Shopping in Seoul or out of it for that matter

Yes, I have blogged about this before, but it really is quite depressing that Seoul hasn’t included clothing that is larger than a 27 waist at most of it’s chain stores – because let me tell, after my latest trip to Costco this weekend, there are plenty of Korean women that need much larger than a 40 30 waist… and their kids, my god chubbers, lay off the chocopies already, you’re forming the worst eating habits at the tender age of 6!

If you only plan on being in Korea for a year then don’t bother doing this – it’s not worth the time or more so, the money.  If you are here for longer then you  might want to get into the online shopping craze.  I myself don’t shop at Gmarket as their clothing is not my style.  Here are a few online places that do ship to Korea.   (As an aside, did you know that Korea would ban shipments from Victoria’s Secret as early as 9 years ago!?!).

Victoria’s Secret:  They actually have some decent clothing too.  I’ve gotten dress shirts from here as well as loungey at home stuff.

Martin + Osa:  Nice, user friendly layout that makes online shopping a joy.  Not that much selection but decent enough.

Bluefly:  Brand name stuff that, well, I’m not sure if all of it is worth it, but some very nice items.

You can also order Mango online but they don’t ship to Korea.  I get stuff sent to my parent’s place in Canada and then it encourages them to make me a care package – haha.

As always, don’t order more than $500 worth or you’ll need to pay duty on the items which can be quite hefty (I have no idea how it’s calculated so safer to not get that much).  You should also try to send the package to a business as, if there is no one around to sign for it, you may need to get to the post office (and depending on how much you’ve bought, it could be quite the box — I ordered my winter coat online and box was large enough to fit a 10 year old).

In Seoul I’ve been to Marks and Spencer but it was very expensive and, sorry, I’m not sure if the sizes are equivalent to the UK standard or not, one would assume they are.

In Itaewon, there’s a bunch of shops that are outrageously expensive, of extreme variance in size and availability and generally hideous in style.  I’m not sure who decides what will be imported each season but good god give me a call so that I can help you out.

Other then that I’m at a loss.  Do you know of any other international brands that will ship to Korea?

UPDATE:  I got my first Martin + Osa order delivered yesterday and I have to say that I am really pleased with all of the items that I bought.  The fabrics are wonderful – shirts with that super soft feeling, skirts in colors that actually look like what they did on the internet, if not better.  And unlike VS, it’s not all about the boobs (some of the Victoria’s Secret t-shirts that I got were way too boob focused and so I don’t wear them out of the house) so I think I’ll feel comfortable to wear a tank top this summer.

Again, although there isn’t that much that they sell, their customer service so far has been great.  The package arrived near to the date stated, the items were as advertised, and (this part I love) the clothing was in it’s plastic packages but then also wrapped nicely in paper (boo for the environment, yay for making it all that more special looking).

A DEPRESSING UPDATE:  I’m not sure if this was always the case and I had just been lucky, or if a new policy is in place, but I just painfully found out that you can only technically order 150 000 KRW worth of products (including shipping) and not be taxed on it – clothes shopping at least.  After that it appears the sky is the limit … or 30-50% of your purchase as I discovered today

A HELPFUL UPDATE:

Here is a copy of the customs form they will send you.  I got it in Korean and then emailed them for this one, so you can either transcribe your information or just figure it out.

The Letter of Notice

(For Declaration of Foreign Postal Articles )

We announce that your package from overseas below has arrived at The Incheon Airport International Postal Customs, so you must make a customs declaration of your package within 15days upon arrival. If you don’t express any intention to make customs clearance, it may result in the mail being returned to the sender according to『Korean Foreign Postal Law』.

Date of Arrival:

clearance no.		Mail no.		Type of mail
Name of goods					Weight
Forwarding Country		Sender		Addressee
Remarks

1. Object of taxation【dutiable goods】

ㅇ personal uses included presents, etc. which value exceeds 150,000 Korean Won

ㅇ Items exceeds Criteria of Personal Uses which it is defined by regulations

ㅇ company products and  commercial  goods, etc.

(Except a sample which dutiable value  dose not exceed US$250)

※ the dutiable value : Item price + Postage (shipping charge) + Insurance etc.

2. Way of declaration

	Simplified Customs Declaration	Formal Import Declaration
criteria	packages which value exceeds \150,000	- Purchased items exceeds US$600 - Commercial goods
manner	Phone message, E-mail, Fax	using customs helping agency
Required Document	- simplified customs clearance application form - receipt, invoice, price list, etc - returned goods (any evidence which had been sent before ; export license)	- Import application and price application - invoice, price list, etc - permission of each administration Which defined in Korea law

3. Tariffs for primary item

description	tariff(%)	description	tariff(%)
Furs	30	Shoes, Clothes, etc.	25
Health Foods	20	Others (Bags etc.)	20

4. duty exemption allowance

ginseng : 300g, tabbaco : 200 pieces health supplement products : total not exeed 6 bottle sex products : prohibited (ex : dildo) viagra medicine (peoples are apt to misuse), fake product : restricted

5. Contact : ㅇPostal Customs Department

☎ Phone: (032)720-7400~06 (Customs Declaration)  FAX : (032)720-7491, 7492

ㅇInternational Post Office ☎ (032)743-9747

ㅇPost Office Call Center ☎ 1588-1300

Incheon Airport International postal Customs

Simplified Customs Declaration Form

☞ the guidance of applying for a simplified Customs clearance

Phone Message number	010-8355-8577 (This is only for phone message) – would you send us our reference number, price, description, purpose (if it is hard to send by phone, we recommend you to use the way of listed below)
E-mail	minwon9@customs.go.kr
Fax number	(032) 720-7491, 7492
Phone no.	(032) 720-7400~06

★ This form is only available for a simplified customs declaration.

★ Please fill in the inside of the bold line.

Type of Mail

Forwarding Country

Weight(g)

Sender

Addressee

Name of goods

Remarks

Customs clearance no.

Postal No.

Arrival date

Description in detail

Price (with currency unit)

If you ordered in a web shopping mall

- web site : - the bid(order) no. :

Purpose of receiving

□ Gift  □ Personal use  □ Returned goods □ Other in details :

If these items are prohibited by the law or customs regulations, I want

□ sending back

I apply for a customs declaration as I wrote above.   200   .     .     . Applicant Identification No.: phone number : e-mail address : Name(Company) :                             ( Signature ) Incheon Airport International postal Customs