DHgate - my firsthand experience with their sellers

yu-long-trading-ltd

Having lived and studied in Beijing for a short time, I discovered one fundamental truth about mainland Chinese.

They do NOT have any business standards.

I encountered far too many fly-by-nighters just looking to make a quick buck. No real interest in establishing a long term, mutually profitable business relationship.

So in the last few months that I've returned home, I have scoured DHgate (among other sources) looking for something I can use. Everything from iPod accessories,and PC projectors to bath & beauty products and scented candles.(Boot-leg DVD's are a NO GO) And in every single instance I discovered that I could buy the exact same thing cheaper on eBay.

On several occasions I would send the DHgate seller the eBay link to the exact same thing they are selling, and ask them to beat that advertised price. The kind of responses I was getting were nearly always the kind of responses I used to hear from the multitude of con-artists selling at the Silk Market in Beijing, 'mine is real,' 'mine is better,' or 'I have best deal.'

Childish at best.

One seller, who was selling an obvious bootleg DVD, kept insisting that his product was real; even after I showed him photos of what the real version looks like. 'Is same, is same... please to look,' he kept saying. And I pointed out to him that there is no such thing as a region-less DVD that is both NTSC & PAL; unless it is a bootleg. At that point they play dumb, and suddenly forget how to speak English. So I start talking to them in Mandarin..at which point they are surprised and caught off guard that a white guy (half Chinese) can speak their language, and so change the subject. So predictable.

And I hate it when they have the balls to tell you 'shipping in China, very expensive.'

Buddy! You're in Beijing not the Himalayas...I know the shipping cost you frikk'n chooch! And they think we're not aware of the conversion rate.

It does not cost $38.00 USD to ship a 10' x 8' x 4' box that weighs less than a pound to any where in North America from China.

That's 260 RMB. I bought TWO (very good quality) winter coats for that much. You have any idea how much grocery you can buy in Beijing with 260 RMB? enough to feed a family of 6. (Just don't shop at any of the tourist traps; like Wang Fu Jing and Da Wang Lu)

Unbelievable!

So has anyone here dealt with a DHgate vendor that DOESN'T take you for a complete fool?

Honestly, any mention of DHgate as a potential source should be removed from this site.

I would actually go as far as flooding the internet with warnings to stay away from DHgate.

And, if I only had connections in the Chinese communist party, I would pass word along that DHGate is, in its activities, working to undermine and compromise international trade with China. I wonder whatever happened to the last people who found themselves under the microscope of the Chinese Communist Party...nobody knows.

Muah-hah-hah-ha!

raiderjake

very good points, thanx. i've been intrested in dh gate but been afraid to make any commitments, though i do know of 1 person here doing pretty well on dh gate.

yu-long-trading-ltd

One certainly plays the odds, albeit considerably not in ones favour, when dealing with Chinese.

Not that I'm trying to put down the Chinese....I did live there after all, and totally loved the culture and life in China. However, when you compare the population figures the outcome is clear.

China has a population of about 1.6 BILLION...if we make an optimistic estimate by saying that only 1% of that population are assholes (which per capita would be the worlds lowest, to be fair), there would still remain 1.6 MILLION assholes....That's a lot of assholes.

And like most assholes, they tend to convene in a single area...and it's called DHgate. When you're dealing with assholes, expect nothing but $hit.

For the rest of them, Chinese do not like to deal with strangers.

(Remember that if you ever visit China and are approached in the street by pretty young girls asking you to go with them to a tea house.....it's called the 'Chinese Tea Trick')

A personal relationship needs to be established before a business one. Call it a cultural eccentricity. That's just the way it works there.

I found this to be true on a smaller scale when buying clothing there. I found that my prices would go down after a while of frequenting the same dealer. Friendly chit chat and face to face interaction certainly goes much farther than the impersonal email.

So I can pretty much guarantee you would be paying double what you would normally pay than if you were to physically go to China and buy your product directly from a dealer.

I suspect the so-called dealers (majority of them anyway) on Dhgate are just chumps off the street. But they have one advantage....they live in China where products and labour are cheap....For there part, all they have to do is walk down to the nearest market, pick up your stuff for dirt cheap and mail it off to you. They don't require a merchant tax id, or license to do this.

Why would they? they don't pay taxes.

Once they get your money, they reap the benefits of their extremely favorable exchange rate.

To them we are a dream come true.

artpants

^ok, so then what do you do to make a buck? judging by your sn, you seem to have some sort of business going?

yu-long-trading-ltd

I have been trying to get an Asian escort agency going....but the competition is fierce. It is difficult to compete with those agencies who source their product from China and former soviet union.

The mark-up is phenominal.....Some of these guys (and sometimes girls) can rake in at least $5000 a day.

Alas, it appears I may have to source my product in the same way they do; regardless of the ethical implications which have held me back thus far.

planes

I have been trying to get an Asian escort agency going....but the competition is fierce. It is difficult to compete with those agencies who source their product from China and former soviet union.
The mark-up is phenominal.....Some of these guys (and sometimes girls) can rake in at least $5000 a day.
Alas, it appears I may have to source my product in the same way they do; regardless of the ethical implications which have held me back thus far.

So basically, what your saying is your a pimp?

raiderjake

can you pimp on ebay? man i'm selling the wrong stuff!! lol

yu-long-trading-ltd

Suuuuuure! whadda'ya think eBay is.....the internets' biggest PIMP!

That would make us all whores I guess.

*sigh* :(

artpants

lol.. ok, so i think i know what you mean when you say 'product'....

cereal though, i'm not the sharpest light bulb in the knife drawer, but why would you be trying to source product from China, when you have made it abundantly clear that you do not trust China as far as business is concerned? or am i missing something?

yu-long-trading-ltd

Two words.......

Cheap labour.

raiderjake

Two words.......
Cheap labour.

2 words

scam artists! LOL

artpants

ummmm,

i'm confused...

but what else is new...

userexists

Jeez, the Chinese get a bum rap. The area I live in has a very dense Chinese population and about 90 percent of the businesses here are run by Chinese traders. They are the hardest working, nicest, most cheerful and lovely people you could meet.

People here have been warned about DHG so often it's becoming crazy. Here's another hint : DONT TRY TO BUY ipods, iphones, psps, xboxes, name brand digital cameras, designer handbags, MAC cosmetics, or any other branded product from DHG or any other B2B Chinese wholesaler. If you can get ipods from China for $15, THEY ARE FAKES mate! If greedy people didn't buy their cheap fakes, the market would dry up and these scammers would have no outlets.

yu-long-trading-ltd

I used to live in an area, that I guess you could say also has a dense Chinese population......Yeah.....it's called BEIJING.

Learn Chinese and a whole new world will open up to you.

You should hear the kind of things they say about you while you're browsing their store.

Even when it comes to the 'geniune' chinese product, i.e. non brand name stuff....the quality will often be piss poor.

The only exception being of course, the chinese brand name product by a major chinese company, for the local chinese market......

One example would be 'Besta' (Taiwanese company) electronic dictionaries...the Chinese electronic dictionaries almost surpass the japanese ones in quality, features and functionality.....But abviously those dictionaries are intended for Chinese learners of english.

Of no use to us or our intended clientele.

Just always ensure that you have every angle covered when dealing with the chinese......Leave them the slightest crack and they will exploit it.

Rule No. 1 in China.....BUYER BEWARE.

Rule No. 2 in China.....Remember rule No. 1

Cheers.

fudjj

What you say is quite valid, but it can be applied to the worst segment of any culture, not just Chinese.

Yes, there are differences with doing business in Asia than the west - mostly cultural, and having a good understanding on how to do business in China will take you a long way to earning their respect.

Once you earn their respect, a whole lot of new doors can open up for you are a buyer, don't earn their respect, and you will just be a number and treated as such!

As for quality, Chinese manufacturers, or Asian manufacturers in general are quite capable of producing various forms of quality depending on the amount a buyer wants to spend.

The issue with China making cheap products is usually down to a western buyer trying to squeeze every last cent of margin out of a product. I used to own a plastics repair business, a customer would come to me and say...well, I need it fixed, but can you do it as cheap as possible because I don't want to spend much money on it!

Now I used to wonder what the hell that meant, are they asking me to do a high quality job, but just don't charge for my materials or time...even though I have never seen them before in my life, or are they asking for me to cut corners to make the repair cheap?

Out of all the times I ever asked that question, not once did anyone ever suggest that I simply cut corners on quality. In fact they would usually just reply with...well, just do your best!

Of course they didn't want corner cuts to save them cash because they were keeping the product, but it didn't stop them from wanting me to do it for virtually nothing so they could save their money!

It's human nature to want the best deal, and when you're in a business being driven by the bottom line, and not the one keeping the product yourself, then it is a lot easier to see where you can save that money!

Most manufacturers will produce a product to any standard, dependent on local laws and safety issues with the product and local authorities. Asian manufacturers simply cater to buyers requirements a lot better by ignoring those types of issues, and in most cases they don't have those issues to be concerned about anyway.

xnarfx1

I've used DHG and they have worked fine for what I need.

richelle_salehoo1

I agree with fudjj completely. Having lived and worked in China for quite awhile its true that foreign customers will bargain their way to the lowest possible price, yet demand the highest possible quality.

I used to work for a manufacturing company there and did the sales/marketing side, you'd be surprised at how low the price quotations (required by the customers) are on those pricey electronic gadgets you see in the stores.. if you think about it you basically get what you pay for.. if you want the best quality, then you've got to pay the price.. :)

Chinese people are not at all that bad, they are actually quite warm and accommodating (although not all of them, some are a bit sleazy but there's no point stereotyping them as such ). I love going shopping there (and miss it too!) you'll see so many different products (priced quite cheaply) and not all of which are of poor quality. I have a few things I bought from one of the many shopping areas in Shenzhen and I'm glad to say that they are still in perfect condition. :)

Some people are just luckier than others, seeing that we do have members who have had positive experiences in dealing with suppliers found in DHgate and other Chinese suppliers as well.

Just be prepared to do a lot of extra research and take more than just a little risk when you do decide to venture to the East :)

And yes, learning the language and understanding their culture can help you a lot!

goodsthataregreat

I have actually done a purchase on DHgate, and my transaction went very smoothly. The seller stayed in communication with me the entire time and I would definatley purchase from that seller again.

nifty-thrifty

Hello All, I am new to the Salehoo program and any insight on how it has helped you in business would be greatly appriciated.

Thank You: Nifty Thrifty

raiderjake

Hello All, I am new to the Salehoo program and any insight on how it has helped you in business would be greatly appriciated.
Thank You: Nifty Thrifty

priceless, look through the forums and feell free to ask any questions you have. plenty of experienced people here willing to give their advice.

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