Yes, I'm into online shopping. All my close friends know that I practically buy anything online for the past 4 years, long before online shops started to trend in Indonesia. From cosmetics, cakes, clothing, shoes, books, music, CDs, electronics, even underwear, I purchase online.
My first online shopping experience was here around 7 years ago. I bought some books and CDs. Imported books were quite expensive at that time and not all books that I wanted to read were available in Indonesia. So I tried to purchase online and found out that the shipping fee was not so bad compared to purchasing the book at a bookstore here. Then I found another place to buy books, sometimes with free shipping, and I kept shopping until I had my Kindle 2 years ago and I ran out of space to keep my books, then I started purchasing e-books.
My fave place for underwear shopping is of course none other than this place. Again, the shipping fee is not as expensive you thought it would be. Well, depends on stuff that you buy also. I always buy stuff from the SALE section LOL much cheaper price, same models with the non-sale items, difference was just the pattern and the season. Sometimes I buy 2 leggings with the same size, same color, same model (Hey, it's only $12 each! And it's 100% cotton!). Even after the shipping fee to Jakarta, it costs me the same amount of money of nice other brands available in Jakarta, if not less. To be honest, I chose to buy them for reasonable reasons: sizing & material. It's a pain for me to shop for underwear in Jakarta! Even if they do have my size, I usually hate the material or the style! So why not spend a bit more for a much better one? And since they're unavailable in stores here, their online store is the best choice for me.
How about clothing & shoes? Am I not worry whether the size would fit me or not? No, because I only purchase the same brands for some stuff and I know exactly what size for which model suits me. For clothing I limit myself to jeans and t-shirts for online shopping. And surprisingly, most of the time the size chart on the web is pretty accurate so even if I purchase a new brand for the first time, it would still fit me. So far I have no complain. Early this year I bought a brand of shoes that I never purchased before, I just followed the size guide before I made the purchase and apparently it fit me perfectly. No complain, really.
And last but not least, cosmetics shopping!! This is where I purchase all my Korean cosmetics!! LOL Yes, some brands have the official store here in Jakarta, but the price is like 3-4 times the original! I understand shipping cost, I understand tax, but 3-4 times the original price is just ridiculous! Not to mention that a lot of time one product can be gone from the rack for a few months, "waiting for shipment from Korea", and I had to use another brand or another product, so annoying. A lot of the nice products are also unavailable in the official store here, so this place is where I run to to get what I need. Since I don't only shop for myself there, as well as for my friends who won't bother shopping online themselves (you know who you are!), instead of being a recommended seller, I'm a recommended buyer there ROFL I buy regularly from several buyers and the price is only like $1 - $2 more expensive than the originals, free shipping and lots of samples! Woohoo! ^^ Spending someone else's money feels great hahaha
Oh, by the way, this place is also where I purchase everything else. From audio cables, earphones, plush toys, batteries, basically anything that can be shipped to Jakarta :p
In the end, it comes down to time saving and money saving for me.
First: I don't have to spend time on traffic and finding a parking spot. Which lately has become such a pain.
Second: I spend money only for what I need. If I go to the mall, it's impossible for me to avoid a cup of coffee or snacking :) Not to mention parking fee which has gone up since early this year.
Third: I can get the most suitable product for me that's not available in this country. Online reviews are important, make sure to read before you buy them ;)
Four: I can send gifts for people I love abroad without spending a lot of money on postage / expedition. A reasonable shipping fee is acceptable enough.
Do I shop online locally? Yes, I do :)
I bought my mobile phone here because of a good discount upon release.
Those two places are mostly where I shop locally other than cake stores LOL They provide great customer service and I can always track my stuff and make sure they arrive safely and in good condition.
This doesn't mean that I never go out to the mall to shop anymore. Especially when this brand has its end of year sale ROFL Well, I still shop there even with regular prices since the cutting really fits me. I rarely has to do any fitting, especially for pants. Just find my size and pay hahaha
So yeah, I guess I'll still be doing online shopping for a long time... unless we have no more traffic anymore, my size available everywhere and the stores sell my stuff with reasonable prices. Which is... still in a long time :) Until then... don't die on me oh internet connection! Especially not when they're verifying my payment!
