My Adventure Ordering from Soulmia: Inside the Controversial Fast Fashion Site

for final written piece. My goal is to provide the most helpful, engaging review possible to inform shoppers considering this controversial fast fashion site.

As an avid online shopper always seeking the best deals on cute and trendy clothing, I first came across Soulmia on an Instagram ad. The prices seemed almost unbelievable for the darling cropped tees and retro swimsuits splashed across my feed. I had to learn more.

Intrigued by the tempting low prices but confused by the limited information about this company, I dug into customer reviews trying to determine if Soulmia was legit. What I found was conflicting opinions – some praising the clothes and prices, others warning buyers off. I realized the only way I‘d get the full story was to try Soulmia myself.

Overview: What is Soulmia?

Soulmia is a fast fashion ecommerce site selling graphic tees, casual dresses, swimwear and accessories for women and men. Prices average just $8-15 per piece for apparel and they offer new arrivals daily across over 10,000 products.

Founded in 2016 and based in LA, Soulmia ships orders from warehouses in China which helps enable the incredibly low pricing. But as I would come to discover first-hand, rock bottom prices also come with their downsides.

Shopping Soulmia‘s Selections – First Impressions

Browsing Soulmia‘s site, I was instantly drawn into their playful prints and vibrant colors. The women‘s graphic tees featured adorable pandas and unicorns perfect for my casual weekend style. And the dresses with milkmaid necklines and shoulder cutouts felt straight off runways.

My cart quickly piled up with goodies all under $15 each – a lemon graphic tee, cow print bucket hat, floral bodycon midi. I added a few men‘s Hawaiian shirts and swim trunks for my husband too, since sizing is often iffy buying for others.

The entire order of 8 pieces rang up to $92 including shipping. An absolute steal if the items arrived as pictured. But the inconsistencies described in varying Soulmia reviews had me questioning what would actually land on my doorstep.

Soulmia Shopping Stats

Placing My Order – Sizing Concerns

Ready to checkout with my cart loaded up, I carefully consulted Soulmia‘s size charts to determine what size apparel to purchase. As an average size medium, the charts advised I order XL or XXL in dresses and tops. This seemed extreme already accounting for Asian sizing running smaller than US.

In reviews, I‘d seen countless complaints of sizes coming drastically inaccurate – either 4 times too big or tiny enough to fit a toddler. I decided to completely disregard Soulmia‘s size guidance and ordered my true size in everything. For my husband, I ordered one size up from his normal large.

Fingers crossed the pieces would fit, I submitted my order and prepared myself for what I expected would be an excruciating waiting game based on Soulmia‘s shipping reputation.

The Soulmia Shipping Saga

The extensive delays described in Soulmia‘s 1-star reviews definitely proved true in my case as well. My order status sat stagnant at "processed" for 11 days before finally updating to "shipped" on May 19.

Soulmia advertises 15 day standard delivery times for US orders. Yet after almost 3 weeks of waiting post-purchase, I still had no sign of my package. Emails to customer service went unanswered.

Finally on June 12 – a whopping 26 DAYS after ordering – my Soulmia package arrived on my doorstep. I was grateful it ultimately showed up but very irritated by the excessive transit time.

I‘ve ordered various items from other Chinese fast fashion retailers like Shein and Romwe over the years and found Soulmia‘s shipping exceptionally behind. Here‘s how the delays compare:

For context, I‘m located on the US West Coast. East Coast customers report even lengthier Soulmia wait times up to 35 days for delivery.

While low prices are great, I don‘t think the extended waiting is worth saving a few extra dollars on fast fashion that mainly gets worn once for Instagram pics. But with my package finally here, it was moment of truth time to see if the items inside matched the website listings.

Reviewing My Soulmia Order – Quality and Sizing Nightmares

I anxiously ripped open my package hoping my true-to-size gamble paid off. But as I pulled out each piece and held it up, my optimism crumbled. The sizing situation was utterly laughable.

What was listed on Soulmia‘s site as an XL dress could reasonably clothe a small toddler. The XXL top looked fitting for a petite tween. And the men‘s size large Hawaiian shirt? More like a little boy‘s souvenir.

As I puzzled over what child-sized human these pieces were intended for, I suddenly wondered if Soulmia had accidentally sent me kids versions of everything. But nope – the graphics and product labels indicated adult apparel, somehow.

Beyond the hilariously inaccurate sizes, the quality was also shabby and disappointing. The fabrics felt rough and cheap, dresses had uneven hem lines, and prints were duller than pictured online.

As I stood stunned staring at the pile of joke-sized apparel, I finally understood why Soulmia reviews are so fiercely split. When items actually arrive in the correct size and print quality as pictured online, they deliver joyful fast fashion steals.

But in reality, the probability of receiving accurately sized items that meet quality expectations is miserably low. Out of 8 pieces I ordered, not one was usable or matched the online photo.

While part of me wanted to snap some amusement social media pics with the shockingly small clothes, I ultimately decided to return everything and continue warning others away from this disaster of an online retailer.

Which brings me to the next chapter of trouble dealing with Soulmia – the return and customer service nightmare.

Fighting for My Soulmia Refund

Starting the return process for my unwearable order, I emailed Soulmia customer service with photos of the inaccurately sized items requesting a full refund.

I received an auto-reply stating returns must be initiated within 14 days of delivery. How convenient that their guaranteed delivery window already exceeds 14 days.

After following up repeatedly for 2 weeks without response, I tried calling daily to no avail. Their phone simply rings endlessly without reaching an agent or voicemail.

I then reached out over Instagram DM, Facebook message and every other channel I could find. Crickets. Complete radio silence.

After over a month battling, I finally threatened filing a fraud complaint with the FTC and miraculously received a reply granting my return. But at that point I was too exhausted from the ordeal to even send back the worthless products. I chalked it up as a loss and closed case on Soulmia forever.

Soulmia Reviews: What Other Shoppers Should Consider

Beyond my own nightmarish experience, Soulmia reviews across the web support similar accounts of outrageously incorrect sizing, poor quality, endless shipping delays and refusal to refund or replace defective items.

A sampling of feedback from recently disappointed buyers:

"I ordered 2 pairs of shorts that were meant to be high waisted. Couldn‘t even pull them over my knees."

"I was so excited for everything I ordered until I opened the package. Wrong sizes – sleeves too short, pants too long. Cheap quality too, shirts feels like sandpaper."

"Been waiting 6 weeks now for my package with no updates even after contacting them many times. At this point I just want a refund, this is ridiculous."

While Soulmia continues operating likely making decent profit margins off incorrectly fulfilled orders buyers end up stuck with, I strongly advise everyone to avoid buying from them. The headaches aren‘t worth the tempting price points or cute graphics you‘ll never even receive.

For similar fashion fix without the disappointment, try sites like Sheglam, Choies or Zaful. Their products also start around $10-15 for graphic tees and casual dresses, but with vastly better shipping, sizing and customer service backing them.

Take it from me – save yourself the wasted money and endless aggravation steering clear of Soulmia at all costs!