The Horse Reviews 

Beginning of the year I ordered 2 Clementine bags - absolutely delighted with the bags - however hit by almost £100 import taxes, which was quite a shock. I was so pleased to see The Horse now has a UK site that states you pay the price you see no extra charges, which leads you to believe you are saving on import duties etc the big BUT here is they have just increased the UK prices to cover this! Instead of £210 for a Clementine it’s £269! Also increased price of the mini Fin to £149, it’s £117 on Australian site and because it’s below £135 import duties would not be paid on this anyway. Feel it’s slightly underhanded

I just received my Clementine Bag in Coffee by The Horse. I ordered it online directly from the company in Australia and received it within 5 business days to Ontario Canada. It was nicely packaged and smelled of leather. The duty was calculated when I checked out and no additional charges were applied on arrival. The purse is beautiful, very well made and looks exactly like the pictures. It's a perfect size for a wallet, phone, makeup bag and keys. I was a little nervous ordering it after some of the reviews online but am very glad I did!

Be cautious to buy anything from The Horse. Their customer service is almost non-existence. I placed an order and expect some shipping update after one day as promised on their website, and there was nothing for 3 days. I then reached out asking for an update through their email, as well as live chat on the website, no response. I had to directly message their Instagram account, and finally got a bot reply. :(

I received my Horse bag and really like it. The size is great and the leather and hardware look expensive and are of good quality. The only reason I am giving four stars instead of five is the unexpected import duties, which lifted the sale price to the normal price- around 25% of the cost of the bag. It’s not clear where the bag is coming from when you order it. Having said this, customer service was excellent and offered a full refund. I kept the bag as I liked it so much.

I wish I could just give 0 stars. I was very excited to finally receive the ordered bag. However, upon opening the package, I was hit with an extremely strong chemical odor.
Unfortunately, the smell is so overpowering that the bag is totally unusable. Customer service is totally bad, I just got the same answer again and again, asking if I removed the internal packaging ;-) as if i am stupid.

What an awful company. They remove your bad reviews on the product. The strap is flimsy and weak the zip catches do not buy!

It is just the design of the purse that is way off. The Clementine’s strap over the opening of the purse. I had to return. Getting into a bag is important to me. Also, the leather is not high quality.

Got a faulty bag. Contacted the custom mer service and they did not replace it due to it being used. I wore it once which is when I noticed the damage. I did not get to return it, any resolution or compensation.

On November 26, 2025, I ordered 2 Clementine bags thinking that it would be sufficient time for delivery before Christmas. I received an email from the delivery company stating my order was out for delivery. Unfortunately, that was the only information I ever get from the delivery company.

After a few weeks I reached out The Horse to see if they can assist me on getting more updated status on the delivery but I kept getting their automated messages.

Christmas came and passed and still no delivery. Finally The Horse sent me an email offering to send out the bags again or get a full refund. These were supposed to be Christmas presents which obviously did not happen. I chose to get a full refund.

The company’s standard delivery was supposed to be 5-10 days which is not true. I do understand that this happened during a busy holiday season and that they are in Australia while I’m in the US but I’ve ordered things from other countries and have never had problems with getting my purchases delivered.

I would reconsider purchasing from this company again if they chose a better and more reliable delivery company.

I ordered the Clementine bag from The Horse AU and was aware of the additional FedEx customs charges. However, overall the bag is absolutely not worth the price.

It has a very strong chemical smell, the seam finishing appears to be plastic, and the leather honestly does not feel like genuine leather. While the design and shape match the photos shown online, the overall quality is very disappointing.

Based on my experience, I would not purchase again.

I decided to order a bag from The Horse during one of their sales and, through no fault of their own, the bag was lost in shipping. Not only did they consistently communicate with me to see where it might be, they also offered a new bag at no cost (shipping or otherwise). The bag arrived smoothly and in great condition. I get complimented on it all the time.

I bought the Lou bag in coffee and it was dispatched quickly and I had no delivery issues. Unlike others, I had expected to pay taxes but I hadn’t factored in FedEx fees which added a quite significant total to the bag. There is a faint chemical smell to it but I can also smell the leather, which is nice. It isn’t as soft as I’d expected but is a lovely colour and shape. What really lets the bag down and cheapens it massively is the hardware. The zip pull is plastic! Lightweight, poorly made, plastic. Whether there is a quality control issue and the factory is getting away with swapping out the hardware I don’t know as I cannot imagine this brand making this design choice. It honestly makes the whole bag look so much cheaper. Would I buy another one? If they don’t change the hardware, absolutely not - there are much better choices out there at a better price point. I will be reaching out to The Horse about the hardware so may update my review when that happens.

I got stung with €65 worth of tax invoice by fedex because I purchased a clementine bag at the horse website. No emails, no information just a post received. This actually make me furious as I was not expecting this kind of ridiculous amount of tax on top of the shipping fee I paid. Will not order to this website again!!! 😡

I was aware of extra charges when purchasing the bags (Clementine and teddie) therefore I got them on black Friday sales to minimise expenses. Can't fault customer services as every of my questions asked have been replied to, the smell isn't as bad as I've read about, decent quality. Love the minimalist design

Their website is awful, restricting people from accessing their AU website not only from EU but even if you are in AU still can’t access to make an order to AU.
Customer Service is very bad-I have asked few different questions and the responses were so basic and unhelpful, definitely a brand that does not care for their customers. I work for a CS of a global brand with millions of customers and we have more focus on our customers than this lot with their mini brand. So disappointing. I really wanted to become their customer but it feels like I just cannot buy a product lol so bizarre. And the worst is that with so many bad reviews they don’t seem to take any feedback to try to improve.

Wish I’d read these reviews before ordering. Bag has arrived damaged- marks on the leather as if something has been pressed against it. I emailed and was offered 20% discount which I declined because the bag was too expensive to keep it in this condition. I asked them to give me return or exchange options over a week ago and I’ve had nothing back. Terrible customer service. Will contest with my bank if I don’t hear anything but imagine the import fees will be lost

Like others, I wish I had read reviews first as I have now been stung with a £45 import fee. When I contacted customer services, they weren't very helpful, claiming I could send the bag back for £50 or I should have read the T&Cs.

I ordered the clementine bag, which I actually really like. Mine didn't have the chemical smell like others had, and seems to be decent quality. Was it worth paying £65 to get it in the country though? Probably not

I was given two Clementine bags as gifts. I only used one without the crossbody strap and loved it. I went on a trip and attached the crossbody strap and it was defective or poor quality and snagged and ruined my shirt. I contacted The Horse CS and they wanted me to jump through hoops with order numbers, pics with the area circled, etc. because the initial pics didn’t show the defects well. I would NOT put myself through this if the strap was good quality. I just walked away, unhappy and am sharing this situation with others along with my close inner circle of friends. Barbara

The clementine tan bag just arrived and it smells like the worst possible toxic chemicals have been used to dye it. If I picked it up in a shop, at this price, I would definitely not buy it. Absolutely no way is it worth the money. The tan colour is a bit dull and the crossbody strap is not long enough for crossbody. This bag is average in looks and quality of leather, it’s probably worth half of the price I paid on Black Friday sale and maybe would all be okish if I didn’t feel like my chest has been poisoned by the fumes. Not worth the risk as it is too expensive to return.

Just got stung with a £59 FedEx invoice and the bag isn't even that nice. No transparency when purchasing. Awful experience and the bag is not worth the hidden charges.