Annie M.

I've ordered from colonialcandle.com several times over the last 5 years. The first two-three times, they were a mess. I think they didn't really have the online shipping situation figured out yet. The first time I ordered, the order was never shipped. I did finally get it. A person who actually worked in the store where the flagship store is located put together my order and shipped it for me. She said that the warehouse was just not working.
The second order went about the same, received candles but it took 3 weeks and everything came separately in padded store bought envelopes. Odd.
Now we are moving on into the last two years. I had a Visa Card with a low credit line, which I used for online purchases only. I made a purchase of four colonial candles which cost $81.00 with shipping and handling after coupon they sent in an email.
I waited, and waited, and waited. Finally after 7 days of "order processing", I called. The customer service rep. Said the charge was declined. I asked her to hold on and called my credit card company. They said there was one charge for $81.00 and it dropped off. They never charged the order, just got a pre-authorization.

So I get back on the phone & tell this to the woman. She then informs me that Colonial Candle charges your credit card twice, and did I have sufficient funds ($162.00) on the card to cover this? What? I said no, I don't. I had $150.00 on a card with a $300.00 limit. I explained that this is a low limit credit card used only for online purchases. She said that they always double charge. First the preauth. And second time when ready to ship. She informed me that then they only put through one charge. Seriously? Is this even legal? Two charges for the same order? Incredible.
I really wanted the candles so I went online and paid down my card to zero balance and got the candles. Yes, they double charged me, yes the second charge dropped off after about 5 days from shipping.
By the way, there was nothing on the website about this happening. Now, two years later, there is a small print note on checkout page letting customers know this is how they roll... still.
Ordered 2 candles in December 2013 and my card was charged thirty dollars, twice. I can't believe they are still doing this. It makes no sense. The first charge is enough. The funds are being held back for them with the pre authorization. And these account for "real" charges. If you have a $50.00 available amount and buy some stuff for $26.00, you are out of luck. So, with a word of warning, make sure you have the funds X 2 to cover an order.
On a final note, as for the selection and quality of the candles, I have really been disappointed lately with the scents they are putting out.
I do not know if they revamped everything or just their simmer snaps. They are also following Yankee Candle into the "retired" scents arena and then they bring them back later (ex. Autumn Fig, Gold Frankincens & Myrrh) and call them customer favorites, but Colonial Candle actually only brings back an 8oz. Candle and overcharges for the item. If it is a customer favorite or bestseller, why would you retire it in the first place? Oh Look what candles are back, creating a buzz? Really? So shady. So yeah, I hope I don't sound to bitter, but for me, the scents are either bad, or just not for me. However, I did find a nice smelling candle recently in a store which carries Colonial Candle, unfortunately, it was a "special line" and the candle was thirty dollars, and so small. I even went to the website and it was the same price. In closing, Colonial Candle rarely, if every really, has promo codes, two for one deals, semi-anual sales. I have had an email with them for almost 10 years and I have received one coupon for 20 percent off. They send lots of emails telling me to check out their new scents or the overpriced "returning customer favorites". Yeah, I guess I'm a little bitter. I just wish they would decide what they are. In the game? Half in?
Cheers,
Annie

They have some O. K. stuff, at first glance. Most of it is very cheaply made. Very few 100% cotton or linen items. Mostly stretchy knits or chiffon, which is really just polyester and so sheer. It does not hold up to more than 3-4 washings.

Now, if you stumble upon something that is a good price and you love it, they are phenomenal about having promotional codes. Really good ones. 50% off one item is fairly common for them. So google onestopplus.com promo codes because the ones they offer you at the site are not as good.
Granted, it can't be a sale item but still, with the few decently made things they make, fifty percent off is a steal.
I got a great coat at the end of the season. I know it retailed for 125.00 and I paid 15.00 for it. You have to be able to check in because they put stuff on clearance every day. I also think they are out of stock on some of the more popular items fairly quickly. So once again, you need to check in often.

I found that overall their sizing is way off. I wear a xl top in regular misses, sometimes a large, and even though onestopplus.com says a medium is a 12, it is more like a large 14/16! Most of the time.
I can't shop there for more than tops, my bottom (tmi) is a size 8/10 but like I said, if you take the time, search for coupons and shop at the end of each season for the bargains, you can do O. K.

***Customer service sucks. Sorry, but it does. First of all, the first call you make is not really customer service, it's like a clearing house to filter out the easy things like placing an order. They have to reroute you for serious issues, the first line of defense is a generic call center. No account help and they can't really deal with any major problems. Case in point:

They had a beauty product listed in five different colors (hair product) so blk, brwn, blonde, auburn/red, light brwn. I wanted the light brown but there were NO options listed on the drop down menu (NO Colors) and they used the same picture on the bottle for all colors.
I called, they said "Oh yeah! I see that"! Great lady, can u fix this? Which one is light brown? She did not know, said she would call her supervisor, she did not know either... fast forward about 6 months. Checked product again and it still didn't identify which item to buy for each color. And on to a year later, same thing. I did call and tell them it has been like that for over a year... they didn't seem to care.

Biggest pet peeve, they do the backorder shuffle. Item will say in stock until they actually try to fill the order... and then you check the order status and you get a big ole surprise! Backordered. Which, by the way, they rarely inform you of. Best to order using a credit card so you can either wait or cancel right away because many, many times the date they give you is not anywhere near the date it actually comes in. Also, they are famous for sending you the dreaded email saying "we're sorry, the item is no longer available to us"! So basically, you are never getting the item you paid for.
Hope this helps. Not trying to rag on them but they do need to step up their customer service and ordering (order filling) process.
Cheers,
AnnieM