Studio Catalogue

...This morning I received a studio cards catalogue through my letterbox after quite some time without one. The reason being I was so fed up with the service and poor quality goods, I never bothered with them again.
What is Studio cards? It's not a shop. It's the same as "Ace" cards and gifts and runs on the same principle. It used to be just mail order only but now they have gone online. You can obtain a copy by scanning through the ...
...form, an envelope addressed to Studio and a "Back to School" leaflet selling lots of pencils, ruck sacks etc.
The catalogue itself is 451 pages long, not too taxing on the brain and certainly no where near as large as the Next catalogue or as heavy. The pages are quite flimsy so any heavy hands beware; this includes my 8 year old.
The first 100 pages or so is dedicated to Christmas. With items such as cards, wrapping, bows, ... more

One thing I am good at is shopping and eating. So as I am on yet another diet I had better write about ways to spend money and not gain calories.
This morning I received a studio cards catalogue through my letterbox after quite some time without one. The reason being I was so fed up with the service and poor quality goods, I never bothered with them again.
What is Studio cards? It's not a shop. It's the same as "Ace" cards and gifts and runs on the same principle. It used to be just mail order only but now they have gone online. You can obtain a copy by scanning through the Sunday paper magazine or your women's weekly and filling out their advert and sending it off. They don't charge you for the book but recoup their printing costs later on as you will read and find out.
They are often advertised in Take a break and That's Life. You can also get a copy by going online or by filling in those annoying "win £10,000 if you tell us your inside leg measurement surveys" that often drop through your door. This is how I got mine.
So as I didn't have anything else to read over my 2oz slice of wholemeal toast with low fat flora, I opened it up to while away the minutes and this is what I found.

~~~~~ The Cover~~~~

Well what can I say except it's a big reminder that Christmas is only 6 months away. The cover hasn't really changed much over the years; the colours are the same and the Santa just looks like er, Santa! Its quite glossy with a selection of the gifts that inside the book. So what do you get when you tear open the plastic cover?

~~~~~~The Inside~~~~~~~

There are quite a few loose pages or leaflets, as I should say, so have a good grip on the catalogue as you rip the plastic off. The leaflets consist of a few sale sheets, an order form, an envelope addressed to Studio and a "Back to School" leaflet selling lots of pencils, ruck sacks etc.
The catalogue itself is 451 pages long, not too taxing on the brain and certainly no where near as large as the Next catalogue or as heavy. The pages are quite flimsy so any heavy hands beware; this includes my 8 year old.
The first 100 pages or so is dedicated to Christmas. With items such as cards, wrapping, bows, tree's, lights, calendars, Christmas crackers etc its hard not to get into the swing of the festive season even though it's June as I write this!
I have always liked the cards they sell and haven't had any reason to return them. Always read the small print though. The cards always look huge in the book but unless you read the measurement's, you might get a packet of thumb nail size Xmas cards. Nothing worse than your mates thinking your stingy over Crimbo.
After that is the toy section. Nothing on the scale of Hamley's or even the Entertainer but a fair display of what I would describe as cheap n cheerful, except they are not that cheap. If you look closely you will spot a few toys that the "Pound Shop" sells. This makes you realise just how much the consumer can be ripped off.
The bikes here are not too bad, prices on par with Halfords. I have never bought a bike for any of my family from here so cannot comment on the quality. I would rather go to a main dealer before I purchase something so large.
There are quite a varied selection of kids books and even some game consoles. I noticed they are selling "Tiggers Tunes" on page 185, the "young fun" section. I have recently bought this for my daughter at Wyevales garden centre. Considering their prices aren't exactly rock bottom, I still paid £3.99 for it. In studio it retails at £5.99, exactly the same book. The prices for the Nintendo DS and PsP hand held games are dearer than some outlets but the games seem to be average price. Just be price aware.
I love the baby section on page 189, it has the cutest bed spread, which can be personalised. There are also accessories to go with it such as wooden chair, knife and fork set and towel. All can have your child's details on it. Not sure it its appropriate for a boy as the colour is read and yellow and there are no other options. Perhaps this is something they should look into, different colour options on a small selection of goods.
I think the DVD's are well over priced, before you order any check out www.cdwow.co.uk and even www.woolworths.co.uk for a price comparison. With titles such as "Norman Wisdom" and "Rocky" - the original, they aren't exactly selling chart movies. Even the cd's are dated stuff, such as John Denver and Elvis. The cd's are the type you see in the bargain bucket in WH Smiths for £1.99, except Studio aren't selling them at bargain bucket prices.
Ooer missus, what's this on page 223? Studio Cards gone Anne Summers! Well not quite, it's a baby doll outfit for mum (not for toys) and a body suit. It looks tacky and not for me I'm afraid.
Further on down are the usual tacky gifts, love candles, personalised knickers, tooth jewels, lots of trinket boxes with slushy words, 3 wise men who look like they have worn themselves out doing the karma sutra. Oh please, even a personalised table mat and t shirt. I am sorry but who wants to give a present of a set of table coasters with your picture on it. I don't relish the thought of someone putting their cup of coffee on top of my mug shot or my kids.
Infact nearly everything it seems can be personalised here, about the only thing not done is a tampax holder, but watch this space, it might be in 2006 edition. The further I go down the pages, the more I realise it hasn't really changed at all.
The Elvis Presley clock on page 273 is what my friend won in a raffle. It had pride of place in her kitchen for almost a week but after Elvis continually singing "rock around the clock" on the hour, every hour, she donated it to the Oxfam shop. Cant believe its selling for £29.99! My mate would have paid that to get rid of it. However after reading the description, this one plays "Hound Dog" and "Don't be Cruel", so a slight difference.
Coming towards the end, there is the usual house hold items such as cold plastic shower curtains, Hinari Microwaves and tile stickers. Don't think Ikea needs to go into panic mode.
The last pages are what they call the INFORMATION POINT". Its where you have the small print that is so small, you don't read it unless it's too late and you're stuck with faulty goods and cant get anyone to collect them. Going by past experiences I would suggest you read it, or skim over the important bits, like "REFUND".
It also tells you how to order items, this being the order form enclosed with your book, over the telephone on an 08706 number or online via www.24studio.co.uk.
If you call them it's costing you a National rate and they keep you on hold for a while. Not so bad when most of the numbers were 0800, but that's all changed as companies want to get on the band wagon of charging national rate now. So be warned. You can phone 24/7 and I found it easy to get through around 10 pm, a lot quicker and you don't go on hold for so long. Don't ring Monday mornings, it's a nightmare.

~~~~~Delivery~~~~~~~~

Not to bad, I always found it to be around 7 to 10 days. However not all items are always available so be prepared to get only half your order.
The order is sent by courier in my area and comes in a large cardboard box with tissue paper lining. The box looks huge in comparison to the half dozen packets of cards and wrapping paper that I normally get, but never mind, its arrived.

~~~~~Returns~~~~~~~~~~~~~

As Post and Packing will set you back a ridiculous £3.70, the returns are free if you call for a courier to collect them. If you use the post office, they include a returns note in the parcel and details are on there on how to use this service.
Insurance is an option and once again, you have to pay if you want your parcel delivered safe and sound. Tick the option box on the order form if you want it.
Personalised items cannot be returned.

~~~~~~Complaints~~~~~~~~~~

If you any cause for complaint then Studio prefer you to write to :

Customer Care Department
Studio
Preston PR20 2BP.

I have found this in the past a waste of time, they take forever to sort things out but are very quick in sending the statement for your payments. Regardless that you have sent the goods back or have missing items in your delivery box, they bill you almost overnight. Then they get nasty as you haven't sent payments and you are still trying to get across that you have returned "aunty meg's vase" as the bottom fell out!
I have had many causes for complaint so this is why I left Studio alone and refused to even mention the name in my house. I will list some reasons why I lost heart with the company:

I ordered two sets of Power ranger pyjamas. My eldest is sized 8 to 9 years and my middle boy is 4 to 5 years. The right sizes arrived but with the wrong boys names printed on them. When I returned them it took over two months to get a full credit back on my account and then they sent them back again to me!

My little girl's winnie the pooh bed cover fell to bits after one wash. Once again it took months to get a credit.

I had a cash register for the kids come money box that wouldn't open.

I ordered Xmas cards without checking the size and they were miniscule. The prices weren't miniscule though.

~~~~~~~~~~~Statement~~~~~~~~~~

Well this arrives very quickly through your letter box but they even get that wrong.
You can settle it straight away if all is ok by cheque or credit card or spread the payments paying high interest. Be warned. However double check your items as I have found some little extra's added that were not ordered on my bill.
I remember when you used to run this as an agent and receive so much back on commission. That has finished now but to be honest I wouldn't really want to promote the book that much.

~~~~~~~~~~~Conclusion~~~~~~~~~~~~

I don't think much has changed to be honest over the years. It's still full of bling and plastic tat. Its mainly stocking filler bits n bobs but at stupid high prices. Shop around; you will seem them elsewhere cheaper, even the market!
As for postage, well they charge so much on top for most items, postage and packing should be free but it never has been. Just another rip off.
Sorry Studio but if I ever order again, it will just be the wrapping paper, cant go wrong with that can you??????

 

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