Staff Picks: Our top tips for going on a Shopee spree
While there are obvious perks to being able to swatch and test products in person, I find myself doing most of my beauty shopping online. There are no busy crowds, no hovering sales people, and no traffic or parking issues to deal with. I like the option of being able to easily canvass and compare for the best prices, and most especially enjoy being able to quickly research for blog reviews before adding items to my cart! We've already listed our fave online stores to purchase from but there's one marketplace that we've become (mildly?) addicted to: Shopee!
You can actually find pretty much anything and everything in this digital souk, thanks to the hundreds of stores available. You can opt to browse items for sale in a particular category, or enter a search term and filter results based on prices or shop ratings. But be warned: there ARE fake products being peddled for beauty and otherwise. So keep your Shopee experience fun, safe, and hassle-free with these tips!
Den: Before purchasing from your fave online store, first check if they have one on Shopee! You may be able to take advantage of a deal that isn't listed elsewhere, like these CosRX Acne Pimple Master Patches that I found on sale from @theskincarecurator. I'm slightly paranoid about (accidentally) purchasing fakes so I find Shopee's Official Store listings reassuring - these shops get a pretty thorough screening before receiving accreditation. If I can't find something from an official store though, I like buying samples. Not only do I get to try the product first before committing to a full sized purchase, I also get to "test" the seller's customer service and quality of goods.
Crystal: I'm not really much of a Shopee person, unlike my fellow writers. I occasionally browse around though I do manage to resist any temptation to buy. I always check a seller's page when I find an item I like. If the other items on the seller's page look sketchy, I steer clear. My tip is to buy only from sellers with items that seem entirely genuine. It's not worth taking risks with sellers with a mix of authentic and fake products. Some of my favorite sellers are @koreana_ph and @meisatsuki.
Kim: I consider myself the OG Shopee-r here in Project Vanity and I'm so happy they've all finally seen the light haha! My fave buying tip would be to always wait for a promo because they come aplenty! I always wait for free shipping deals so I can check out what's in my cart without spending a fortune to meet the minimum. They also do a promo of P200 off for P500 worth of purchase quite often! I don't have favorite stores tbh because I always just look for the cheapest seller (but genuine, of course).
Gett: If you like something, chat up the seller and don’t be afraid to ask questions and clarifications. Make use of your Shopee coins! I was able to get P50 off on a recent purchase from my accumulated coins! If the price is too good to be true, skip it. It’s most likely a fake.
My fave stores for Korean beauty are @koreana_ph, @kbeautycafe, and @theskincarecurator. For Western beauty, I don’t really have a fave but I’ve found @assyria08 and @limakath to have good prices and good customer service.
Marielle: You can actually try to negotiate prices! Chat up the seller and ask for the last price (nicely, of course!), then make your offer via the "make an offer" button. If they accept, the item goes to your cart with the discounted price. And, yes, you can still use your Shopee coins and promo code for that transaction!
Set rules for yourself, so you don't overdo it. For example, promise yourself to only get what's in your cart if you already have 50 shopee coins + a promo code + free shipping.
I mostly buy non-beauty things from Shopee, so I can't give many recos. But I did make great recent purchases from @theskincarecurator for Pyunkang Yul and @prettyangelshoppe for an acrylic brush organizer (beads are from my personal stash).
Tellie: The #1 Shopee tip is to be like Tita Tellie and buy all the things. It is the way, the truth and the life. All these little pieces of basura will help you achieve the highest state of enlightenment, peace, and happiness. (Editor's note: Tellie was never able to recover after doing a haul for her 1k Shopee FOTD story. If you have never shopped on Shopee, we advice proceeding with caution.)
This NOT a sponsored story so I can tell you that Shopee is a wonderful but dangerous place. It's easy to waste hours upon hours just browsing through all the product listings - I once started with checking for brow pencils at 10pm and ended up buying cat grass (for my cats) at 3am!
Have you ever purchased items from Shopee? Do you share our addiction? What are your best finds so far?