House of Dubai — Local services in Leyden Township

Updated to include images in response to the owner’s blatantly dishonest reply.

Unfortunately, this is only my second negative review that I’ve had to write in my lifetime. However, I feel that it is important to post this in order to inform future potential customers of the unfair business practice existent at The House of Dubai in Rosemont.

My friend purchased a bottle of cologne from this store last week as a gift for me. The transaction went smoothly, initially. The salesperson quoted her a price that was $10 more than advertised on the manufacturer’s official site. However, the salesperson proceeded to offer a discount of 10%. That brought the cost more inline with the retail price available at other more reputable places.

My friend decided to buy the cologne, thinking that we would be able to return it if needed. She then wrapped the cologne in its factory sealed plastic placing it safely into a gift bag. I opened the gift days later and it was a cologne that I already owned. We decided to take the cologne back to House of Dubai, expecting no trouble during an ordinary return. We were wrong.

We walked into the store on a Friday afternoon. We were the only customers in the store and were promptly greeted by the four young employees hanging out behind the counter.

We presented the cologne, unopened and in its original wrapper with the accompanying receipt (purchased less than 7 days prior). One of the young men who refused to give me his name, but claimed to be the manager, inspected the box, determined it to be perfectly unopened, yet refused to accept the return. When asked why, he grabbed the receipt and smiled as he pointed at the tiny script at the bottom that said “All sales are final.”

During no point of the original transaction did the salesperson mention this return policy. There are no signs in-store that indicate “all sales are final”. There was no communication that would inform an unsuspecting customer that returns were not accepted at the time of sale.

As a form of explanation, I was told that it was one of their “nicest fragrances” and that my friend “really wanted it”, so they could not accept the return. Apparently, you cannot change your mind and return nice things that you really wanted.

When I informed them that the original salesperson, who was also in attendance, never mentioned the return policy, and showed them there were no signs posted anywhere in the store, none of the four employees could offer a reasonable explanation. The manager again grabbed the receipt and pointed to the tiny grayscale line at the bottom, saying that this is how customers are informed of the policy.

This is at best an unfair business practice, at worst it’s willful deceit. The customer is tacitly informed only if they happen to read the fine print on the receipt post purchase. As a customer you are informed that you cannot get a refund only after the purchase has been made, and the funds are withdrawn from your bank.

None of the four employees could offer further explanation apart from, most people do not return things that they buy from the store because their customer service always “goes above and beyond”. I wish that I could agree with that sentiment.

I asked for other recourse, they offered an exchange for other items. After this experience, I wanted nothing from this overpriced store and really just wanted a refund. They could have easily facilitated a return and simply put the unopened item back on the shelf for the next person to buy.

However, they were unwilling to do so. The original salesperson proceeded to call, who I can only assume was the owner, on the phone. The owner heard the story and stood by their unwritten store policy and refused to refund the money.

So, if you are one of the few people who happen to wander into this store, do yourself a favor. Do a quick Google search for your item, it’s bound to be cheaper online. As a bonus, you would be able to easily return the item if you happen to...

I went here on a whim. I'd heard about these types of fragrance stores and wanted to give it a try. I wasn't greeted immediately, but I didn't have to browse long before someone noticed me looking around. The guy that approached asked what I was looking for and liked. I told him I liked vanilla and warm scents. He immediately took me to the Michael Malul Vanilla Crème. I loved the scent! He showed me a few more that were not vanilla scents. I didn't like them much. The last one he showed me, Afnan Supremacy Purple. I liked that one too, but it wasn't vanilla-y so I wasn't going to get it. He then told me I could have it as a BOGO ½ off, originally $88. I took the deal. I wish I hadn't checked the TikTok shop to compare prices when I got home 😕. The Vanilla Créme was about the same price, but the Supremacy goes for as little as $32.50-$40ish for the regular price. I guess the deal he offered me wasn't really a deal. Lesson learned on my part. If I ever go back, I'll be sure to have some fragrances in mind, and I'll price check before buying. Also, there are no returns. Only exchanges. I saw the sign as I was checking out.

If you're a fragrance person, I'd say it's worth a look if you're in the outlet mall. Do a quick price check on TikTok and Google...

Normally, we go through life, especially in the modern era, we expect poor service. Everyone is too stressed, too overworked, too . I am a lover of fragrance. I can honestly say that there are plenty of incredible fragrance stores in Chicago. In these stores, I have run into people that make me laugh, smile, and generally feel good about the experience. That said, today was a rare combination of factors. House of Dubai, hands down, has the largest assortment of Niche (under one roof) in the MIDWEST!! You have the popular top-tier niche (Initio, Parfums de Marley, Tiziana Terenzi), ultra-niche (Fragrance Du Bois, Roja), and everything in between! I was helped by Besheer (excellent young man). Today was my first time visiting the store and he literally just gave me a tour! No stress, no sales tactic, just "here is the store soak it in". I could go on and on, but here is the final wrap-up: Excellent store, excellent service - 5-star Excellent Experience! I shall...