About Robert Mitchell
Eleven years in retail buying and ecommerce operations, followed by seven years of writing independent reviews. This page explains who I am, how the site is funded and how each score is produced.
From the buying desk to the review desk
I started in retail as a category buyer for a regional home goods chain, then moved to ecommerce operations for a direct-to-consumer brand. Over eleven years I sat in supplier negotiations, read thousands of product returns and learned what separates a product that photographs well from one that survives daily use.
In 2019 I began publishing reviews because most of what I read online was either a rewritten press release or a sponsored post with a five-star rating attached. I wanted a place where the testing was described, the trade-offs were stated and the reader could disagree with the conclusion using the same evidence I had.
Today the site covers home, tech, beauty, pets, baby and the digital tools that small online stores rely on. I still write every review myself.
How every product is reviewed
The same four-stage process applies to a fifteen-dollar pet bowl and a four-hundred-dollar pair of headphones. The depth changes, the standard does not.
Purchase or disclosed sample
Most products are bought at retail. If a brand supplies a unit, the review states this in the first paragraph and the brand has no input on the text.
Minimum two weeks of use
Products are used as a customer would use them, at home and at work. Consumables and skincare run for a full 30 days. Nothing is scored from a first impression.
Four scored criteria
Build quality, performance, value and after-sales support are each scored out of ten. The published score is the weighted average, with performance counted twice.
Follow-up and corrections
Reviews are revisited when a product is updated, recalled or discontinued. Corrections are dated and shown at the top of the article.
How the scores work
Each review ends with a single score out of ten. It is a summary, not a substitute for the article. The score is built from four criteria:
| Criterion | Weight | What is assessed |
|---|---|---|
| Build quality | 20% | Materials, finish, durability over the testing period, packaging protection. |
| Performance | 40% | Whether the product does what the brand claims, measured against comparable products at the same price. |
| Value | 20% | Price against direct alternatives, cost of consumables or subscriptions, warranty terms. |
| Support | 20% | Delivery accuracy, returns process, response time and quality of customer service, documentation. |
A score of 8.0 or above means I would recommend the product to a friend without qualification. Between 6.5 and 7.9 the product is worth buying for a specific type of user, and the review says which. Below 6.5 I do not recommend the product at the current price.
How the site is funded
Three sources fund this site: affiliate commissions when a reader buys through a link, paid brand partnerships that are labelled as such, and reader support through the newsletter. None of these change a score. The Affiliate Disclosure and Editorial Policy set out the rules in full.
Contact
Corrections, product suggestions and partnership enquiries can be sent to [email protected] or through the contact form. I aim to reply within two business days.