By Kwon Mee-yoo
More and more people here are shopping on overseas Internet malls and shopping agencies are helping them place orders and ship items from sites that do not deliver to international addresses. Though this way is cheaper than the official route, the added risk is the possible fraud or getting a fake.
Popular items from such shopping agencies are luxury goods. When searching for overseas purchasing agents on Korean search engines, many online communities and blogs providing such services pop up. They list of expensive name brand items from Chanel and Louis Vuitton to Prada and Goyard and how to calculate the price including commission and shipping.
It is like a big community of shopaholics. The purchasing agents provide information on discount promotions going on in various countries and the customers ask about availability and the price of the items they want and share feedback on purchases.
The biggest reason customers flock to such services is the low price. Despite the free trade agreement between Korean and Europe, the price of luxury goods continues to rise higher, making customers eye such niche markets. For example, a Chanel classic double jumbo flap bag costs around 3,500 euros (5.1 million won) in Paris, but 6.8 million won in Korea.
Those who want unique items as soon as possible also use such services. The iPad is another hot item for purchasing agents as early adopters want to get their hands on the new tablet before it is officially introduced to Korea. As Apple does not ship overseas, customers in Korea have to go through agents to receive the products at a U.S. address and then have them shipped to Korea.
Mothers nurturing young children also love to buy clothes or toys from abroad.
"I bought a stroller through an overseas shopping agency. It was too expensive at the department store here in Korea, but the price was some 20 percent lower when bought through an agency," Han Jung-eun, a housewife, said. She sent the brand, model number and photo to get a price estimate then sent the money to the agent who bought the stroller for her and sent it to Korea.
"It took about four days to arrive and the quality seemed good. It is not eligible for after-service in Korea, but I chose to use a registered purchasing agent to get the cheaper price,” she said.
The service is possible through parallel importation. The system was introduced in 1995 to prevent monopolies.
There are systemized small companies with parallel import rights running such agencies as well as students or sojourning employees overseas acting as personal shoppers on the side. These amateur agents generally take some 10 percent of the price in commission ― when they buy and send a 1 million won bag to Korea, they make about 100,000 won.
However, some customers are more careful about buying through small shopping agencies.
"Some of them are really small, one-man businesses without licenses. They provide luxury items cheaper than other agents, but I see no protection for possible trouble resulting from these dealers. It is not a small amount of money and credibility is important," Han said.
Statistics show increasing disagreements with online shopping agents. The Korea Customs Service (KCS) uncovered 699 billion won worth illegal transactions online last year. The biggest portion was made up of fake goods such as bags and clothes.
"An increasing number of customers use purchasing agents and some of them forged receipts to avoid duties," a KCS official said.
Currently, cargo under $100 or postal matter under 150,000 won is eligible for tax exemption and more expensive articles should be declared at customs. However, some agents write down reduced amount to avoid tariffs and if caught this could result in additional taxes and penalties.