Yet Another Review: Online Shopping at Taobao (淘宝)!

Since my previous big loot using Amcon, I made a few more purchases using different methods and different agents and forwarders. So I will be doing a quick review on their services 🙂

Peeka SHIP4U
Shipping cost: $49.20
Calculated by actual weight: 13.7kg
Type: Sea
Delivery type: to home address
Duration: 20 days (paid shipping on 22nd Oct, received on 10th Nov)

This shipment was the largest, most expensive and took the longest, Peeka’s customer service is getting lousier by the minute and I would suggest to avoid them at all cost from now on.

65daigou Buy-for-Me
Shipping cost (inclusive of agent fee): $22.26
Calculated by volumetric weight: 1.12kg
Type: Express Air
Delivery type: Self-collect from Tai Seng Warehouse
Duration: 4 days (paid on 26th Dec, collected on 30th Dec)

This was a very small shipment and I needed it quickly. The small box contained a replacement LCD screen for my Samsung Galaxy S4. I used them because I had some points leftover that could offset the agent fees. However, they are not as trustworthy as they claimed they are. They actually packaged many of my small items in a large box and charged me the volumetric weight of their item. BUT, they have good customer service so they refunded me the extra shipping cost after I lodged a complain. I believed they didn’t repack the items to save space, they did not help me check the item nor did they take more care with my fragile item. It was more to the credit of the taobao sellers’ packaging that my items arrived undamaged. Their service was equivalent to a forwarder even though they charge an agent fee.

4PX 国际转运

Shipping cost: $10 (43RMB)
Calculated by actual weight: 0.97kg
Type: Express Air
Delivery type: Self-collect from Popstation
Duration: 4 days (paid for shipping on 12th Jan, collected on 15th Jan)

No more trying of other forwarders for experience, this is by far the best one! There are two delivery options for this, either via Speedpost or Toll. Most people have mentioned that smaller packages are handled by Speedpost and they process things faster than Toll. The best thing is you can now choose to deliver it to a POPStation; no more time wasted waiting for your package at home. I was once again shipping a LCD replacement screen, this time for my Note II and the seller packaged it really well. I personally reminded the taobao sellers that the item was being forwarded to Singapore, I believed that’s why the items were packaged extremely well this time round.

Online Shopping at Taobao (淘宝)!

I used to buy stationery from taobao through livejournal sprees. But as wise up, I realized I could shop more freely and whenever I want on my own. I don’t have to wait for sprees to start and I can have the items delivered directly to my place.

There are basically three ways you can shop on taobao:

1. by participating in a spree
2. buying directly from the seller
3. through an online buy-for-me service
4. have a friend that stays in China who can help you bring stuff that you shipped to his/her place over

I don’t like the first method as there is usually a limit to what you can buy and you have to wait for someone to start a spree. Plus the shipping is not always cheap and you have to self collect the items.

The second method has recently been made more convenient as they now accept DBS/POSB credit cards but you would be at the mercy of bank exchange rates. You must also have a good command of Chinese and know how to use the 阿里旺旺 chat. The seller must also be willing to ship to Singapore and you have to bear the shipping charges which should be pretty high.

I don’t have a close friend living in China; if not the fourth is actually the cheapest method.

Therefore I usually go with number 3. The service that I frequent is Peeka. I tried this one and also 65daigou before. This two are the more established and popular ones amongst Singaporeans. There are many many more of such services available. You just need to google.

I wanted to ship some bulky items that will be stored in a box measuring 50 by 50 by 70 cm. This item costs 858 RMB and costs 80 RMB to ship to 深圳 (Peeka) and 30 RMB to ship to 上海 (65daigou).

• With sea shipping Peeka costs 210.11 + 70.50 =  280.61 SGD
• With sea shipping 65daigou costs 204.06 + 104.30 = 308.36 SGD + 8 SGD (if I want it to be shipped to my doorstep)
• Direct shipping to Singapore is a crazy 2500 RMB (estimated 680 SGD)

I actually tried both services before and I preferred Peeka because I feel that it is cheaper and faster. I also prefer the Peeka interface as I have a clear idea of what I ordered, how much I paid, how much I have to pay, how long the order is taking and so on. 65daigou was a little confusing and they even calculated the amount that I had to pay wrongly.

There was once that Peeka forgot to ship one of my items from the China Shipping Centre to Singapore and they waived the shipping fee for that item. It was a 65 litre Esky cooler and would have cost quite a bit to ship. They also helped me expedit some book orders from 当当 and they are always prompt in replying queries. PLUS, they always have this 1-for-1 luggage promotion that I love. Thumbs up for customer service!