Why Not Buy It In China?
M. E. Seeley - Sunday, May 31, 2009
At the normal shops that we consumers browse, most of us have, in the back of our minds, the awareness that what we are buying was not made in the good old USA. We know that most of our goods are manufactured in places like China, Singapore, Malaysia, Taiwan, et al.
After living here in China for over a year, I have enjoyed the local prices that I receive, which are, even at the ‘foreigner rate’, substantially cheaper than Western goods. Mainly, this discount is in the service and clothes trades, but everything is open to a little bargaining.
You might think: so what does this have to do with me? Well, my dear friends, have you forgotten the Internet? the global marketplace? With a little gumption, you can reap the benefits of a local and still have indoor plumbing.
If it’s “MADE IN CHINA,” then why not buy it from China?
Let me point out a necessity in the world of Asian ecommerce. Everybody who’s anybody knows about TaoBao. Don’t be intimidated by the Chinese characters and flashing lights, the search engine works fine for English. The site might not be pretty (small company design is in its in utero stage in China), but you’ll find prices that are half that of US companies. In addition, these sellers are eager and with a little ehaggling, virtually any arrangement can be made.
It may seem a little troublesome at first, the idea of navigating these Asian-based sites, and it is, but if you’re the kind of person who mails in the rebates and clips ecoupons, then the Eastern side of the global shopping mall might be right for you.
Searching in English might yield higher prices so searching in Chinese is a useful tool. Simply go to this handy English-Chinese dictionary. Type in what you want, copy the characters and off you go.
You might even learn a second language in the process.
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