- all communication is online only. This set off red flags and seemed kind of shady. There was also no email address provided, just a contact form. I sent the form, with a photo of my exploded bag attached, not knowing whether or not it got to anyone, or if it just floated around in cyberspace.
On October 19th, I still had not heard from Ipsy, so I managed to find the contact link again, and sent another message. In the subject line, I put that I had sent a previous message, but got no response. The next day, on October 20th, I received a response! They were very nice, apologized, and told me there must have been a glitch in their ticketing system. While I’m not sure what that means, I was happy to get a reply. Mariz asked me to confirm how I contacted them- was it through their website portal or did I send a message to another email address. She also asked if I had checked my spam folder, and wanted to know if I received a confirmation that they had received the message. Finally, she asked which products were damaged.
It was nice to know she cared enough to try to find out why there seemed to be a glitch. Since there was no email address shown, and no other option provided, I responded that I had indeed used the portal, and that I never got a confirmation. I let her know that I did check my spam folder, and also re-explained the details of the damaged products. She responded back that they would go ahead and replace the whole bag. On October 24th, I got a notification that a new bag was being shipped, along with a tracking number. Finally, I received the new shipment on October 31st.
Overall, I was satisfied with Ipsy’s customer service. The worst negatives are: There is no phone number. Most legitimate companies will at least provide a customer service number to call and speak with an actual human. There is no email address specified on the website. Since there is merely a contact portal, there is really no way of knowing if the message was received. Ipsy, please provide a phone number, and please publish an actual email address.
It was disappointing to receive damaged products, and even more so that it took so long to receive a replacement. However, Mariz seemed genuinely willing to not only help, but to try to find out what went wrong. Also, after sending my first message, it took 15 days to receive a replacement as opposed to 45 days. Even if I was not maintaining my subscription for review purposes, I would still be satisfied enough to give Ipsy another chance, and keep my subscription active for the time being.
Now, after much ado, on to the Glam Bag itself!!!
My October Ipsy Glam Bag contained the following:
Delectable Ultra Nourishing Hand Cream– I actually experienced this when I opened the first bag; since this was the largest size product, the most was spilled everywhere. It’s very moisturizing, and the name is appropriate, because it does smell delectable!
Royal & Langnickel Medium Eye Shader Brush– The bristles on this are stiff, yet soft, if that makes sense. It’s a cute brush, and made well enough that it was able to withstand whatever crushed most of the bags contents. However, the performance just wasn’t up to par with other brushes. It didn’t pick up shadow very well- this may be better suited to cream shadows or concealers.
Dr. Brandt Microdermabrasion Skin Exfoliant– I’ve used this before and loved it. Having been using tretinoin, and now using Bionova’s regimen, I cannot use harsh exfoliants. But, this will be fabulous for use on my hands!
theBalm Meet Matt(e) Hughes Liquid Lipstick in “Committed”- Super excited about this! I’m always on a quest to find the perfect matte liquid lipstick that’s not super-drying. We shall see if this is it!
Mica Beauty Cream Eyeshadow in Bronze– I usually stay away from cream eyeshadows, but this is such a lovely color that I can’t wait to try it out! (Maybe the brush will perform better with this shadow!)
Overall, this was a decent Glam Bag, not the best I’ve gotten, but far from the worst. I’ll definitely have fun playing around!
Do you have any beauty subscriptions? Have you ever had any problems? How well were they resolved? Scroll down to comment below!
