How to Have Success “Renting” Subscription Clothes – An Honest Le Tote Review

(Last Updated On: February 27, 2023)

This post regarding Le Tote reviews was recently updated on 5/3/2018 to reflect updating pricing and options offered by Le Tote.

Last year I tried Le Tote for the first time. I went through my first month wasn’t into it and canceled right away.  Over the next year, I kept thinking about  Le Tote and wondered if I had written them off too soon.  Finally, as the holiday season snuck up I realized I had plans to travel November and December and that my San Diego wardrobe wouldn’t cut I decided to try Le Tote again. If you want to get a walkthrough of both the good and the bad with Le Tote, follow along as I detail my 3-month subscription and exactly what I got.

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How Le Tote Works

For the past few years, I’ve been wanting to fall in love with a clothing subscription company but the reality versus my expectations always fell flat.  For a busy working mom, the idea of having clothes handpicked and delivered to my door for a reasonable price seemed like the perfect solution.  I’m not displeased with my wardrobe but like every woman my age, I always want something new for the season or for an event coming up or heck even to lift my spirits on a Tuesday.

Le Tote Important Facts

Price: as low as $59 a month, no contract

What is it: Subscription-based clothing rentals.

What You Get: Unlimited “totes” delivered one at a time that includes 3 clothing items and 2 accessories per month.  You get to hand pick each item that is delivered!

Do I have to buy anything or pay a fee if I don’t: Nope, you can strictly rent the clothes but have the option to buy if you end up loving them

What’s their contract like: Month to month but when you cancel you do have to call and can’t do it online. You don’t pay to ship either way.

Do you have to buy the products: Only if you want to, no fee if you don’t.

Do you have to wash the products: No, they launder everything.

How Le Tote Works:

Go to  LE TOTE  and create a free account.  From there you have to fill out a style profile, don’t worry you still have the option to hand select each item that you receive. Your tote includes 3 clothing items and 2 accessories in each shipment.  You get 100% control over which items come in your tote so you’re never surprised or disappointed. You also get unlimited totes per month but all the items have to be shipped back each time. I find that I keep a tote around 2 weeks and then get another. So I average 6 clothing pieces and 4 accessories for $39 which is not bad at all!

Le Tote Brands:

There is a fairly large assortment of styles to chose from.  Overall, they aren’t as fashion forward as I would hope.  I never have a problem buying a basic but the trendy seasonal pieces are what I am less apt to splurge on.  I wish  LE TOTE  had more on-trend pieces instead of a slightly more vanilla selection of capsule or evergreen pieces.  However, although it might not be the most fashionably adventurous options, the clothes are well made, well taken care of and items that you would find in Nordstrom or Anthropologie.

Who Le Tote Is Good For:

• Anyone who is the type to wear something new over and over and over but then completely tire of it when they fall in love with something else.
• Moms or work at home type who don’t have as many reasons to need new clothes all the time but still want them.
• Anyone who is still learning their perfect style and finds themselves shopping and coming home with things that you only wear a few times before feeling like they aren’t a good fit.
• Anyone who works a 9-5 and is tired of your wardrobe being stuck on repeat but only wants to shop for fun non-work clothes.
• Women who have tried Stitch Fix and hated that they couldn’t pick out their own clothes.
• Anyone who is pregnant – they have a maternity subscription!

Before I get into the details of the service, I’ll show you what my 3 totes looked like and what I actually wore:

My First Le Tote Shipment:

By picture alone this seemed like it would be an all-around winner.  I really liked the pieces I picked out and thought I was going to get a lot of us out of it.  However, when the shipment arrived I realized that I am too tall (5’8″ with a long torso) for what they deem a medium.  If I was shorter, I might have ended up purchasing everything in it but after trying everything on and reminding myself I had unlimited totes, I quickly shipped this back to try again.

My Second Le Tote Shipment

This one would have been completely lackluster if I hadn’t fallen in love with the jacket and ring.  The blue wrap sweater had sleeves that were a little short but with a jacket, over it, I wore it once.  The chambray dress was too big but I did wear it to a play date and another time for some errands and casual coffee date at the beach. The blush suede jacket and I had a total moment.  I wore it out one night and my sister saw it and instantly took it from me and wanted to try it on herself. This tote I held on to longer than I needed to while I was deciding if I should buy the jacket. Ultimately I decided that I got so much wear out of it that I didn’t near to buy it.

My Third Le Tote Shipment:

This tote looked pretty bland by the picture but ended up being really practical.  The velvet off the shoulder top was a fun evening piece and filled the gap in my wardrobe that my basics sometimes miss the mark on.  While I never intended to want to use Le Tote for basics, I am in love with the black wrap tank. It’s January but I ended up keeping it for spring/summer because I’m so in love with the silhouette it creates. The striped button down isn’t something I want to own but it did come in handy when I had a work meeting and needed to look more business professional than work at home mom. The jewelry never got worn.

Details You’ll Only Know If You Tried Le Tote:

Shipping:

The inventory is warehoused in Oakland area and I get my new Tote within about 2 days from sending it back.  As soon as the mail carrier scans my return package, my new tote begins to process!

Selecting Product:

The absolute best seller of this service is that you get 100% control over what ships in your tote.  I’ve tried Stitch Fix and my biggest complaint was that I wanted to hand pick what was sent to me.  With LE TOTE you’ll get a Tote with 3 clothing items and 2 accessories picked for you.  Then you can immediately go and swap out those items for the other available inventory they have. Every time I’ve completely swapped my tote for other pieces.

Sizing:

I’m 5’8″ with a long torso. Fit is a bit of a challenge for me but probably wouldn’t be for someone 5’7″ or under.  I often sized up to a large in order to get the length right but then the body was too big and I would end up not wearing it at all.

Maternity:

They have an entirely separate subscription for maternity so you never have to buy maternity clothes again!

How To Buy A Product:

It is as simple as just excluding it from what you send back.  Then it’s yours and you even get a subscription credit for the next month’s tote!

Le Tote Reviews From Real Customers:

Just like you, before I decided to sign up the first and the second time I went across the internet seeking real customer reviews. I found that most Le Tote reviews were similar to mine.  People really liked the concept of renting their clothes and were happy with the selection.  Also, I found that most Le Tote reviews also showed that people were wanting to send the items back one by one and typically preferred only to rent and not purchase.

Here are some of the most useful Le Tote reviews from real customers.

Le Tote reviews curated from Influenster.com

The Bottom Line:

I could easily spend $50 in a Forever21 and impulse buy $50 worth of cheap clothes that will just sit in my closet.  The idea of redirecting that money towards a constant stream of new clothes to try is a much better alternative.  My Totes aren’t filled with items that I love so much I want to own them or wear them all the time, but I’m still happy with the Le Tote service and find myself unwilling to cancel.

Limited time offer! Get 50% Off Your First Month with code: SPRING  – Save with THIS LINK > >

 

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