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A daigou is a personal shopper who buys items to send back to people in China, usually for a significant markup. This is a cheaper alternative for Chinese buyers to purchase products around the world. Especially products so in demand in their home country that they often can't be purchased. Like decent quality milk powder produced by Australia. This has caused problems with locals in Australia with hundreds of tins of baby formula being purchased by Chinese daigou to be sent back to China. These daigou can strip shelves of milk powder in minutes. While supermarkets have responded with limiting the number of tins a person can buy per purchase this has failed as the daigou simply go straight back in to purchase more. In response, the Australian public now records videos of these Chinese shoppers stripping the shelves of baby formula then posts to social media. Australia is well known for giving anyone a fair go but there are limits.
Ever think of robbing a store but stopped thinking "what if I'm seen?". Cameras are everywhere. Just about everyone has one in their pocket. Powered up, hours of free space, a phone unlock and camera app start away from filming. YouTube and Facebook have made it easy to share videos for free. Anyone can do it. Now they are. When over 30 daigou recently went on a baby formula buying spree in Brisbane, Shane Conroy captured the raid on video to post to Facebook. The footage has since been viewed half a million times with thousands of shares. The situation with foreign shoppers stripping shelves is only getting worse. The public is now stepping up to record these incidents to post them online to publicly name and shame these people as laws and rules are ineffective.
Is it better when Big Brother is not a central authority but instead is implemented by the people, themselves?
(Score: 1, Insightful) by Anonymous Coward on Wednesday January 02 2019, @02:52PM (7 children)
Because Australian citizens have no influence over the CHINESE government which is the source of these product/trade issues.
I am sure Australian infant informula companies would love to sell their product directly to the Chinese people. Think dumbass why this is not hapenning now....
Perhaps the only workable solution is to implement quotas for formula until production can ramp up, but this might mean having to build more factories which is not an instantaneous thing.
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Wednesday January 02 2019, @03:37PM (4 children)
Even better, we could export the
imaginaryintellectual property needed to manufacture these formulas to China, and the Chinese government could subsidize the creation of factories in China!Hmm....
(Score: -1, Flamebait) by Anonymous Coward on Wednesday January 02 2019, @04:23PM (1 child)
As always, the issue with made-in-China is fraudulent--dangerously fraudulent--products.
Heathen Chinee have no morals. They are worse about this than other countries. It's a flamebait style statement, but it's also true. Life is cheap there.
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Thursday January 03 2019, @03:49AM
All the other comments give explicit examples that back up my pithy point. Those other comments say nothing different than me but were upmodded.
You shouldn't downmod a comment like mine just because you don't like its content--which is demonstrably true.
(Score: 4, Informative) by tibman on Wednesday January 02 2019, @06:06PM
China can certainly manufacture the formula. Their government literally tried to cover up the 2008 scandal. They didn't issue a recall of existing tainted formula. They permitted companies to continue selling tainted baby formula even knowing it was laced with melamine. Talk about creating some legit trust issues with the gov!
https://qz.com/1323471/ten-years-after-chinas-melamine-laced-infant-milk-tragedy-deep-distrust-remains/ [qz.com]
SN won't survive on lurkers alone. Write comments.
(Score: 3, Informative) by sjames on Wednesday January 02 2019, @07:33PM
They already know how. It's just that they cheaped out and added toxic melamine in China so nobody wants that now.
(Score: 3, Interesting) by Runaway1956 on Wednesday January 02 2019, @05:25PM (1 child)
Well, those daigou don't seem especially smart. They're paying retail for the stuff, when they could almost certainly be paying wholesale. Apparently, the Chinese are smart enough to send their stupidest citizens overseas for this job.
Think: What would it take for one or more daigou to open a shop of their own? Probably a business license, several thousands to rent/lease/or even buy a warehouse. Get in contact with various distributors, those who carry the items most in-demand at home. If the cost of the warehouse is out of reach for one or six daigou, then get thirty of them together. Open the warehouse, get the contracts for the items needed, and have the stuff delivered by the truckload.
Wow - what a concept - open up your own import/export business, and you've cut out many middlemen!!
As an added benefit, you don't have to listen to some whiny bitch holding a tiny creature wet at both ends, while she whines about you taking the last nappies from the shelf!!
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Thursday January 03 2019, @12:25AM
Arguments against setting up a business or wholesale importing etc, sure. But how have they not noticed simply buying the stuff in larger amounts than two-tins-per-customer at Costco or through Amazon? It’s almost like they’re trying to pay homage to Keystone Cops or Benny Hill rather than be smart about it.