Quote:
Originally Posted by Taf
As a family, we have only been let down by Temu on 2 occasions (out of dozens), and neither time was due to poor quality, but due to the wrong item being sent. An instant no-quibble refund for both, no return required.
I have often seen reports of Temu clothing not being the size advertised, but my wife and daughter have not seen any evidence of this in their many purchases.
A neighbour asked my to source spare parts for gardening tools. Amazon and Ebay prices were bad enough, but all the many Parts Supply" companies seemed like they were taking the pi55. The parts were here in a week from Temu, and the quality of each was perfect.
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All Temu and AliExpress orders pay VAT to the UK coffers.
And how much is produced in the UK these days? I suspect that a very large proportion of items on sale in the UK were actually manufactured in China.
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VAT, perhaps (though there are claims that 'thousands' of sellers are evading paying that over to HMRC
here), but what about other direct taxes such as corporation tax, business rates, employer's national insurance. Then there are indirect taxes from employing people, such as their income tax and employee national insurance. Those employees will spend some of their earnings in the local area, in other shops, restaurants etc, maintaining jobs for other people in their area and the wider country.
I understand that cost of living is still tough, and the prices charged by dropshippers are attractive. But I also fear that those who need to use these services the most (eg those who earn at, or close to, the minimum wage) include the like of retail workers whose very jobs are threatened by them.
You raise a very good point about the loss of manufacturing in the UK and the impact that has had. Job losses hit areas such as the midlands and north east, leading to falls in living standards and, no doubt, an increase in welfare payments by the government. I appreciate its not just dropshippers threatening our high streets - its the wider shift to online shopping. But, to offer the likes of Amazon a little bit of credit, at least they are creating jobs over here.