Buying through me,
and what happens after.

Last updated: August 2026. LifeShenzhen is an independent site and one-person business operated by Giovanni, based in Shenzhen, China. Questions about anything on this page: [email protected].

This page covers goods I buy in China on your behalf, including everything listed on the Buy pages. Read it with the service terms.

What you pay

The China price of the goods, plus a flat 5% sourcing fee, plus shipping and insurance quoted before you commit. Listed prices are indicative — street and platform prices move, and the figure in your written quote is the one that counts. Import duty and taxes in your country are yours and are not included.

What I do before your money moves

1. Send you the official listing so you can see the product and price yourself.
2. Buy from an official or authorised channel — brand stores, self-operated platform listings, or an established counter with a storefront to lose.
3. Photograph the sealed unit and its serial number, and verify the serial in the manufacturer’s app where one exists.
4. Send you the receipt, the photographs and the tracking number.

Cancelling

Before I buy: cancel freely, at no cost. After I buy: the goods are yours. I will help you resell locally if it comes to that, but I cannot return an opened or dispatched item to a Chinese seller on your behalf as a matter of course.

If something arrives wrong

• Damaged in transit — photograph the packaging before opening it fully, and tell me within 48 hours of delivery. I file the insurance claim with the courier.
• Wrong item, or not as specified — my error, my cost. I replace it or refund you in full, including my fee.
• Faulty on arrival — I raise it with the seller under their warranty and pursue a replacement or repair. Where that fails, I refund my sourcing fee, though the goods cost sits with the seller.

Warranty, honestly

Most Chinese-market electronics carry a domestic warranty that is difficult or impossible to claim from abroad. Some brands — DJI and Insta360 among them — operate international service, and some do not. I will tell you which situation applies before you buy, because it is often the deciding factor. Assume that a warranty repair may mean shipping the item back to China at your cost.

Things I will not do

I do not buy counterfeit or grey-market goods, mislabel a shipment’s contents or value to reduce your duty, or ship items that are prohibited or restricted for export or at your border. If what you want falls into one of those, I will tell you and decline.

Before you order

Check that the item is legal to import and to use where you live — drones, radios and lithium batteries are the usual traps — and check the plug, voltage, frequency bands and language of the software. I will flag what I spot, but the final check is yours.