Trio makes online shopping easier for expats in China
China is one of the world's biggest markets for online shopping, and products purchased online can even be delivered on the same day, Charlie said, adding that it's a pity if foreigners cannot access these amazing online shopping platforms due to language barriers.
So Charlie came up with the idea to set up a website that can translate product descriptions and customer reviews on Taobao and Tmall into English.
Jay Thornhill (left), Tyler McNew (middle) and Charlie Erickson (right), who launched Baopals to help foreign customers buy items from Taobao or Tmall, walk on a street in Shanghai on Aug 9. [Photo/VCG]
Customers can log on to Baopals to place an order and make payments via Alipay, WeChat Wallet and China UnionPay. The founders say they are working on integrating support for payments by credit cards and PayPal too.
As the website is in its early stages of development, it needs to secure funding to support its operation. Thus, it charges a service fee of 5 percent of the item price and an extra 8 yuan ($1.2) per item category.