A York-based boutique CV writing service operating since 2001, led by founder Lee Tonge. Trustpilot 5.0 from 782 reviews and Google 5.0 from 67 reviews — one of only two services in this review series with a perfect Trustpilot score at meaningful volume. Specialist pricing tiers including Ex-Military (£159) and Medical Professionals (£239), 12-month unlimited revisions, WhatsApp access to your consultant, and an explicitly anti-AI positioning. The May 2026 Trustpilot review from a four-year client who never secured an interview is the most significant caveat in the dataset.
The CV Store is a boutique CV writing service based in York, England, founded by Lee Tonge in 2001. In 25 years of operation, the service has grown entirely through word of mouth and repeat business — a claim that is supported by the Trustpilot score of 5.0 from 782 reviews, which places it among the highest-rated services in this review series. The service is explicitly and publicly anti-AI: the homepage states that every document is written by an experienced human consultant and that AI is never used to produce client CVs.
In this CV Store review, we examine the full picture for 2026 — what the service genuinely delivers, what the pricing structure covers, the honest stance on interview guarantees that distinguishes it from most competitors, and the May 2026 Trustpilot complaint from a four-year client with zero interview outcomes that every prospective buyer should read before purchasing.
Quick Facts
Ratings Across Review Platforms
The CV Store holds a perfect 5.0 on both Trustpilot (782 reviews) and Google My Business (67 reviews). The Trustpilot score at this volume is particularly notable — it places The CV Store in the same rare category as Perfect CVS as the only services in this review series to maintain a perfect score with a substantive review base. No negative platform listings were found.
| Platform | Rating | Reviews | Sentiment |
|---|---|---|---|
| Trustpilot (UK) | ★★★★★ 5.0 | 782 | Excellent |
| Google My Business | ★★★★★ 5.0 | 67 | Excellent |
| Reviews.io | No listing found | N/A | |
| SmartCustomer | No listing found | N/A | |
| BBB | N/A — UK-based service | N/A | |
The No-AI Stance and the No-Guarantee Policy — Two Honest Signals
The CV Store makes two statements about what it does not do that are unusual in this market — and both reflect a notably honest positioning.
Services Offered
The CV Store’s service menu is focused but notably includes two specialist categories — Ex-Military and Medical Professionals — that are rarely offered as dedicated, separately priced tiers by comparable boutique services. These tiers reflect genuine writer specialisation rather than a generic “contact us for pricing” approach to unusual formats.
The LinkedIn profile rewrite at £30 as an add-on is one of the most competitively priced in the series. The interview preparation eBook included with every package adds immediate practical value beyond the document itself. The 12-month unlimited revisions — which cover the addition of new jobs, qualifications, and content tweaks — mean the CV grows with the client’s career for a full year after delivery.
Pricing & Packages
The CV Store’s pricing is fully transparent — all six tiers with exact prices and feature lists are displayed on the pricing page without a form or registration required. Klarna three-instalment payment is available on every package, making the higher tiers accessible without a single upfront payment. A 24-hour fast-track service is available separately for urgent requests.
| Package | Price | Includes |
|---|---|---|
| Graduates & Entry-Level | £89 | Full CV rewrite · ATS optimisation · 12-month revisions · Interview prep eBook |
| Mid-Career Professionals Popular | £129 | Everything above · Targeted to specific role and sector |
| Career Changers | £139 | Specialist repositioning · Transferable skills emphasis |
| Ex-Military | £159 | Military-to-civilian translation · Civilian language reframing |
| Director-Level Executives | £219 | Executive positioning · LinkedIn rewrite included · Executive bio available |
| Medical Professionals | £239 | Specialist medical sector formatting · Clinical and non-clinical roles |
| LinkedIn Profile (add-on) | £30 | Available with any package · Included in Executive tier |
| 24-Hour CV Revamp | Separate service | Fast-track option — see services page for current price |
Quality & Process
The CV Store’s process is built around direct, named consultant access throughout the engagement. Clients communicate with Lee and his team via email, phone, and WhatsApp — not through a managed portal or third-party support desk. The homepage explicitly states “not a call centre,” and the Google 2025 review from Zulia S. — who requested over 20 rewrites across a year and received each within 1–2 business days — is a remarkable demonstration of what the 12-month support commitment means in practice.
The PARWCC membership, ICO registration (Z2062591), and 25-year operating history grounded in York provide meaningful accountability. The Forbes endorsement is cited on the website, though without specifying the editorial context. The fact that the service’s growth has come entirely through word of mouth across 25 years — without paid advertising — is a strong implicit quality signal.
| Founder | Lee Tonge — named, with photo on homepage |
| Communication | Email · Phone · WhatsApp — direct writer access |
| AI used | Never — explicitly stated on homepage |
| Templates used | None — all written from scratch |
| ATS optimisation | Applied to every package using target role specs |
| Delivery format | Fully editable documents |
| 12-month revisions | Unlimited — fair use policy applies |
| Fair use caveat | Complete career change refocus may incur charges |
| Standard turnaround | 2–5 business days (not stated on pricing page) |
| Rush option | 24-Hour CV Revamp — separate service |
| PARWCC member | Yes |
| ICO registered | Z2062591 |
Guarantee & Policies
| 12-month revision support | Unlimited — fair use applies |
| Interview guarantee | Explicitly not offered — Terms state this clearly |
| Refund policy | Discretionary · 20% fee deducted · 30-day cap post-completion |
| Refund fee disclosure | In Terms only — not on pricing page |
| Klarna | 3-instalment payment — no interest if on time |
| GDPR compliant | Yes — ICO registered |
| Growth model | Word of mouth and repeat business — 25 years |
What Real Customers Say
We analysed reviews from Trustpilot and Google My Business. The positive reviews are specific, name Lee directly, and describe measurable outcomes. The negative reviews include one very recent and detailed account that warrants careful reading, and one older complaint from 2016 that describes a specific refusal to conduct phone calls.
After applying to roles in the same sector with no response for months, commissioned a new CV from Lee. Within a couple of months, the difference was apparent: several interviews followed and three job offers were received, one of which was accepted. The personalised, honest service and quick response to feedback were specifically cited as differentiators from below-par services used previously.
Asked Lee to rewrite the same CV over 20 times across more than a year, tweaking it for different positions. Every rewrite was delivered within 1–2 business days. Could not recommend the service more highly, describing the experience as exceptional help and support with a unique level of commitment.
After 36 years in three jobs, recognised the CV lacked professionalism and turned to The CV Store after an initial appraisal with Lee. The resulting CV and cover letter package was described as absolutely outstanding, and the reviewer planned to use them to navigate the job market for the next role. Highly recommended.
Purchased a CV package from Lee in 2022. Lee was described as responsive and pleasant, and continued to respond to questions after the initial CV was delivered. However, over the four years since the purchase, not a single interview was secured using the CV — to the point where the reviewer reverted to their original, self-written document. The purchase was described as a regret. The specific advice offered to prospective clients: if you are dissatisfied, request a refund or a rewrite immediately — do not simply hope the CV will perform over time, because in this case it did not.
After a strong free CV analysis that created confidence in the service, proceeded to commission an executive-level CV. Responses were described as robotic when dissatisfaction was expressed, with the response “CV writing is not an exact science” repeated. Multiple requests to discuss the work over phone or Skype were declined, with Lee insisting on email-only communication. The client ended up directing the rewrites themselves and described the experience as a waste of money and time.
Pros & Cons
Pros
- Trustpilot 5.0 from 782 reviews
- Google 5.0 from 67 reviews
- 25 years in business (since 2001)
- Named founder (Lee Tonge) with photo
- Explicitly no AI — public commitment
- Explicitly no interview guarantee — honest position
- WhatsApp access to writer — unusual differentiator
- 12-month unlimited revisions (fair use)
- Specialist tiers: Ex-Military, Medical Professionals
- LinkedIn add-on at £89 with package — highly competitive
- Klarna 3-instalment — no interest
- Free CV review (consultative)
- PARWCC member
- ICO registered (GDPR compliant)
- Growth entirely via word of mouth — 25 years
- Forbes endorsement cited
Cons
- Zero interview results over 4 years — May 2026 Trustpilot
- 20% refund fee not disclosed on pricing page
- Refunds discretionary — not guaranteed
- 30-day refund cap after order completion
- Refused phone/Skype calls (2016 complaint)
- Standard turnaround not published on pricing page
- No individual writer bios beyond founder
- Fair use caveat on 12-month revisions
- No Reviews.io or SmartCustomer listing
- Boutique capacity — not a large-team operation
Support & Communication
The CV Store’s support model is genuinely distinctive: direct email, phone, and WhatsApp access to the consultant — not a support team, not a ticketing system, not a portal. The service specifically describes itself as “not a call centre.” This is one of the most direct client-consultant communication setups of any service reviewed in this series, and it is what makes the 12-month support commitment operationally meaningful rather than a theoretical policy.
| Phone | (01904) 902102 |
| Direct writer access — included | |
| Direct writer contact throughout | |
| Address | Popeshead Court Offices, York, YO1 8SU, England |
| PARWCC member | Yes |
| ICO registration | Z2062591 |
| Social — LinkedIn | the-cv-store |
| Social — Facebook | thecvstore |
| Social — YouTube | @thecvstore |
| Social — X (Twitter) | @thecvstore |
| r/design_critiques · r/programmingHungary |
CV ROI Calculator
The CV Store makes no specific salary or timeline claim — but states directly that a CV that does not generate interviews is costing you salary potential. Enter your details to evaluate what the investment is worth at your level.
* If the CV does not generate interviews within a reasonable period, use the 12-month revision support actively — do not wait as Helena’s May 2026 review advises. Request a substantive rewrite promptly and do not accept the position that the CV is complete if applications are producing no responses.
Our Verdict
The CV Store is one of the most credible boutique CV writing services in this review series. A Trustpilot 5.0 from 782 reviews, Google 5.0 from 67, 25 years of word-of-mouth growth, explicit no-AI and no-interview-guarantee positions, WhatsApp access to the consultant, and a 12-month revision commitment that one client used for over 20 rewrites across a year — these are genuine, substantive differentiators that explain why the service has grown entirely through repeat business since 2001.
The Helena May 2026 review is the most significant caveat and should not be dismissed simply because it sits within a large positive dataset. Four years of zero interview results from a professionally written CV is a specific, credible, and impactful failure that the reviewer specifically waited until 2026 to document — after genuinely giving the CV time to perform. The advice she offers — request a rewrite or refund immediately if dissatisfied, do not wait — is the most practically useful single piece of guidance in this review.
Best for: UK job seekers at any career level who want genuine human expertise, direct WhatsApp access to their consultant, and a year of ongoing revision support. Particularly strong for Ex-Military, medical, and career-changing clients who benefit from the specialist tiers. Use the free CV review first. Apply for roles actively whilst the CV is fresh. If applications produce no response within four to six weeks, use the 12-month support immediately — do not wait for years as Helena’s experience illustrates.
Human-written, no AI, WhatsApp access to your writer — from £89
Trustpilot 5.0 · 782 reviews · 12-month revisions · 25 years of word-of-mouth growth
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