It is not unusual to find hidden gems when you’re abroad traveling. Whether it’s a luxury handbag, a Persian carpet, or a necklace studded with diamonds, you will fall in love and not think twice about buying them, especially if you have the money. Giving in to these temptations comes with the territory of traveling. You go out there; you risk falling in love with a pair of shoes that your mind keeps coming back to. You know what they say, don’t you? If you can’t get it out of your mind, you must find a way to get it.
But that said, there are certain things you have to remember when shopping for luxury items abroad. You still need to be practical about the items you are going to buy, as well as how you are going to have them shipped back home. If you’re still traveling to different cities and countries, do you really want to tot a limited-edition handbag with you?
Check the Availability Online
So you’re walking down Orchard Road in Singapore and a pair of shoes caught your eyes. You badly wanted to buy it, but you’re backpacking across Malaysia and eventually, to Cambodia and Thailand. This is not the right time to buy a pair of shoes that you’ll squeeze into your backpack. The price tag alone means it’s not the kinds of shoes that you will bring along in your backpacking journey.
What you need to do is to check if it’s available for shopping online. First, check if there are any local resellers in your area selling the same pair of shoes. If not, check the e-commerce store of the shop where you’ve seen the shoes and see if they are going to directly ship to your address back home. You may want to address it to a friend’s house if you’re not going back home anytime soon.
Consider the Shipping Fees
You might balk at the idea of paying for the item’s shipping, but remember that this is a luxurious one. This means that the shipping fee is worth your peace of mind. You have to make sure it gets to your home in one piece. That’s why you must also pay attention to the courier the store is using. Should you let them ship it for you or find another courier and ship it yourself? What’s great about letting the store ship it is that they have a technique for making sure the box will arrive flawlessly on your doorstep. On the other hand, you might find a cheaper alternative if you choose to ship it yourself.
Make Sure of Restrictions in Your Home Country
Luxury handbags, shoes, and accessories will usually pass through your home country’s customs with no problem. However, expensive jewelry, plants, and other exotic items might encounter some challenges. You have to ensure that the raw materials from which these items are made are not restricted back home. Before you buy those animal-skin products, for example, check your local import requirements. If you are buying plenty of them, be extra careful to follow your own country’s laws.
Alert Your Bank About the Transaction
You’re most probably using your credit card for the transaction. The bank might flag that transaction a fraudulent if they don’t know that you’re going to use the credit card abroad. Before leaving, call your bank and make sure they expect you to use the card in another country. That will help remove the barriers to using your credit card when you’re abroad. Do this every time you leave for another country, and you plan to use your card there. Chances are that your transactions will be canceled if the card company sees them coming from outside the country.
Be Sure of Your Purchases
It is always hard to shop abroad for luxury items since it won’t be easy to complain, exchange, or return what you purchased. So, always make sure you’re 100% committed to the purchase. You can’t buy and ship an item to your home then, change your mind at the last minute. You might have to spend more on shipping the product back and forth.
If you can only haul every interesting product you see abroad, you would, right? Unfortunately, that’s not the way the world works. Buy only if it’s the best deal you can find and learn to compare and contrast the prices back home and abroad. This is the best way to get the most out of that purchase.
