AliExpress is a company of Chinese origin, and we know how easy it is to find replicas of products from that country, even in AliExpress we can find them with some frequency, despite the efforts of the platform over the years to take restrictive measures to prevent counterfeiting.
For this reason, we have prepared the following article, where we will offer you tips to make sure you are buying original products and not imitations.
Avoid replicas
Next, we will give you a series of tips to avoid replicas:
Choose trusted stores
Trusted stores are those that are highly rated and offer proof of their products, which can be photos and even reviews from other buyers. The more seniority the store has, the more confidence it offers.
To identify trusted stores we invite you to check the store’s cover, where a “Top brand” badge is displayed.
What does it mean for a store to have the “Top Brand” badge?
The stores with this badge are the best qualified and have already been verified within the AliExpress website. This badge assures you that any product you purchase will be of quality and original, since you are buying directly from the brand or from a distributor authorized by the brand.
Shopping at AliExpress Plaza
AliExpress Plaza is another option when you want to buy quality and original products, since all the products found there come from AliExpress stores located in Spain or from nascent stores whose vision is to capture the market through AliExpress.
These stores can be both physical and online and its great benefit is that, through the AliExpress website, they offer discounts and coupons that you can add to the codes and coupons that regularly already offers the platform.
Is it possible to distinguish a replica?
For some products it can be complicated to distinguish a replica from the original. However, some indicators that will serve as an alarm are: too low prices, stores with little or no valuation and stores with less than a year of opening. Most of these stores have “Shop” or “Store” followed by numeric digits by name, as shown below:
Products that generate doubts when buying
There are certain products that generate doubts, either because of their prices or how wonderful they are at first glance, some cases are:
Seresto
You will find the Seresto flea collar at a very low price. Taking into account what we mentioned before, we should think that it is a fake, but you should keep in mind that these stores have thousands of sales, have been open for several years and have good reviews from users, who ensure that the products are original.
Clothing and footwear
Consider that it is unlikely that the prices of products of recognized brands (such as Nike or Adidas) are below half those offered on their official pages, so you should not consider buying them.
Mobiles such as Iphone
The deception that is presented with this type of products is that their extremely low price is justified by being remanufactured or reconditioned equipment, which means that they are NOT new OR ORIGINAL. If you want to learn more about it, we recommend our article on iPhones on AliExpress.
Perfumery products and creams
Perfumes and creams whose price is 20% lower than in the official pages are probably replicas, and we do not recommend buying them.
The most common is to find fashion products with these dubious offers, for this we invite you to check their labels and logos. If in the photos shown by the seller the logo has been hidden, it is a counterfeit that can cause damage to your skin.
JBL speakers
This product is the most difficult to differentiate from the originals, due to the fact that replicas have their logo explicitly displayed. To avoid fraud, we invite you to purchase them in authorized stores and following the advice we have previously offered. We recommend that you purchase from the authorized distributor directly here.
Is there a difference between a clone and a replica?
The answer is yes. It is possible to find products on the market based on originals whose functionality is acceptable and whose prices are a little lower than the originals. These products, when imitating styles or designs, are for the most part perfectly legal since they do not take the logo of the original product.
However, it is possible that a seller may offer you products that you think are clones, but in reality they are a replica with the logo and without the brand name.
The best way to avoid these problems is to ask the seller all your questions before making the purchase; he is obliged to answer your questions, take your time to read the product description and ask any questions you may have.
The store I bought from has disappeared
What happens in these cases is that AliExpress has probably detected some anomaly in the store and has been closed automatically, because it is a replica seller.
It is common that this kind of sellers open and close stores constantly so that AliExpress does not have enough time to detect and close them.
In case something like this happens to you, you should know that even if you write to the seller, he will not be able to answer you, because your messages will not reach him.
If the order has already been shipped prior to the closing of the store, the shipping process continues without any inconvenience. However, if it has not been shipped at the time of closing, the seller will probably still ship the product. Otherwise, AliExpress will refund your money after a few days.
You will always have the option to open dispute in case you are not satisfied or if you did not know what you really bought (in case it is a replica or clone).
I am not sure if my order is original
As we have explained, there are replicas that are really well made and others that leave much to be desired. To identify them we invite you to consider:
- For clothing and accessories, the reason to be wary of these products is the type of fabric, materials used and finishes. If your garment has loose threads, is torn, the quality of the fabric is poor or it has stains or marks, it is a sign that it is a NON-ORIGINAL product.
- For electronic products and equipment such as mobile phones, you should check the operating system, that is, all those technical specifications that are considered relevant such as internal memory, device fluidity and camera megapixels.
- In electronic products you can also check the serial number on the brand’s official website. This will help you verify the authenticity of the product.
Not sure? Open dispute
A real advantage of shopping on AliExpress is that you can open a dispute when you are not satisfied, as it offers protection to the buyer. Remember that to open the dispute it will be necessary for you to offer all possible evidence.