Before I went wedding registry gun crazy in Crate & Barrel I googled around and asked a bunch of girlfriends what they had used. The one online registry that kept coming back up was Zola. So I dug in on the pros and cons of what made Zola so popular, in the end, I decided Zola was the best option for us and so far we love it!
Cash Funds with Zola
I know for some people Cash Gifts are a “no-no” but sometimes you just want the cash!! Nevertheless, I also understand that not everyone wants to give cash. Luckily, Zola gives you the option to do both and has the lowest fee with 2.5%. With our cash funds, we were able to redo our kitchen and splurge a little more on the honeymoon – win!
Zola Credit
Here is what makes Zola really unique. When someone buys an item from Zola you get two options. Ship it or convert that item to store credit. You can then use that credit to purchase something else.
We did this with our Roomba and Sonos Sound Bar. We added a cheaper one of each to the registry and then converted some other gifts we decided we no longer need…I went a little ham on the Le Creuset okay! I really don’t need eight casserole dishes! With the Zola credit, we got the more expensive Roomba and Sonos speaker we really wanted. I now have a bomb speaker and a robot vacuum we have named Robert – win, win!
Zola’s Retailer Selection
Zola is like a mall with lots of retailers and vendors you would already want to add to your registry like Crate & Barrel, Backcountry, Parachute, Le Crueset, Costa Nova, Mikasa and Sonos. Having to create a different registry at every retailer we wanted would have been a time suck and annoying for our guests. Zola’s retailers go cover your traditional kitchen, dining gifts but also include furniture, experiences, outdoors gear, rugs, art and more!
Group Gifts
So y’all really want that bar cart, kayak or other big-ticket items? With Zola, it’s super easy to designate a gift as a group gift and allow your guests to contribute whatever they wish.
Adding outside retailers
While Zola really does cover so many retailers you may want something from Etsy, Anthro or maybe REI. Not a problem. Zola has a handy bookmarking tool that will grab any item and add it to your registry. When someone purchases this item for you, they can either go directly to that retailer’s website in purchase it or you can ask for the cash equivalent. Again making what you put on your list super flexible. So you can either buy that item direct via Zola or cash it out.
Flexible & Free Shipping and Free Returns
When someone makes a purchase you get an email notification. You then have the choice of shipping the item or converting it to Zola credit to purchase something else. This was so great as we started getting gifts before we moved or before we had figured out storage for everything. This is great for when you find you no longer need and item and don’t want to have to deal with returning it. When you do get something shipped if there is an issue at all shipping is covered by Zola – win!
20% off wedding completion
After your wedding for one full year, you get 20% off almost everything on Zola. Let’s say after the wedding you have some Zola credit and decided to order another set of wine glasses – those are gonna be 20% off! We actually did this, I mean you really can’t have enough stemless wine glasses haha
It’s been almost a year with Zola and we are still loving it! I could not recommend it more. Right now if you create a wedding registry with Zola you can get $50 to spend!
In the end, I did end up registering at more than just Zola.
I registered at a store in my hometown of Atlanta so our friends and family there could shop in person for a gift. I highly suggest that for the parents! I also ended up choosing my everyday pattern from Pottery Barn so I registered there as well.
