About Us

Program notes

An opera program tells you what you're about to see, who is involved, and roughly how long it will take. This page does the same for shopping with us. Read it in order or skip to the part you came for.

Overture: the name

An opera house is where people dress for the evening, and New York is where we're registered. That's the whole story behind the name. We didn't start in a garage, there is no founder's letter, and there is no boutique on Queens Boulevard to visit. Opera is an online store run by Opera LLC, and we'd rather tell you that plainly than dress it up.

Act I: what we choose

We don't make clothes. We select them. The question we ask of every piece is simple: would someone wear this to an evening that matters, and still reach for it on an ordinary Tuesday? Dresses that hold their shape through dinner and the walk there. Blouses with enough weight not to cling. Trousers that are cut for sitting as well as standing. Knitwear that survives its third wash.

What we leave out is just as deliberate: fabrics that look right on a screen and wrong on a hanger, prints that date within a season, and anything we couldn't describe accurately on the product page.

Act II: the product page

Every product page carries the composition of the fabric, the garment measurements in a size chart, the fit (true to size, runs small, relaxed), the length of the model and the size she is wearing, and the care label. If a detail isn't there, email us before you order and we answer from the specification.

Screens differ, so colors can vary slightly from the photos. Measurements are taken flat and are approximate to about half an inch. If you are between sizes, say so and we'll tell you which way to go for that particular piece.

Intermission: how an order moves

  • Shipping is free on every order, within the United States.
  • Processing takes 1 to 3 business days, delivery 3 to 5, so plan on 4 to 8 business days from the day you order. Tracking is sent by email.
  • Orders go to the fulfillment center automatically, which is why a cancellation is only possible within 5 minutes of ordering. After that the order is in motion and can be returned after delivery instead.
  • Shipping Protection is an optional add-on at checkout that covers loss or damage in transit with a free replacement.
  • Sales tax, where it applies, is calculated at checkout. Nothing is collected at the door.

Act III: when something isn't right

It arrived damaged, wrong or incomplete. Email us within 3 business days of delivery with photos of the item, the packaging and the shipping label, and we send a replacement free of charge. Loose threads, a small open seam that takes a minute to close, a fit that isn't what you hoped for, or a color that doesn't suit you aren't defects; the first two are finishing issues every brand has, the others are what returns are for.

You've changed your mind. You have 30 days from delivery to request a return. Items come back unworn, unwashed and with their tags, to our returns center in the United Kingdom, at your own cost; we don't offer free returns, return labels or exchanges. We'd rather say that here, on the About page, than at the end of a returns process. Once your return is approved and received, the refund reaches your original payment method within 7 business days.

Curtain: what we won't do

  • Put a countdown clock on a product page, or tell you only two are left when that isn't true.
  • Call a fabric "luxury", "premium" or "designer" without saying what it's made of.
  • Claim a piece is made in New York. Our clothes are made by manufacturers we select, and shipped from our fulfillment center.
  • Add a charge at checkout that wasn't in the price.
  • Argue with a photo. If the pictures show the problem, the replacement goes out.

Who we are

Opera LLC, 90-15 Queens Boulevard, Elmhurst, NY 11373, United States. The address is where the company is registered; it is not a store and not a returns address. Customer service is by email at support@operanewyork.com, Monday to Friday, 9:00 AM–5:00 PM ET, closed Saturday and Sunday, with a reply within one business day.