Note that this review is more than 6 months old and the company's procedures may have changed considerably since this review was written.
Don't bother asking Empire - they don't have a clue.
According to them, customer service is making a new customer (who has paid in full by switch) wait 7 - 10 days for an item that is in stock, when asked why, I am told "we make all our new customers wait 7-10 days - if they've paid for it or not"
But they are clever, they only tell you this AFTER you have already paid, and when you ask for a refund, because you have other things to do with your life than stay in for 3 days waiting for something that probably wont arrive on time anyway, they say "Sure - when the item arrives, just send it back and we'll refund your card immediately."

If this is the standard of customer service people receive when trying to spend money with this company - What standard of customer service will you get if an item is faulty, damaged or does not arrive?
My advice - go somewhere else.

I ordered from the manufacturer in the end, It cost me a little more, but I received great service, I feel confident the item will arrive in good time, and because it's a birthday gift, she offered to track the item (FOC)to ensure its arrival.

We should not stand for bad service from these companies. If you receive bad service, please, don't put up with it, shop elsewhere.