{"id":107,"date":"2024-05-21T07:41:30","date_gmt":"2024-05-21T07:41:30","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/jmsc6110a.com\/capstone2024\/?page_id=107"},"modified":"2024-06-07T10:05:24","modified_gmt":"2024-06-07T10:05:24","slug":"cross-border-buyer","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/jmsc6110a.com\/capstone2024\/cross-border-buyer\/","title":{"rendered":"The Cut-Throat Competition to Make It As a Shopping Agent"},"content":{"rendered":"

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By Joey Yang & Eva Qiu
HKU Journalism and Media Studies Centre<\/p>\n

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HONG KONG \u2013 After driving the car slowly into a warehouse under a freeway in Tuen Mun, Kit Fung unloads a full load of goods from his car onto the ground in the yard. His two colleagues drive the other two cars parked in the corner of the yard to the side, before loading goods into vehicles according to different delivery destinations.<\/span><\/p>\n

In the process, a packaged box of baked puffs fell to the ground. Fung picked it up, then threw it into the trash bag next to him. He returned to the car seat and used the phone to call another colleague, asking the colleague to inform the customer that the box of puffs was gone today.<\/span><\/p>\n

In the mad rush to buy and deliver goods for customers, there\u2019s no time to fuss over a box of damaged baked goods.<\/span><\/p>\n

Before the pandemic in 2020, many mainlanders flocked to Hong Kong to buy products such as milk powder, cosmetics, medicated oil, and luxury items. However, not all mainlanders had the time or the necessary visa to travel to Hong Kong. Therefore, shopping agents came into being. They bought goods in Hong Kong and took them to the mainland for sale, charging a fee on top of the retail price of the goods they bought to make money.<\/span><\/p>\n

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Tuen Mun, Fung\u2019s unloading point, staging area<\/span><\/em><\/p>\n

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However, things are rapidly reversed. There are more Hong Kong-based agents shopping in mainland than mainland-based shopping agents shopping in Hong Kong these days. Many Hong Kong people like Fung are transferring products from megastores and chain stores in mainland to Hong Kong for sale.\u00a0\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

It\u2019s a highly competitive, if not cut-throat business. Fung readily admits that \u201cthere are too many shopping agents from Hong Kong\u201d and that he can often do little more than earn his gas money back when ferrying goods across the border from megastores in Shenzhen. Nevertheless, the demand is there and he\u2019s looking for other ways to thrive in this emerging industry.<\/span><\/p>\n

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