How to shop Pretty Little Thing from South Africa
So by now, I take it everyone knows the incredibly hyped brand, Pretty Little Thing (commonly known as PLT). We have all seen the slay queens on Instagram wearing their clothing while we scroll through our feed in bed,wearing our pyjamas, eating the party-sized bag of chips. Girl, the struggle is real.
But, you can be one of those slay queens too!
Early last year I took the plunge and ordered something from them. I order something for £16 (around R290) and shipped directly to Durban from the UK. The dress was, however, on sale and the normal price was £35 (R624). So the problem that I ran into with south African customs is that they just used the marked price of the item and did not take into consideration the receipt. DHL also charged me a R150 handling fee (for absolutely nothing, basically for calling me and saying that they have my parcel) and a customs fee of over R300 (which is more than what I paid for the dress)! I was furious and decided to find another way to shop PLT while being in South Africa.
I decided to give Aramex Global Shopper a try after this, because we had used it for many other things, so we knew it might help make the shopping experience a little easier. Normally, South African customs will charge you for parcels that exceed the price of R500 or £28. So I purchased a few things that amounted to £20 (R356) and I shipped to my UK address that’s provided by AGS. Once it’s at that address and Aramex has it, they will contact you for the invoice/receipt. They then use that and mark the price according to your receipt and not to the original price (if you bought on sale). I try keep purchases under R500 and have not had a problem yet with customs once it reaches South Africa.
I believe that AGS is the way to go if you’re going to be buying from PLT. Now that I know how to shop it without South African customs giving me a headache, I place orders whenever I want. I just received a parcel on Friday and I have already placed another one!
Also, go look at the Karl Kani collection that just dropped because GIRL IT IS LIT!
If I hadn’t just placed an order on Sunday (as well as a new make-up order) I would certainly order some things from the collab because, damn, it is something else.
You can view their Instagram by clicking on their handle @prettylittlething and their site by clicking on PLT.
I really hope this helps you guys shop Pretty Little Thing easier, do DM me on Instagram if you have any other questions.
Thank you. i love their clothing. i really want to give it a try and see how it goes after covid19 is over. thank you for this post. i am also from durban
ReplyDeleteHi there I'm having an issue trying to enter South Africa in the address book. It's not giving me the option. Please could you kindly let me know on you did it. Thank you.
DeleteI am deeply disappointed in Aramex and South African Customs. I came across your write up and decided to follow your advice. I made a purchase of an item from PLT which was just 19 Pounds, less than 500 Rand, and weeks later I made another purchase of about the same amount. Aramex contacted me to pay 223R for the first item and 384R for the other item. Just now they emailed me that i have to pay 408r and 489r respectively for the items for customs fees. this is total bs and I am tempted to leave the items with them. they can do whatever they like with it. I feel so tricked and cheated especially by Aramex.
ReplyDeleteI am deleting my profile with them. and for anyone thinking of using their platform, you may want to think twice. this is total BS.