What I learned from a year of shopping on AliExpress
By: Martin Quinn
Tags: Knowledge, Discovery, Retail, Humor, Self Improvement

AliExpress , a world of stuff only a click away on an App. Jack Ma’s baby. The funny Looking guy that by Chinese standards has a trusting face. (I don’t get it either)

Jack Ma ( Wiki Commons) accessed feb 2021

It’s great for shopping on rainy days, when you don’t want to leave the house, the couch or need a little boost. Why do it when you have Amazon, Malls and stores? OK there is no perfect answer but its s combination of things. The range, its huge and stuff you would never see in a store. The price, it’s really inexpensive and play your cards right with coupons and free delivery its good value. Retail is hard work, there’s no fun in it anymore. I do my shopping for food and I’m done. I don’t need another level of store shopping in my life.

The low down on the good, bad, ugly and fun sides of AliExpress.

It’s slow, very slow

Its fast Fashion sent to you slowly, don’t be in a hurry. That’s OK, need a winter coat, order in September. It’s all about planning ahead. Have a backburner in your mind of things you need, maybe not now but soonish. Delivery time to Europe and the States is about a month if you pay standard post , which is mostly free. Its important to note that taxes if applicable includes the postage, so go standard.

Save yourself a lot of stress and learn the delivery Language

There are stages in the delivery process, but they are not in plain English. AliExpress employs airlines to deliver. Theres a catch, they do it on the cheap. So stuff will wait until a plane has room in its holding bay. It’s a nice little earner for airlines to top up earnings.

Here’s how to read between the lines.

· Pick Up shipment Dispatched……. It left the factory

· Shipment at county of origin warehouse, ……..it’s in a warehouse somewhere in China

· Shipment left Country of origin warehouse,……. it left a warehouse somewhere in China

· Departed Country of origin,…….. it left china

· Arrived at home Country,……….. it’s in a warehouse somewhere in your Country

· At Customs,…….. Do you need to pay tax?

· At the post office …..at the post office, it will deliverer if not picked up

How to work out the real world stuff like size, bootlegs, reviews, and tax and delivery charges

Apps are not the real world, they exist on a server. Delivery, size and taxes are the real world. Don’t mix them up. This is not Amazon and Chinese Factories are not Manhattan, West London or the 16th Arrondissement . You have to use your judgment on a different level.

Let’s start with Size. Chinese people are kinda small so expect sizes to be a bit smaller than you would expect. Sizes are in Chinese (usually similar to European sizes) UK and American. There is usually a table explaining the sizes. However don’t make a final judgment until you read the reviews.

AliExpress gives a bonus for reviews with photos. This is a good incentive to get a few bucks of your next purchase. They are very few false reviews. Most are genuine and honest. Go with size first. If reviews say their normal size is too small for shoes or coats take it on board and go a size bigger. Quality is next, if reviewers say it bad, then that’s usually the case, likewise if most say excellent, I would go with that.

Bootlegs are part of the journey

I’m not condoning bootlegs, but no matter what, you will come across them. I bought a pair of “Oxford shoes” that kinda looked like Dr Martins. Guess what, they were an exact copy but at a tenth of the price. However they were just as good, if not better.

Trial and error, but once you know your size stick with it

It’s hard to get an exact fit on Clothes and shoes. If you get it right, stick with it, take a mental screen shoot of the size and your good to go forever.

It’s feed the world, so adjust for that

Its worldwide so what’s to hot for Brazil to cold for Russia might be just right for you. The product gets a bad review because it’s no good for walking in snow, but where you live has no snow, buy it.

There is a complaint procedure and it’s good

Goods get damaged in the post, sometimes it’s the wrong color or the quality is just bad. Try not to send it back, (hint China is far away) be honest tell the seller and asked for some compensation. I got a pair of shoes that were badly glued. Rather than send them back the seller compensated me to have them repaired in my own country.

quinn, martin “Seller gave me 10 bucks back to have repaired” JPEG FILE 2021

The good stuff

Have Aliexpress party

Having a few friends around for drinks and food. If a birthday or Christmas is coming, you can ask your friend to choose something from the App. Works well with bags and shoes. It’s a great excuse to get back together a month later to try things on. Trust me I do it all the time.

It’s traditional to joke for reviews

When doing a review it’s traditional to make it funny. Not in an Amazon way, which can be quite anal. The Chinese don’t get the jokes so they slip through the censor.

Finally the last mile can be eco friendly

Since postage is free the last mile is usually completed by traditional post. For me its a post person on an electric bike. Amazon/Fed Ex drivers can be kamikaze at times and I like my fast fashion sent slow but delivered street friendly.