Importing clothes from abroad can be a risky endeavor. You can save a decent amount of money by buying abroad but you also run the risk of being stung by customs charges. I recently took the leap and imported some clothing outside the EU at a price much lower than in Europe, time will tell whether it was a worthwhile risk. What is your experience with importing clothes?
Importing clothes [or mostly anything] may prove to be counter-productive. First there's the issue of shipping. Anything can happen to your consignment in transit. If your stuff gets lost who pays for it? If nothing gets lost, swapped or stolen when your consignment gets to the port, you'll need to pay some extra dough [to customs officials] for importing the clothes or whatever. IMO unless you're buying in bulk, there's no point in importing clothes.
I disagree, there is a lot of money to be saved. For example. I recently purchased a pair of Sugar Cane jeans, the package was delivered within two days of ordering for almost one third of the price in Europe. There is a risk of packages going missing when you order online but there is buyer protection through Paypal. Customs can be avoided if the seller marks as a low value gift, as the seller did with my recent purchase. So yes, there certainly is a point, unless you think there is no point in saving £150.
It is much cheaper.. but if it's name brands, they're knock offs unless you're buying from a distributor of the brand, no? It's also risky because of the quality issue.
In every travel I make, I buy extra small things that I can sell back home. Like cologne, perfumes, lotions, wallet, wristwatches. These things are easy to sell to my friends and co workers. I make extra cash in it. I don't do the big thing.
No, they are not name brand knock offs. The brands I like to wear are mostly Japanese brands. The Japanese produce the best clothes for the style I like, basic, simple and workwear inspired clothing. Shops in Europe sell these Japanese brands but it is very expensive. For example, Superdenim is the only European stockist of Real Mccoy's sweatshirts and they sell for £165, whereas I can buy direct from Japan for £85.
I haven't tried buying clothes online yet, but here in my country, you are required to show the receipt of your online purchase, and if it's over $50, then you're required to pay "tax", so I probably won't try buying clothes online. Plus the other post office branches are more corrupt, so I'm "lucky" that my post office branch isn't that corrupt.
I feel for you sidney, corruption is a problem in many countries, especially the postal services. I heard that the postal services in certain countries are in full collusion with criminal gangs. I think customs don't have time to check every package, you have a good chance of dodging customs fees if it is marked as a low value gift.
I think the disadvantages are much bigger than the advantages. Is it really a good idea to buy clothes that you ain't sure that you will like or if they end up not fitting. So even if it's cheaper in terms of the money you have, will it really beat just buying them from a retail store?
I haven't imported them for business but for personal use only. So far, I haven't had any problems dealing with it though.