It seems like every time I’ve logged into Facebook over the last month, I’ve seen a sponsored ad from a clothing company by the name of SammyDress. The ad, which features a model in a cream-colored dress with cute buttons down the side, has thousands of likes and comments. The ad seems to have really done its job because hundreds of women have gone to the website and bought the dress. How can I know? Reading the comments on the ad, I found that none of these customers received their dress (or any items they purchased from the website) and are now struggling to contact customer service that seemingly does not exist. What is more concerning is that this is not an unusual situation, there are dozens of shopping sites on the Internet that constantly frustrate buyers with unusual and secret business practices, this site simply has a better marketing plan than the rest. So how can you avoid unnecessary stress and possible loss of money while still enjoying the convenience of online shopping? I would like to share an insider’s perspective on the online shopping market to keep you safe and happy through your shopping experience.

As an online retail boutique owner, I often do bulk purchases online from clothing manufacturers. When I first got into the business, I had very little experience finding leads on freelance designers or cool new clothing brands, so I turned to Google. My first searches turned up cool stuff, designers, and lines that you probably have in your closet right now, but as a new business owner without a lot of funds, I wasn’t able to make big purchases of all of them, so I became very picky and wanted to see everything. in the market before making my purchasing decisions. That’s when I found international wholesale sites. There are TONS of them, and ‘strangely’ none of the ones I looked at during these searches still exist. They go out quickly. While I would not go so far as to say that they are “scam” sites, I would recommend extra caution if you decide to make a purchase from one of these websites. Here are the facts:

1. Beware of “wholesale” sites

Although they call themselves “wholesale” sites, they are nothing of the sort. I can buy from real wholesale sites because I have a state tax ID and a registered retail business; Without these documents, most manufacturers and designers won’t even let you see their product. International Wholesale websites do not ask for such credentials, but they still claim to offer you a wholesale price. Maybe it’s just semantics, but they are offering a retail price, because they are in the retail business. Sometimes reputable clearance websites will use phrases like “below wholesale prices” or something similar, this is a marketing decision and not the same issue. If a site claims to be wholesaling, but doesn’t require credentials or a minimum purchase, that’s a red flag and you should consider taking your money elsewhere.

2. The image is just an “example”

Many international clothing sites will actually fulfill your order (they don’t just take your money and run), but that doesn’t mean you get what was in the picture. Often the photo is an outdated example of the garment you will receive, the color, fit, length, pattern or overall structure may be completely different than you thought it would be based on the images. This is not a case of “colors may appear differently on different computer monitors”, this is a different garment than what you thought you were ordering. Sometimes they steal photos of designer items and insist that you get the item in the photo. Besides being a nuisance to you, they are also committing a crime against the designer of the original product. I bought a jacket for a photoshoot I was working on once and I really liked it. The setting was VERY small but it worked on my model. I liked it so much that I decided to carry a few of them in my shop, however upon reordering (just a couple of weeks later) I got an unfortunate monstrous version of Frankenstein of the once cute jacket. The fabric had changed, the buttons were twice as large, and the fit was crooked. Exactly the same item, but not at all. Which brings me to concern # 3.

3. There is no return policy.

Most of these international fashion sites do not offer returns at all, or if they do, they do so in VERY specific circumstances. In most cases, even if a return were an option, the high price of international shipping would be enough for most customers to get the unwanted item. If you can’t live without an item, know that you will have to live with it once you make your purchase. Some sites (such as Alibaba / Aliexpress) have individual sellers who may have their own individual return policies. Keep in mind that there is not much support when things go wrong. Unlike sites like eBay, Amazon, Storenvy, and etsy, which have excellent customer service, there isn’t always a parent company to step in when things get weird between you and a seller. Be wary of hands-off sites like this; You don’t want to buy from a platform that makes it easy for scammers to scam you.

4. If the item is out of stock, they still keep your money.

Perhaps the most troubling fact about these questionable sites is their practice of dealing with out-of-stock merchandise. It goes like this: you buy a skirt, the website is out of the skirt, they may or MAY NOT inform you of that fact. If you are contacted about the out of stock item, you may not receive your funds back, but instead put them into your “account,” which is essentially store credit. Then you HAVE to buy something else. If you fight politics, you won’t hear from them. These websites are great for disappearing when customers get upset.

5. They are selling on Etsy

As a long time fan and seller on Etsy, I am very disappointed in this recent development. Some of the items you come across in Etsy shops are not handmade or vintage, but are cheaply made overseas products that claim to be the work of artisans. These items can be more difficult to spot, and the only advice I can give you is to familiarize yourself with what international wholesale stock photos look like and make sure to avoid them when they appear on Etsy. There has been a massive movement recently to remove scammers from the site, but I still see them there constantly. Beware of sellers who don’t want to answer questions or have a shady return policy (most sellers accept returns for non-personalized and unauthorized items).

6. VERY poor quality items.

So let’s say you can’t resist and want to do the shopping anyway. Even if you avoid all the inconveniences listed above, you may still not be satisfied with your item. Before researching these sites (and testing your product), I thought many of you might have: “A lot of the items I use every day are imported and are of great quality, what is the problem?” Yes, we live in a world of cheap imported items, but they still hold up to the standard of quality (however high or low) that you are familiar with. The main problem with these products is that you have no way of knowing what their quality standards are and they are usually VERY low. I’d say the quality is much lower than Forever21 or Walmart, and the prices aren’t actually lower (especially when considering international shipping).

Best practices to avoid a major retail disappointment:

– Buy US Managed Sites, And Locally If You Can!

Avoid sites with names or tags like “cheap wholesale fashion” AND “fashion” or a similar word and then a number (eg, “Fashion7” “cuteclothes28”).

The clothing is generally described as Korean, Japanese, and Chinese.

As a general rule of thumb, if the price seems too good to be true, it is.

Buy only from sites that have some kind of customer service. Do not give your information to a company that refuses to give you theirs.

Read the site (or seller) reviews before making a purchase.

If you’ve had a bad experience with a retailer, discuss it with them first. If you’re still not satisfied, tell the world! Save someone else the frustration and hassle!