My own babies are 16 years in the past, but I have a slew of nieces and nephews to buy for and spoil before handing them back to their mommies. I was surprised that Baby Universe was so tough to get around and buy from. Baby Universe sells everything from furnishings and accessories to clothes and toys. They carry a wide range of brand names and many categories of items. They also carry a variety of maternity goods for expecting moms. There are plenty of baby registry and search functions throughout the site. Drilling through the site is confusing, but also possible. Item photos look good with complete descriptions. User reviews and ratings -- on a 1 to 5 baby bottle scale no less -- appear for each item. I went armed with a list of item names and numbers so had little trouble navigating the site, but shoppers unfamiliar with the site may find Baby Universe daunting. Shipping and confirmation emails are also sent.

Baby Universe Mystery Shopping Results

I bought a car seat that was already on my list and added some toys and outfits. The prices were reasonable, although the shipping was high. Had the car seat been locally available, I would have canceled the the order, but availability beat shipping this time. The order confirmation came, but even after five days and emailing the company, there was no shipping confirmation. After calling customer service, I learned that the car seat - the reason I kept my order at Baby Universe - was backordered. Customer Service said a letter was due out me that day. Unfortunately, canceling part of the order was unacceptable. I was happy to let the clothes and toys ship while canceling the car seat, but the entire order had to be canceled. So we grudgingly canceled the order and received an email two days later that informed us the car seat was still on backorder. Calling again, I learned there was no record of my cancellation, and of course, I could cancel part of the order that hadn't shipped. There was a little too much mistrust going on, though, so I simply canceled the entire order. No email arrived canceling the order, but I did see a credit card refund online. Maybe this was a one-time snafu; the customer service rep said the site was very busy and experiencing growing pains. But they missed badly and lost an order and customer. Baby Universe's selection seemed good with decent pricing, but the shipping was a little high. Until the customer service problems are ironed out, I'm not sure I would return.