A Pea In the Pod

Very nice staff!!! Made the shopping experience so much nicer! Thanks Charlotte, we’ll be back for more!

I ordered 3 maternity shirts on July 11 and their site had said to expect delivery between 5 – 7 business days. After 2 weeks of waiting, I called their customer service department and their agent was very unhelpful. I had wanted to cancel the order and the agent said I could not because the items had shipped. Fine, I had told her. However another week had passed and still no delivery. My credit card was charged 3 days ago and finally I receive an email to expect delivery by August 11. That is a full month of waiting and not good business practice to indicate the wrong mailing dates. I have no doubt that the product will be good, it is the service that most definitely needs improvement.

Unfortunately, I really enjoyed shopping here. I was the only one there so I had the «sale» rack all to myself and the help from the solo staff with zipping things and providing positive comments at just the right moments. So, yes, of course it was a positive experience. Lots of brands of clothing, including the Pea in the Pod line, but prices can really sky-​rocket, which can be frustrating for people trying to be economically mindful during pregnancy…
I really like the Pea in the Pod brand jeans, which come in a variety of styles, washes, and integrate a full belly band. The full price was $ 85, but I managed to hit a day when they were $ 25 off. I was surprised to find that my pre-​pregnancy size was truly the size to purchase.
On sale, I found some fun, stretchy 7 f.a.m. black pants with large grey floral pattern, skinny style. Happy to see the price marked down about $ 100, but still… not the cheapest pair o’ pants… and that darned grey sweatshirt was just so freaking soft!
Plus, what’s great, is the ability to try on such a variety of clothing from lounge-​wear, to office-​wear, to bathing suits, and sun-​dresses. It’s hard to find the variety of style and patience to shop for maternity clothes at other stores.
In a nutshell, with sales, I spent upwards of $ 300 for 3 pairs of pants, 3 tops, and 1 dress. And I’m really hoping this is my last maternity trip.

Most of the four stars I’m giving here are for the clothing — the style and quality of offerings at Pea in the Pod is unparalleled on the maternity fashion scene.
If you haven’t been pregnant — try it. You’ll see how imperative just one good-​fitting, comfortable t-​shirt is to have in your wardrobe once your pre-​preggo ones stop covering your growing belly up. Bare mid-​drifts can be cute — but not when you’ve got a watermelon stomach with stretched out skin, a popped-​out belly button and a little more hair than usual accompanying it…
A pair of jeans? You really only need one and the options here are top quality and worth the pretty penny you’ll pay for them.
The clothing here makes pregnancy just that much easier — the fact that I can carry my babe without sacrificing style is huge. We already have to give up alcohol, mountain biking and deli meat. Don’t take away my designer jeans, too! Let me at least keep that — and to that plea, Pea in the Pod answers with a resounding «YES!»
Service is par for the course with any other retail clothing outlet. Not anything to write home about, but not horrible either.
My only gripe — the prices are outrageous. That pretty penny I mentioned for a decent pair of jeans — we’re talking upwards of $ 200 a pair. Dresses? $ 200 or more full price. Simple ribbed tank tops? $ 20. A fashionable (somewhat-​known maternity) brand-​label top? $ 50 and up momma.
Also — do not give them your email!!! They will send it out to every pregnancy-​baby-​parenting marketing company out there. I promise your inbox will be bombarded on a daily basis with emails from Huggies, Enfamil, Carter’s, ViaCord, Gerber, Motherhood Maternity and a plethora of other companies you want nothing to do with.
Looking good pregnant certainly ain’t cheap. But as someone who previously associated pregnancy with mood swings, backaches, swollen ankles and over-​sized moo-​moos, imagine my delight when I discovered at least one of those things doesn’t have to be a normal part of growing a fertilized egg into a baby.

I love Pea in the Pod! The staff is helpful and friendly, the clothes are super soft, and there’s a far better variety of clothes (from sleepwear to casual and work wear) than you will find anywhere else. I get so many compliments on my Pea in the Pod purchases — mostly, «I can’t believe that’s a maternity dress?!» I want to live in my maternity pajamas for the rest of my life — they are as soft as clouds. Sure, it’s pricey, but if you make a few smart purchases and take advantage of sales (lots of buy 3 get one free deals or buy one get one 50% off) and join their membership, you can get a nice maternity wardrobe that will last you your whole pregnancy.

i’m kind of torn on how many stars to give this place. on one hand, most maternity clothes are online-​only (gap, old navy, topshop, loft) so it’s nice you can go into a physical store and try things on, especially as sizes can be totally different and your body is changing so much. on the other hand, the prices in this store are obscene (but perhaps to be expected given the brands: $ 90 splendid henleys.$ 170 see through shirts from french connection. etc), the sales staff are super pushy and annoying, and the selection/​variety is not that great.
i’ve shopped here twice out of desperation and both times left with fairly cute items, including a dress for my baby shower i got a lot of compliments on. so it gets stars for getting the job done in that regard. it’s also nice that they have maternity underwear and bras and some nursing supplies. my mother in law bought me four pairs of tights from here for christmas and the three of them i’ve worn so far all ripped in the crotch the first day i wore them (and they’re supposedly «one size fits all» — and like $ 30!!).
so bottom line, you kind of don’t have a choice if you want to go into a brick and mortar store and buy maternity clothes. it’s just kind of a bummer that a pea in the pod can get away with charging what they do because they know pregnant women are desperate.

My two stars only apply to this location and the service, not the clothes. The clothes are great. Lots of designer brands and styles — great for work and social.
The problem here has to do with the commission structure, or whatever it is that creates the bad shopping atmosphere. I did have a few successful shopping trips here before the really bad time, but even times when I said I just wanted to browse, the sales people kind of popped up way to often sticking their two cents in.
The shopping trip that became my last was just bad. I went in with limited time, looking for a dress for a formal event. I had already shopped there a bunch, and the sales people knew I spent money on quite a few previous occasions. My regular sales person was with another customer, so I asked a sales associate I didn’t know if she could help me find dresses for the event I was describing. She was so helpful at first, pulling things off the racks and understanding of my time constraint. I was determined not to leave empty handed and liked the two most expensive dresses I tried. I was down to the last two, but had a question. I looked around for my sales associate, but she was nowhere near. The other associate was there, and her client had left (my usual person), but she was all strange as if to say «you are not my problem this time». I walked to the front of the store. My current sales person was ringing up someone else and said she couldn’t help me right now. There were only two customers in the store!!! Me and the girl checking out. There were TWO sales people. I was moments way from spending hundreds of dollars on a dress I was going to wear once or twice. I could not believe this was happening. My regular person shrugged her shoulders again to indicate it was out of her control.
My ride came and I had to leave. I was fat and pregnant and felt totally rejected. I put my clothes back on and left. Like a loser, I apologized to the sales people for having so many questions on the way out. I was sad and I had no dress.
There are so many great maternity clothes online, and that is how I made it through the rest of my pregnancy. I never went back to the store even though I walk right past it every day.