I got sucked in and I fell for it, and I GOT SCAMMED!! See my photos at the bottom of the page!
Yes, I got sucked in by a Facebook ad showing super cute dresses from a website called Noracora at noracora.com. I don’t usually buy clothes off the internet. I like to look at them in person and when possible, try them on before I buy them. But these clothes looked cute and I thought I’d take a chance. I read comments, searched for reviews and looked over the site for days before taking the plunge and ordering some items from Noracora.com. The reviews on the website are all great. The reviews I could find on Facebook seemed good. Most of the comments on the ad were people asking if anyone had ordered from them. (Of course after I received my order, I can no longer find the ad to comment on it to warn off others.) I googled and found one website that had 35,000+ reviews for Noracora, mostly good and they gave them a 4.5 star rating. Of course, later I found the websites with all the bad reviews. I’m sure now that the reviews on their website and the other website I found are fake. On Facebook, they seem to have changed their FB page name a lot as people come on and make negative comments. I found at least four different Noracora Facebook pages.
Their website shows a UK business address, so I had hopes that this wasn’t one of those Chinese knock-off sites. My package was even shipped from California. It took about two weeks to get my first package. I say my first package, because they shipped 6 of my 8 items I ordered together. Another item was shipped a week later, but I haven’t received it yet, and no word yet on the last item I ordered. I was a little worried it was taking so long to get here, but things have been taking longer to ship since the corona virus, so I gave it the benefit of doubt.
When I got my package, I was shocked and dismayed at what was in it. Each item was in an individual plastic bag. I opened each one to find the worst-made clothing items I have ever seen. That is not an exaggeration. The fabrics were stiff, rough, and scratchy or generally cheap feeling and looking. The cuts, patterns, fabrics, and styles were all different than what was pictured on the website. Most were somewhat similar, but in a very cheap, knock-off kind of way. I cannot express in words just how poorly these items were made. They each looked like someone had made a fairly straight cut of fabric and taken two identical pieces and sewed them together in one seam to make a front and back. That’s a generous description. My 10 year old could probably make something better. A beginning sewing class can make better clothes. These items look like someone spent 10 minutes total cutting and sewing them together, maybe less.
I tried each piece on, hoping it would look better on me. They didn’t. I took photos. I downloaded the photos off their website and made a side-by-side composite of each item. Then I went on the website and submitted a request for a refund. I received an email back stating my return was started and I would receive more instructions within 48 hours. Within minutes, I received a second email. This email stated that in order to get a refund, I would have to pay shipping costs back to China, as well as customs fees and other fees. It also stated I cannot return anything to the return address on my package- the address in California.
The email then discouraged me from spending a ridiculous amount of money to ship it all back to China with this line: “Since International returns might result in long waiting times and incur substantial return costs on your side, we recommend some alternative methods to resolve this issue. We would like to offer you a 15% cash refund instead of returning the item(s). If there are any sizing issues, you can use this fund to alter the cloth.” Yes, they will give me 15% to “fix” the horrible clothing they sent me. I did a quick search online and it would likely cost me at least half of what I spent to ship it all back. That does not include any extra fees, like customs fees. I have no doubt they would likely charge me other fees and still only refund me the 15% max even if I sent it all back.
At this point, I have disputed it with my credit card and am posting here and anywhere else I can so people can find the information on Noracora before they order. I tried to post a review on their website, but the review form appears broken and it won’t let me post. This makes sense as there doesn’t seem to be any negative reviews on their website. Again, I’m sure all the good reviews are fake and they don’t let you leave a real review on purpose.
That is my experience with Noracora, and now for the photos of what I ordered/wanted vs. what I actually got. My photos are on the left and the website photo is on the right. Keep in mind that while some are fairly similar, the fabric and quality of the items I received are basically garbage. As you an see, the first dress is not even the same pattern or colors as the one I ordered. I ordered the “gray” color and that is the photo on the website for the gray color. Not only is it a different pattern, but this dress was the coarsest, roughest fabric I have ever put on my body.
The second dress was a little bit softer and the pattern was a lot closer, but it’s still not exactly the same dress and it still looks like a cheap knock-off. The white dress was again stiff, gross fabric and was basically a straight cut with no shape. The brown striped top was a silky, shiny fabric almost like bathing suit material.
The last two photos are flipped, with the website version on the left and what I got on the right. The pink dress basically looks like a sheet that someone put a little bit of elastic in the middle. The fabric is exactly like a cheap sheet, not soft and drapey as it looks in the website photo. The green top was close to the cut and style shown, but super stiff, course fabric. It’s just not comfortable or flattering. None of these “clothes” are items I will likely wear. I will wait and see if I can get the charge removed from my credit card and it will probably be a long time before I order clothes off the internet again.
