Shopping Taobao (agents) confusion

I've been trying to get this one doll I couldn't find before, but I've been struggling for a few days now.
I can't buy directly from Taobao because apparently it might be too big (70 cm) for shipping (?), and it's a bit confusing, so I wanted to use an agent.

I emailed many, and so far I am in contact with Bhiner and Yoycart.
Yoycart is giving me an inflated price. I went to Taobao myself and it's a solid 100 dollars (actually, 110) less than they say it is, this is without their fees etc..
Bhiner gave me an acceptable price, but now they're saying I can't use Paypal, only Transfer Wise / Bank Transfer / Western Union. I'm not really used to that, and I don't know if it's safe...? I've read that some people are concerned about refund options, which is also a concern.

[Side note. Also, with some of these services, you can get "insurance", which is "compensated based on the declared value generally."...Except, they say themselves that they will declare a lower value. Seems you'd pay more in insurance than they'd refund you anyway.]

I've tried 3 other agents, but I'm still waiting for a reply, plus they didn't have it on their website, so I had to ask if they can manually update the links. I also emailed Christina as a last resort, but it's the weekend, so I'm gonna have to wait.

Is there no way for the to let me use Paypal? I read somewhere (probably here on DoA) that the limit for Paypal was 500 dollars. This is under 500, but they refuse to use it. Probably taxes? I highly doubt I can say anything to convince them...

Has anyone used a transfer with Bhiner? Was it...ok? From what I can see, I'd have no way to get my money back if something goes wrong, so I don't really want to do that...I don't know anymore.

Sorry for sharing my headache with you all. I hope it's not too confusing and that someone can share their knowledge/experience. Thank you!

 

Thank you! I'm in the US, so I will google how (I'm already reading ) and try Taobao directly then. The doll is not in stock, but hopefully they do that. No Paypal ofc, but on Taobao it says I can pay with a card, which is definitely better than a money transfer.

@Merla I see. It is my first order! I didn't realize they had that limit...That's a shame. So for other orders it would be fine? What if I bought something small first...? I defnitely won't use a money transfer, and I might wait for Christina's reply, but also...I'm a little impatient now and might try Taobao directly. Especially if it's a little cheaper...Idk yet.

 

Does it depend on the individual seller whether or not they let you do that? I can add that to my previous message to them. Does that give you any options for refunds if you needed them through Paypal?

 

Thank you. Unfortunately, I tried signing up for Taobao, but at the login page my account was frozen because I asked for the text code one too many times (since it kept not working...). It also keeps telling me every 5 seconds they detect "unusual activity". Maybe it's my US IP that sets it off. I'm trying customer service, but we'll see.
Maybe I should use Google Voice...?

 

Oh no. I didn't think I could potentially get locked out after placing the order. Ugh. That's a big concern.
The Paypal fees I would have to pay with some other websites is higher, so it's fine. I'm hoping the shipping would be under 100, if that is the case, it would still be a good price.

I agree Mysstarry (can't tag atm ), but Shuga Fairy etc usually have suspiciously low prices. This is pretty much the regular price without the agent commission inflation. And I believe I saw here on DoA the seller is legit, according to people who have ordered from them. Definitely careful though.

A week is long enough to be annoying!! In my case, the code worked, but then I got logged out, and every time I tried to log in again (I probably clicked the wrong thing once, but the rest of the times), I got asked to verify again and again and eventually it sais "suspicious activity"...





Btw, does anyone know how much Christina's fees are? Trying to figure out if it's more or less than any of these other websites. And it seems like the shipping for a 70ish cm doll (if I ask to include the original box) would be around 100 US dollars? I assume the weight would be...anywhere from 3 to 5 kg? Could anyone can tell me what their shipping fees were?

 

I see, thank you. 150 cm should be enough for the doll. They can't tell me how much the shipping would be though yet. I can do an estimate, but I don't have the details, so the price could be very different.

 

That helps! Thanks. Wow...7.4 sounds expensive. I was hoping it would be less. My doll is the same size, but idk the weight. I can't ask the seller because I keep getting error messages every other thing I click on Taobao, but, if you don't mind me asking, how much did you have to pay for the shipping with the LoonSoul box?

 

I see. That's good to know! Thank you so much for the info!

 

I can try asking that, thanks! I was gonna try registering/ buying using the app, but someone pointed out that I could potentially get locked out of my account again after I make a purchase, and then I'd have no way of contacting the seller. :/

It seems that Superbuy has no agent fee, but if you try the shipping estimate, the same package is more expensive than say Yoybuy etc. They have to get their money back somehow . Yoybuy answered first so I might stick to them, they do have an agent fee, but seem to inflate shipping prices less? Probably all the same eventually tbh.

 

Sounds like a nightmare. Definitely using a dealer so this doesn't happen. Too many things can go wrong with Taobao directly for me.

 

Ok, a little update from me! I received the quotes from a few places, including Christina. I decided to go with YOYbuy. They were the first to reply when I had a question, they accept PP for orders above 200 USD (Bhiner doesn't), and they do charge an agent fee, but they also throw in a few coupons. Overall, it seems like it's the best option for my purchase this time.

Shoutout to Superbuy's customer service who speak perfect English, and replied within an hour (it was Beijing working hours. I was awake at 4 AM, my time. WIth YOYbuy, it was not during working hours, so they replied within 12 hours, which is very good. Their English was also perfect. And, as a lot of you know, Christina is very nice too, and always replies within a few days. Bhiner also replies within a day or so. I think it's Google translated, but perfectly understandable, and they are clear if you have a question.)

[Side note, some of the other forwarding services didn't reply, or replied days later, which is fine, but I feel better shopping with the ones who reply faster. I'm sure the others are just fine too though.]

Anyway, back to my update. So, I did consider Superbuy and Christina too. Here are my thoughts in case you're looking for some info: Superbuy has no agent fee, which is 8-10% for most other agents (or so they say, I've read some posts here from people who bought more expensive dolls and they tried to charge some manufacturing fee. It seems like they did eventually get rid of it after the people reached out. Anyway, it might be only for bigger purchases. You can always ask CS to clarify.), but also it seems their shipping fees are a little higher, maybe to compensate. Not too much though, and it's hard to know the actual cost yet. They do have coupons for shipping fees, so you can use those too. Christina has reliability on her side, but the price she gave me was a little higher than the others, and that was before the PP fees, which I know you have to pay too. Keep in mind all 3 were great options and sounded competent and reliable. It's just a matter of choice and finding the best price for a specific item.

If anyone has any questions, ask away! If you're interested, I will update when I have more info/when my order gets shipped.

For now, I'm wondering if I should get shipping insurance. It's another thing to add, but it might be worth it for peace of mind.

 

Yeah I agree. I'd be anxious without it. Considering that the purchase is already expensive, it's not that much to add. I'll get it and (ofc) hope I never need it.

 

A little update, in case you're looking for an agent! Everything went great! I'm definitely happy with their service. They were very kind and answered all of my (annoying) questions and helped me out a lot. And my doll came to me quickly and safely!