First, let’s take @ZeroTheme 
- First look is great. I like the font in the navigation and all of the hover effects - they’re not too overwhelming.
- I think the shadow behind slider titles is too harsh. I would also use some hazy effect over the images, so the white text stands out more.
- I like the hover effect over products - it looks elegant but not too much.
- I guess it would be better if the categories in the left sidebar would be more to the top or removed from there.
But overally I don’t think it should be hard rejected. I’m not a code expert, so I honestly can’t tell anything about it, maybe someone will catch something?