University of Essex Foundation Hood

HOW GOWN HIRE WORKS

1/ Choose your products

If you are attending a ceremony make sure you select the correct size, University and degree for your course to ensure you are wearing the right regalia for your ceremony. You also need to ensure you select 'hire', rather than 'purchase' products when choosing the items you need.

2/ Select your ceremony date and checkout

At checkout you will be asked to choose your ceremony date. If you are attending a graduation this will be the date of the event. if you are not attending a ceremony then choose the date you want for your home celebration or photo-shoot. All items are scheduled to arrive at least 2 days before your ceremony date.

3/ Unpack your gown

When your parcel arrives we recommend trying everything on to make sure it fits and hanging up the up gown and hood to allow time for any small creases to drop out. Remember to also keep your prepaid return label and gold mailer bag as you will need these to return the gown to us.

4/ Enjoy your ceremony

You have up to 2 days after your ceremony to post your items back to us, so make the most of it! Take photos with your family and friends at home, and enjoy yourself :)

RETURN INSTRUCTIONS

1/ ORDER YOUR ITEMS

Make sure you select hire when ordering your items, and put in the correct ceremony date! All items are scheduled to arrive at least 2 days before your ceremony.

2/ ENJOY YOUR CEREMONY

You have up to 2 days after your ceremony to post your items back to us, so make the most of it! Take photos with your family and friends at home, and enjoy yourself :)

3/ POST YOUR ITEMS BACK

You have up to 2 days to send your items back to us using the free return bag and label, before being charged any late fees. You can choose to either drop off your parcel to your nearest post office, or book a collection via the Royal Mail collection service . Please note that a collection needs to be booked in by the day after your ceremony to ensure it is collected within the two day return window, there is a step by step guide to booking your collection here. If your items are returned late, you will be charged £12 per day after the third day to a maximum of £60 per set (after which you may keep everything if you like).

4/ REGISTER YOUR RETURN

To prevent any late fees from being charged, make sure you register your return on this page after you have dropped your gown off at the post office or it has been collected! You need to register your return using the 4 or 5 digit order number on your confirmation email starting with a #. If you can't find your confirmation email we recommend checking your junk or spam folder. Our system automatically checks the return post date, and any incorrectly registered returns will incur an extra £5 admin fee for our staff to make any necessary corrections.