Model Natasha Oakley forced to apologise over her swimwear label's 'crazy' returns policy that left customer stuck at home for four hours

Natasha Oakley has apologised after an irate customer purchasing her swimwear lashed out over the brand's 'crazy' returns policy. 

The model and swimwear entrepreneur, 36, made the comments after Monday Swimwear, which she launched in 2014, came under fire.

Elodie Vela, a Sydney woman who bought a swimming costume from the label only to find that it didn't fit correctly, ran into trouble when she attempted to make a return. 

After paying $20 for shipping, Vela then had to fork out for a prepaid return label for a further $20 to send the items back, which she had to do within 14 days from the delivery date. 

The shipping fees are non-refundable, and Vela objected to the cost, offering to drop the parcel off at Natasha's Bellevue Hill 'mansion down the road' instead. 

The disgruntled customer also explained that in order to send back the swimmers, she had to print paperwork, obtain a postage box and organise a DHL collection. 

In order to do so, she was forced to be at home for a four-hour window so that DHL could collect the parcel. 

'I realised the whole returns process is just crazy,' Vela said on social media. 

'I just feel like they put so much effort into marketing and so little into helping the consumer.'

Vela also learned that exchanges are only available for American customers. 

Natasha replied to the complaints this weekend, telling the Daily Telegraph that she was 'honestly really sad' to learn about Vela's difficulties. 

She insisted that something had gone wrong and she was now investigating the cause of the issue with her shipping partners. 

'Regardless of how it happened, she had a frustrating experience with something I built, and I'm genuinely sorry for that,' she said. 

'We're not perfect. I'm definitely not perfect. We're still learning and there are things I wish we could do better today.'

Natasha co-owns Monday Swimwear with fellow model Devin Brugman, with the pair having started the label over a decade ago. 

The popular brand sells an array of swimsuits, cover-ups and bikinis in an average price range of AUD $120 to $330. 

Monday Swimwear was last valued at $40 million, and shifts as many as half a million units annually. 

The model, who is married to Australian mortgage broker Theo Chambers, is worth an estimated $128 million.