Yes. I am sucked in by the whole LuLaRoe thing. I resisted it for so long. I love the cuts. I love the prints. I love the hunt, really. So, I wanted to do a post sharing some of my thoughts on this brand. Because I've got a whole lot of good, bad, and ugly things to say. Maybe you can chime in, too.
I love the clothes
I am carrying around a few extra pounds after Eloise's pregnancy and everything that came before it. This is no secret. I'm trying hard to give myself grace. And you know what? Wearing leggings and flowing dresses and tops has helped my confidence a bit. The fabrics are pretty. The clothing is well made (for the most part). Having some mix-and-match pieces makes getting dressed on little sleep a breeze.
My favorite piece is the Julia dress. And I recently found the print I had been searching for at the regular retail price.
Score!
The clothes are versatile
You really can dress up or dress down a lot of the clothing. I'm thinking the dresses and shirts more than the leggings. The pieces are really perfect for me because I work at home. Of course I want to look nice when I go out, but I don't need to go too over the top.
A lot of my friends love wearing their stuff to work too, though. Because they have some great options, like the Cassie skirt (I don't have one -- but the fabric is awesome). I would have loved having these things in my closet when I worked my last 9-to-5. I hated my work wardrobe.
Buying clothing at home is easy
Going shopping at stores for clothes these days is tough. Sure, I can leave the kids with Stephen on the weekend and head out . . . but we get so little family time as it is. When I do finally get some time on my own, I like to see friends, go for long runs, or just do other stuff besides clothes shopping. Plus, having the ability to shop in my bedroom or living room helps pass the time during all those hours of nursing, right?
Plus, when you go out to the regular stores? You're bound to have the same outfit as someone else. LuLaRoe only prints like 1,000 items in a single print. That's cool because you won't likely find yourself wearing the same thing as someone else.
The resale value is good
Sometimes you buy something you don't end up loving. But you might figure this out after the limited time when you can exchange it with the consultant. In these cases, I've had great success selling over Poshmark. My LuLaRoe clothing -- by far -- is the fastest selling stuff in my closet. I can usually get what I paid for the piece, even if it doesn't have the tag attached.
Sometimes I've made even slightly more . . . but that leads into something I don't like, so keep reading.
I hate the buying process
OK. I like the idea of supporting individual women who want to make money selling clothing. But honestly? Who can go to a pop-up at a moment's notice at like 3PM on a Wednesday? And in some of the larger groups, it's pure ridiculousness. While I didn't want Halloween leggings, I did go into a group to browse them one day. By the time the shop had opened . . . ALL of the leggings were sold. We're talking in like 30 seconds flat. It was weird. It got me scratching my head.
I have also gone to one in-home pop-up at a consultant's house. It, too, was weird. The women were all very sweetly and gently pushing by one another to grab what they wanted. Like black Friday at your favorite store when you're trying not to be too obviously obsessed with what you want to the point of clawing someone's eyeballs out. Sorry to get so graphic, but I swear!
Also: People bought so much clothing. I can only imagine how much these consultants are making!
People are insane with this stuff
I mention Halloween leggings. It was pure mania. I went on Ebay to see what they were selling for and NO JOKE they were in the hundreds of dollars range. For a pair of leggings. With skulls or witches on them. One pair sold for $450. C'mon, people! There is a certain pair of leggings that I would just die for (medallions), but the cheapest I've seen then listed on Ebay is like $120.
For a freaking pair of buttery soft leggings.
I will admit I got roped into finding my unicorns on Ebay and paying a premium of $60. I don't won't do that anymore. Nope. The minute I sent in my payment I felt like an oaf. Unless it's retail or only very marginally above, I just wait for regular sales and pay retail price.
Some of the styling suggestions are just plain awful
If you ever Google "how to style X piece of LuLaRoe," you'll inevitably land on some YouTube tutorials. Some of the suggestions are awesome. Like pulling up a Julia to make a long shirt. Tying a Carly in the front for some flair, etc. But then there's the whole "buy an Irma a million sizes too big and slip it off your shoulders and tie it for a fun dress" and "tie the sleeves and sides on your way too gigantic perfect tee you just had to have because it was in your print" some other crap that is just fugly.
I think some of the suggestions might even be attempts to get women to buy sizes way up or whatever just so they will, yup, buy something if there isn't a piece if their true size. Just my theory.
Because . . .
I think I have a slight addiction
And I don't share this lightly. I do think there's an aspect of buying LuLaRoe that can be addicting -- in a bad way. So many women are trying to get certain prints. It's like a race and, of course, you want to win. You always want to win. At least that's how I feel sometimes. I don't need any more clothing right now. But when I see a sale group go "OPEN" on Facebook or hear about a local pop-up, I immediately want to go.
And when I look at all the videos and other things, I am starting to feel like it's more than just sharing the love of the clothing. The whole culture around this clothing is made to suck you in and make you want to buy more, more, more. It's smart from a business perspective, but I am trying to ignore these tactics and their impact on my own shopping tendencies.
Thankfully, there are alternatives
I've shared the Viv Collection leggings on here before. I think they are a good option for adding to the leggings collection without spending an arm and a, uh, leg. I reach for my Viv leggings as often as I reach for my LuLaRoe. I may even get more compliments with the cheaper brand -- especially the volcanic rose (below) and the paisley.
They even make flow-y shirts and pencil skirts!
So, those are my thoughts on LuLaRoe.
I'm sure I'll hop on someday to share how I style the pieces I do have. For now, I'm going to try to resist buying any more. Though, I did agree a while ago to do an online pop-up in December! I may even do a small de-stash on Poshmark (which -- BTW -- if you'd like to sign up -- you can use my code NYRLS to get $5!)
Do you Roe? What are your thoughts on the clothing and the company in general? I have stayed away from most MLM stuff until now, but I definitely went all in with this one. Hmmm.