The feared situation has finally emerged for China’s e-commerce giant AliExpress, which ambitiously entered the South Korean market by prioritizing cost-effectiveness.
In particular, consumer dissatisfaction is pouring in regarding services and customer responses, which have been consistently criticized. The most significant issue of counterfeit products remains prevalent as ever.
According to the Korea Consumer Agency on Feb. 6, the number of complaints related to AliExpress (Ali) received by the “1372 Consumer Counseling Center” last year surged fivefold to 465 cases from the previous year’s 93.
The trend of increasing complaints continues this year as well. In January alone, a staggering 150 cases were received, reaching one-third of the total complaints received last year in just one month.
In 2023, the reported cases by category were as follows: clothing and shoes accounted for the highest number at 130 cases, followed by electronics at 124 cases, cultural goods at 54 cases, automotive parts at 51 cases, telecommunication and office supplies at 22 cases, furniture at 11 cases, and cosmetics and health products at 42 cases.
In terms of types of complaints, contract non-performance including delivery delays, misdeliveries, missing items, and losses during delivery accounted for 226 cases, representing a whopping 49 percent of the total.
The main complaints revolved around orders being canceled due to delivery delays, with the cancellations not being reflected, as well as the failure to honor promised free returns when returning products after they have been delivered.
One of the strengths AliExpress emphasized upon its full-scale entry into the domestic market was free returns. The offer to return items for free in cases where there were issues with delivery or the product, excluding simple changes of mind, resonated well with consumers. However, in reality, this was not being properly implemented.
In addition, there were 143 cases of refusal for refunds after contract cancellation or termination, accounting for 31 percent of the total, and 82 cases related to quality issues such as counterfeit goods, product defects, or damages, making up 18 percent of the total.
An official from the industry said, “Due to the nature of Ali with a high proportion of low-cost purchases, the actual scale of damage is believed to be larger. There are many cases where sellers on the platform immediately process refunds upon consumer complaints without requiring returns or consumers ultimately giving up on refunds.”
The most problematic issue undoubtedly lies in the prevalence of counterfeit products, a concern that has garnered attention not only from domestic media but also from the National Assembly. However, Ali has only taken measures to minimize the exposure of counterfeit products by blocking searches using well-known brand names.
Among these, there are many counterfeit products that anyone can easily recognize, such as those that infringe on the portrait rights of domestic celebrities. However, there are also products that are quite convincing to the extent that it is difficult to verify their authenticity before receiving the item.
A considerable number of consumers have already abandoned Ali. They were initially drawn in by Ali’s consumer inducement strategies but left once they realized the “true colors” of the platform.
Once considered a “rising star” that could threaten Coupang, Ali is now at risk of Korean consumers turning their backs on it, a matter that is seen as only a matter of time if the situation remains unchanged.
An industry insider stated, “The current perception of Ali among domestic consumers is quite negative. Even consumers who initially thought they could use it once or twice due to its cost-effectiveness are now expressing dissatisfaction, with a significant number lodging complaints.”