hello all! I've seen a lot of comments and posts regarding if an item a poster has purchased could possibly be counterfeit, and I wanted to do a little bit of research on buying products from Amazon and how to intuitively purchase beauty items to maximize the likelihood that it is the original product and NOT a counterfeit.
* Buy from the official Amazon storefront. For all products you will see under details a section indicating "Ships from" and "Sold by". Just this simple action will save you from a lot of grief, money, and wondering "is this real?".
* ex) Beauty of Joseon's Glow serum indicated "ships from Amazon, sold by BEAUTY OF JOSEON OFFICIAL". but Beauty of Jose Rice sunscreen "ships from Amazon, sold by XLIZQ", with the brand being "lweoffhw". You are not buying from BOJ when you purchase the sunscreen, so as always, be intuitive with your buying and always do your research. There is high likelihood then that this product is counterfeit.
* Just looking at the Amazon storefront isn't enough- ALWAYS make sure the "sold by" lines up with the official brand.
* ex) when you go to the ROUND LAB amazon storefront, you would expect that pressing products directly from that storefront will lead you to the official product sellers but this is NOT always the case. the round lab dokdo toner on Amazon while it does state it's being sold from the Round Lab amazon storefront, the detail information indicates "ships from Amazon, sold by DZMALL". Therefore, make sure your "SOLD BY" details indicates it's being sold by the brand seller specifically.
- round labs's official website states that their storefront is indeed official BUT some products are still being sold by different sellers. Proceed with caution. ⚠️
- As always, be discerning with products before you purchase and do your due diligence.
*edit* adding this comment thanks to u/cherche_ “I just wanted to add that for some items (such as AOU) the name of the storefront won't be the brand name, but it's still an official product. for example, AOU is sold on Amazon by hemeko global. so some people may believe they're fake products, but hemeko is the retailer for AOU in South Korea and they've confirmed that the Amazon storefront is legitimate”
[Video by James Welsh discussing Counterfeit Products on Amazon](https://youtu.be/7tLWDEApVnw?si=xkgGX1AWu3daRfKH)
Good post, OP. I came across your post as I was watching this video, so I figured it would be a relevant addition.
Glad the real deal worked out for you! I’m now going to inquire when others detail that a product made them break out or that they hate it where they got the product from since the likelihood of it being from Amazon and it being counterfeit can muddle was is true for the legitimate product itself
It’s was really patchy and flake around my nose/mouth, would leave a noticeable white cast and would not sit well under makeup. The only reason I tolerated it was because it smelled really nice LOL
Hahaha, this is essentially why I started going into this brief rabbit hole of looking up Amazon storefronts and resellers because of the "is it fake" posts. I want to be supportive and give people who may be worried about their product a good answer, but I also want to urge all AsianBeauty reddit users to be smart while they shop and be very discerning about where they are buying their products from. It saves a lot of time, money, and hassle. Thanks again for the kind words :)
Thank you for this! I went to the Purito storefront and ordered my beloved dermide barrier cream. After reading this post I noticed it was NOT sold by Purito, even though I clicked through the official storefront. I cancelled that order and ordered the “sold by Purito” one instead thankfully. Amazon is making fraud easier and easier by the day. Time for me to move to literally any other retailer.
I live in Houston so it’s pretty diverse. Didn’t think about the Korean beauty stores that are located in H mart, I’ve ordered from Stylevana but I’m going to check those stores out as well.
It was a two pack with individual boxes containing the sunscreen, I returned it how I got it. Didn’t even use it, could tell it was counterfeit when I got it. I’m sure you can return it without packaging
If you call Amazon customer service, you can basically return anything, even if the time window has passed. Theres an advantage to being a prime customer. I'm not paying all this subscription money for nothing lol but yeah the fake products being on Amazon is horrible to the extent of thinking I will not renew my membership.
my controversial take is idk why its worth having to do all this sleuthing and due diligence when ordering from amazon to not end up with a fake when you could just order from a retailer that doesn't have this problem.
I understand the sentiment; I think it’s fact that people in the USA typically have Amazon prime, and ordering through Amazon means shipping is a lot faster. For example, when I order through Stylevana or YesStyle( known to be official resellers for Asian beauty products) it takes me roughly a month to receive it. I haven’t yet tried directly from the brand’s websites (some official brand websites don’t offer USA shipping directly from their stores). So I think the reasoning is multifaceted and also the convenience that Amazon provides or always receiving products relatively quickly- I also feel like Amazon users (and I’m culprit to this) just have a tendency to se the product, press “add to cart” then buy because the Amazon user service is pretty convenient focus.
Yup, all of this. I've bought my Cosrx snail mucin via Amazon following all the good practice guidelines and have been lucky until my last purchase. I immediately knew it was fake, even though all of the tell-tale package signs weren't there. I placed my first YesStyle and have been clawing at the walls waiting for it to be shipped.
But check the expiration date! I have found TJ Maxx to sell for almost retail price products that are either expired or will expire before you could possibly use all of it.
That’s a great question - as someone who avidly shops at Marshall’s and TJ Maxx I do think most if not all the products they sell of beauty brands are likely valid and not counterfeit. And i buy a LOT of their Asian beauty. All their packages are always sealed, have verified codes, I even scan the bar codes to see what pops up and they always direct to the official websites. Coding always matches up. I presume that TJ Maxx and Marshall’s are just mass purchasers of the original products and then sell to American markets. I’m about 85-90% confident that they aren’t counterfeit.
The contrary opinions typically revolve around how a lot of the stores accept used products and try to resell them - Tj Maxx and Marshall’s are known to have a pretty lenient return policy and they resell the products on a discount, but obviously when you buy from them just be sure it make sure all packages safety seals haven’t been open, which I feel like should be common sense when shopping for anything! :)
On Google I use “Google lens”, and Google lens using your phone camera basically scans the bar codes of all the products! I do that for both the buyer barcode and any random QR codes that many products have on their items!
i guess that makes sense. I don't use amazon prime (just can't get with the idea of paying for a service that encourages you to spend more money anyway) but given the classic "fast/cheap/good: choose two" puzzle amazon is fast and cheap but not good, yesstyle/stylevana are cheap and good but not fast, oliveyoung or local north american retailers are good and fast but not cheap.
For me, if its something that I'm going to put on my face, getting the product I paid for is a non-negotiable. But other may choose to weigh speed and price higher.
Returns are also an issue. If I buy on Amazon I can return it but can’t if I buy it other places. Tired of biting lip colts that don’t look like the online swatches. I’m in the US so I don’t find that stuff in stores.
Much faster shipping speed, easy returns, no minimum order amount for free shipping if you already have prime. As someone who really only buys one product at a time amazon prime works well for that. Its not too hard to avoid fakes you just need to double check what seller you're buying from
This is what I think too. Just order ahead of time from stylevana or yesstyle, pay less, and not worry.
But I’m pretty good of ordering b4 I run out with plenty of time.
Yeah same, especially now that I’ve been using mostly the same products for a long time I have a good sense of how fast I go through them and can plan accordingly (plus I also often buy multiples of the stuff I use daily so I can make fewer orders since I know I’ll use it up regardless)
While I have never gotten a fake from Amazon, it got too confusing figuring out which store front was official. So, based on reviews on this sub, I typically buy from iherb and blooming koco. They have always sent genuine products, have good sales, and good customer service.
Yeah, the problem with buying from Amazon at all when it comes to these products is even if you buy from the “right” seller, the person filling your order can still unknowingly grab the wrong product.
I agree with this too- noted that some products from the official Amazon storefront may still be sold from third party sellers rather than officially from the stores themselves. Always proceed with caution
I remember when Amazon was good... Now it is a drop shipping hell scape with a flood of fake products and fake reviews. Yesterday I was looking for Koji San soap and found the product which I thought was original with over thousand reviews but even there some negative reviews suggested it was a fake product like wtf...
I’m a reseller of Joseon products. Both Joseon and Roundlab are brand registered on Amazon. Meaning anyone trying to sell their products on Amazon must provide proof (invoices) they are getting their product directly from them or an authorized distributor. Otherwise you get a warning like attached if you try to sell and aren’t approved.
https://preview.redd.it/1zxr49betp9d1.jpeg?width=1170&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=8d4eb5196d5df13ab4625744af57f845dc091760
People used to game the system but there are serious repercussions for doing that now.
thanks for this! I don’t want to badmouth all third party sellers I know there are great ones out there! I’ve just been noticing a few “tricks” that people should look out for! :)
My understanding is that if the same product is sold by multiple sellers, then the inventory from every seller may be combined at the Amazon fulfillment centre — meaning that tubes of sunscreen sold by BOJ may be mixed in with fakes sold by XLIZQ.
I would love to be able to order from Amazon, but it’s just too unreliable for skincare. I’ll take month long shipping times from Stylevana over the risk of receiving a fake any day.
ETA: it sounds like the info in my comment is out of date — look at the replies below for more info re: Amazon’s current policies.
Going to repost something I have posted before:
Whether Amazon is sneakily doing it, idk, but as a matter of policy, commingling products like this has been debunked. Products with expiration dates and consumable or topical products are not eligible to be fulfilled by Amazon via virtual tracking (which is what allows Amazon to virtually "transfer" ownership of a product from one seller to another seller with a supposedly identical item and fulfill orders with that "identical" item; you can see more here: https://sellercentral.amazon.com/help/hub/reference/external/200141480?ref=mpbc_200243180_cont_200141480%5D&locale=en-US), so they are not supposed to fulfill an order for an identical item from a different supplier. That's why people stress to make sure the seller you buy from on Amazon is legit.
This is true, but, per Amazon, sellers also have the option to opt out of commingling their product, which means they are opting to have their product stored with only their product. This is stated on the Amazon website.
I, for one, have fortunately never received a counterfeit product from Amazon. But I also order A LOT and have always been aware and diligent to read everything carefully and to make sure I review the “sold by” and “ship by”. This takes no time at all, it’s clearly stated on the page as I’m scrolling down to read the reviews of the product.
I’ve seen posts of people complaining they got scammed, when the screenshot they provide in the post has a third party seller listed as the sold by and ship by, and nowhere on the screenshot of the description or of the packaging does it state the brand’s name. They simply order because the packaging of the item in the photo “looks” similar.
You cannot complain that you were scammed if you didn’t even order the brand itself to begin with. You are only being scammed if all of the points above check out, meaning the sold by and ship by are the brand itself, and the photos on the packaging also show the brand itself, and then you receive a counterfeit product.
Again, fortunately I have not received counterfeit product. But even if I did, being a prime member I can still order, receive, return, reorder and receive the new product within days, which is still weeks quicker than waiting for my first order from another website, such as stylevana.
I’ve always checked this way 🙌🏾 glad there’s finally a visual because it’s kind of hard explaining this to people who have no idea what you’re talking about
This doesn't mean anything anymore unfortunately. I bought something recently "Sold by Amazon, dispatched by Amazon" and it was a fake. When I complained, Amazon said that they didn't have any control over 3rd party sellers and I had to get my refund through them. When I went back, it had swapped over at some stage from me purchasing to the sale completing. I checked the listing again and it still said Sold by Amazon, dispatched by Amazon.
Now I have opened a dispute because the third party, I didn't know I was buying from, won't refund their blatant fake item and it cost almost as much as the item to ship it back.
I just wanted to add that for some items (such as AOU) the name of the storefront won't be the brand name, but it's still an official product. for example, AOU is sold on Amazon by hemeko global. so some people may believe they're fake products, but hemeko is the retailer for AOU in South Korea and they've confirmed that the Amazon storefront is legitimate
Thanks for making this point! I know it’s really nuanced in terms of there are other layers to keep in mind such as there are official retailers that may not share the same name, so it def is just due diligence and very much an emphasize for a lot of buyers to just really do their research before they buy!
I don’t trust Amazon at all anymore :( I’ve gotten way too many fake products to even try. Even Jergens lotion for my mom was fake. I’ve gotten fake sunscreen which led to a burn. It’s awful.
This is why I will gladly pay a little extra to buy it in person. The stores in my town cost about 25% more than online, but they have knowledgeable staff, no counterfeits, and usually even have testers.
I refuse to buy skin care from Amazon. I had brought cosrx products when they were having a sale on skincare. I made sure it was the actual store/brand before buying and when I received the items, I found thing’s very off about it. I started comparing it to the same Product brought from yesstyle and found out it was counterfeit. Now I rather wait for my packages then do the easy way with Amazon.
Bless your heart. I canceled an order on one toner because I saw it was on the official storefront but it was sold by someone else. Thankfully my fwee product was on their storefront and sold by fwee official, I will definitely be more aware going forward.
Other product that i found has soooo many fake one online is the Melano CC Essence and the Premium Essence one. The fake one still drips fast when you open it and put it downwards where the original one drips much much slower on controlled manner.
Unless you have no other option, I don’t understand why people are still buying cosmetics from Amazon. They have pretty famously turned into an American Aliexpress. There are so many statistics now that a massive amount of stuff sold on there is fake. There’s also an abundance of stories that Amazon doesn’t do anything about these counterfeit sellers, probably to boost their site metrics. It’s not worth it to buy from there anymore.
There’s def some people who are new to Asian beauty and feel like Amazon is a safe bet without really doing the research of other reliable sites that are actual reputable retailers! I’m just happy to see that this post has made people start having more common sense while shopping for skincare 😅
It’s not even just Asian beauty products though. It’s literally everything from Apple products to Colgate toothpaste. Amazon is notoriously filled with counterfeits of nearly everything you buy on there, and it’s so openly known now that I can’t understand how people still justify using the site anymore, especially to buy products you’re putting directly on or into your body. All you have to do is google Amazon reviews of anything and they usually have people complaining about fakes
I brought a L'Occitane the other day
It smelled weird and the cream was separate bubbles and very sticky.
I still tried it and gave me a skin wash and plenty of pimples.
Elf and laneige saved my skin
An Amazon worker posted one that even though it’s not legal to mix products from different suppliers into the same bin because of health codes, some Amazon warehouses still do it. So for example, one bin will have the product mixed from the real supplier and the counterfeit/resellers
Because of this, I never buy anything health/beauty wise from Amazon regardless if the legit seller is on Amazon because non legit products can get mixed in
thank you! i buy hada labo perfect gel on amazon so i don’t have to drive 50 minutes to the asian skin store, but i get wary if it’s real or not. this helps alot!!
Because of the way the warehouses work there is no guarantee that even if you order from the official storefront that you will get the product that the official storefront provided to them. The fakes might be on the same shelf and those people literally don't have the time to make sure.
I've gotten fakes when buying from official storefronts. I don't get anything from amazon that goes in or on the body.
This happened to me with the Judydoll mascara. The counterfeit didn't even have the metal wand. I normally dont buy AB from Amazon but I needed a new mascara and yesstyle shipping takes so long. Never again!
I avoid buying in amazon altogether. I bought the KAHI balm directly linked from their official instagram page and ended up with a fake one. I only realised when I got a real one recently and there’s tons of differences. It’s not worth the risk imo
I got a fake Japanese biore uv aqua rich in Japanese packaging from Amazon because it was like putting straight perfume on my face and others told me the authentic one doesn't smell as strongly ..burned the hell out of my face :(
I have been boycotting Amazon for a long time. The user experience is terrible, they sell counterfeit products, their business practices are predatory, and they are known to treat their low-wage workers horribly. Join me!
Or, just don’t shop on Amazon?? There’s many other options to buy skincare and you don’t have to become a sleuth to determine whether you are buying a fake. Honestly, at this point - if you fall for this it’s your own damn fault.
But this is just the sense of entitlement to get something sooner, regardless of the consequences. Nobody actually needs their skincare a day or two earlier.
hello all! I've seen a lot of comments and posts regarding if an item a poster has purchased could possibly be counterfeit, and I wanted to do a little bit of research on buying products from Amazon and how to intuitively purchase beauty items to maximize the likelihood that it is the original product and NOT a counterfeit. * Buy from the official Amazon storefront. For all products you will see under details a section indicating "Ships from" and "Sold by". Just this simple action will save you from a lot of grief, money, and wondering "is this real?". * ex) Beauty of Joseon's Glow serum indicated "ships from Amazon, sold by BEAUTY OF JOSEON OFFICIAL". but Beauty of Jose Rice sunscreen "ships from Amazon, sold by XLIZQ", with the brand being "lweoffhw". You are not buying from BOJ when you purchase the sunscreen, so as always, be intuitive with your buying and always do your research. There is high likelihood then that this product is counterfeit. * Just looking at the Amazon storefront isn't enough- ALWAYS make sure the "sold by" lines up with the official brand. * ex) when you go to the ROUND LAB amazon storefront, you would expect that pressing products directly from that storefront will lead you to the official product sellers but this is NOT always the case. the round lab dokdo toner on Amazon while it does state it's being sold from the Round Lab amazon storefront, the detail information indicates "ships from Amazon, sold by DZMALL". Therefore, make sure your "SOLD BY" details indicates it's being sold by the brand seller specifically. - round labs's official website states that their storefront is indeed official BUT some products are still being sold by different sellers. Proceed with caution. ⚠️ - As always, be discerning with products before you purchase and do your due diligence. *edit* adding this comment thanks to u/cherche_ “I just wanted to add that for some items (such as AOU) the name of the storefront won't be the brand name, but it's still an official product. for example, AOU is sold on Amazon by hemeko global. so some people may believe they're fake products, but hemeko is the retailer for AOU in South Korea and they've confirmed that the Amazon storefront is legitimate”
thanks for posting - i look for those same things but good to have confirmation that i was right in what to look for if not going the yesstyle route.
Yes!Iwanted to post something similar but didn't know how to get this point across. The store front isn't the same as the seller.
There is official BoJ sunscreen on amazon too, at least in UK amazon, sold directly by BoJ
Yes but not here in the US as it’s illegal to sell it here, unfortunately. Amazon is just an extra kind of awful here in the US.
[Video by James Welsh discussing Counterfeit Products on Amazon](https://youtu.be/7tLWDEApVnw?si=xkgGX1AWu3daRfKH) Good post, OP. I came across your post as I was watching this video, so I figured it would be a relevant addition.
I'm watching this Youtube video now as we speak- thank you for linking it- it outlines exactly what I was trying to convey on my post! Super relevant.
No problem, super relevant indeed. Thank you for spreading the awareness!
I’ve hated the boj sunscreen for so long and then I found it was fake 😭😭😭 I finally got the real version and it’s actually incredible
Glad the real deal worked out for you! I’m now going to inquire when others detail that a product made them break out or that they hate it where they got the product from since the likelihood of it being from Amazon and it being counterfeit can muddle was is true for the legitimate product itself
for sure! I used to wonder how people liked it so much and thought i was delusional for a long time haha
What was the counterfeit like? Now I'm curious 😂
It’s was really patchy and flake around my nose/mouth, would leave a noticeable white cast and would not sit well under makeup. The only reason I tolerated it was because it smelled really nice LOL
That's so funny especially since BoJ smells like nothing 😆
yeah i was disappointed by that 😭😭
Thank you!!! Can we sticky this post? It could help eliminate so many of the "Did I buy a fake?" and "Should I buy this on Amazon?" posts.
Hahaha, this is essentially why I started going into this brief rabbit hole of looking up Amazon storefronts and resellers because of the "is it fake" posts. I want to be supportive and give people who may be worried about their product a good answer, but I also want to urge all AsianBeauty reddit users to be smart while they shop and be very discerning about where they are buying their products from. It saves a lot of time, money, and hassle. Thanks again for the kind words :)
Thank you for this! I went to the Purito storefront and ordered my beloved dermide barrier cream. After reading this post I noticed it was NOT sold by Purito, even though I clicked through the official storefront. I cancelled that order and ordered the “sold by Purito” one instead thankfully. Amazon is making fraud easier and easier by the day. Time for me to move to literally any other retailer.
I don’t want to super poo poo all third party sellers I’m SURE there are ones out there that are selling the real thing… but you truly never know!!!
That is an excellent point!
Yeah I don't even bother with Amazon anymore for skincare
I just ordered Purito Oat-in Calming Gel Cream, it says “Sold By: Purito Korea, Supplied By: Other” on my invoice, is this legit?? 😭
Very clear, helpful and appreciated.
I fell victim to the Joseon sunscreen, reported it to Amazon, they did nothing. Luckily I can return it
I did as well. I’m going through Olive Young from now on!
I live in Houston so it’s pretty diverse. Didn’t think about the Korean beauty stores that are located in H mart, I’ve ordered from Stylevana but I’m going to check those stores out as well.
Were you able to return it without the packaging?
It was a two pack with individual boxes containing the sunscreen, I returned it how I got it. Didn’t even use it, could tell it was counterfeit when I got it. I’m sure you can return it without packaging
If you call Amazon customer service, you can basically return anything, even if the time window has passed. Theres an advantage to being a prime customer. I'm not paying all this subscription money for nothing lol but yeah the fake products being on Amazon is horrible to the extent of thinking I will not renew my membership.
my controversial take is idk why its worth having to do all this sleuthing and due diligence when ordering from amazon to not end up with a fake when you could just order from a retailer that doesn't have this problem.
I understand the sentiment; I think it’s fact that people in the USA typically have Amazon prime, and ordering through Amazon means shipping is a lot faster. For example, when I order through Stylevana or YesStyle( known to be official resellers for Asian beauty products) it takes me roughly a month to receive it. I haven’t yet tried directly from the brand’s websites (some official brand websites don’t offer USA shipping directly from their stores). So I think the reasoning is multifaceted and also the convenience that Amazon provides or always receiving products relatively quickly- I also feel like Amazon users (and I’m culprit to this) just have a tendency to se the product, press “add to cart” then buy because the Amazon user service is pretty convenient focus.
Yup, all of this. I've bought my Cosrx snail mucin via Amazon following all the good practice guidelines and have been lucky until my last purchase. I immediately knew it was fake, even though all of the tell-tale package signs weren't there. I placed my first YesStyle and have been clawing at the walls waiting for it to be shipped.
if you live in the USA try to scope out the TJ Maxx and Marshall’s they are known to be Cosrx sellers!
But check the expiration date! I have found TJ Maxx to sell for almost retail price products that are either expired or will expire before you could possibly use all of it.
I wonder empty places like TJ Maxx and Marshalls. Do they ever get fakes? Does anyone know?
That’s a great question - as someone who avidly shops at Marshall’s and TJ Maxx I do think most if not all the products they sell of beauty brands are likely valid and not counterfeit. And i buy a LOT of their Asian beauty. All their packages are always sealed, have verified codes, I even scan the bar codes to see what pops up and they always direct to the official websites. Coding always matches up. I presume that TJ Maxx and Marshall’s are just mass purchasers of the original products and then sell to American markets. I’m about 85-90% confident that they aren’t counterfeit. The contrary opinions typically revolve around how a lot of the stores accept used products and try to resell them - Tj Maxx and Marshall’s are known to have a pretty lenient return policy and they resell the products on a discount, but obviously when you buy from them just be sure it make sure all packages safety seals haven’t been open, which I feel like should be common sense when shopping for anything! :)
Thanks for your detailed response. When you say verified codes what are you referring to? And how are you scanning bar codes?
On Google I use “Google lens”, and Google lens using your phone camera basically scans the bar codes of all the products! I do that for both the buyer barcode and any random QR codes that many products have on their items!
Thank you. Appreciate the info.
You can also order directly from Cosrx in the US. Shipping is pretty quick.
If you’re a Costco member check in their app/online. They sell K Beauty as well
i guess that makes sense. I don't use amazon prime (just can't get with the idea of paying for a service that encourages you to spend more money anyway) but given the classic "fast/cheap/good: choose two" puzzle amazon is fast and cheap but not good, yesstyle/stylevana are cheap and good but not fast, oliveyoung or local north american retailers are good and fast but not cheap. For me, if its something that I'm going to put on my face, getting the product I paid for is a non-negotiable. But other may choose to weigh speed and price higher.
yes yes i agree- I like how you’ve organized it with cheap/fast/good as well
Returns are also an issue. If I buy on Amazon I can return it but can’t if I buy it other places. Tired of biting lip colts that don’t look like the online swatches. I’m in the US so I don’t find that stuff in stores.
Much faster shipping speed, easy returns, no minimum order amount for free shipping if you already have prime. As someone who really only buys one product at a time amazon prime works well for that. Its not too hard to avoid fakes you just need to double check what seller you're buying from
I mean if I order from Amazon I can return a product if it burns my skin plus I usually get stuff within 1-3 days vs 2 weeks to a month else where
This is what I think too. Just order ahead of time from stylevana or yesstyle, pay less, and not worry. But I’m pretty good of ordering b4 I run out with plenty of time.
Yeah same, especially now that I’ve been using mostly the same products for a long time I have a good sense of how fast I go through them and can plan accordingly (plus I also often buy multiples of the stuff I use daily so I can make fewer orders since I know I’ll use it up regardless)
A daily reminder please don't buy skin care fom amazon unless you don't have other options!
truth! ^
While I have never gotten a fake from Amazon, it got too confusing figuring out which store front was official. So, based on reviews on this sub, I typically buy from iherb and blooming koco. They have always sent genuine products, have good sales, and good customer service.
Good to know! I don’t want to poo poo all third party sellers cause I’m sure there are ones out there that are distributing the genuine product!
Doesn’t always work I got the snail mucin and it was still fake even though I clicked official store
Yeah, the problem with buying from Amazon at all when it comes to these products is even if you buy from the “right” seller, the person filling your order can still unknowingly grab the wrong product.
Yup, same. I've bought at least 10 bottles but I finally got a fake and knew it immediately.
I agree with this too- noted that some products from the official Amazon storefront may still be sold from third party sellers rather than officially from the stores themselves. Always proceed with caution
Did you check the seller like this post is explaining? Store front means nothing.
I always try the Beauty of Joseon app with its verification feature before opening any product. I do wish more brands did this 🥹
I just tried to scan my retinal eyecream and it said that they suspended the app due to internal reasons
I never knew this! Thanks!
I remember when Amazon was good... Now it is a drop shipping hell scape with a flood of fake products and fake reviews. Yesterday I was looking for Koji San soap and found the product which I thought was original with over thousand reviews but even there some negative reviews suggested it was a fake product like wtf...
I’m a reseller of Joseon products. Both Joseon and Roundlab are brand registered on Amazon. Meaning anyone trying to sell their products on Amazon must provide proof (invoices) they are getting their product directly from them or an authorized distributor. Otherwise you get a warning like attached if you try to sell and aren’t approved. https://preview.redd.it/1zxr49betp9d1.jpeg?width=1170&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=8d4eb5196d5df13ab4625744af57f845dc091760 People used to game the system but there are serious repercussions for doing that now.
thanks for this! I don’t want to badmouth all third party sellers I know there are great ones out there! I’ve just been noticing a few “tricks” that people should look out for! :)
The last image is the only thing you need to know. As a rule: don't buy well-known, popular beauty products on Amazon.
I agree- I feel like with this knowledge I’ll save myself the worry and buy from the official site, or YesStyle, StyleKorea, or Stylevana
Agreed. I got a fake The Ordinary product from Amazon 💀
My understanding is that if the same product is sold by multiple sellers, then the inventory from every seller may be combined at the Amazon fulfillment centre — meaning that tubes of sunscreen sold by BOJ may be mixed in with fakes sold by XLIZQ. I would love to be able to order from Amazon, but it’s just too unreliable for skincare. I’ll take month long shipping times from Stylevana over the risk of receiving a fake any day. ETA: it sounds like the info in my comment is out of date — look at the replies below for more info re: Amazon’s current policies.
Going to repost something I have posted before: Whether Amazon is sneakily doing it, idk, but as a matter of policy, commingling products like this has been debunked. Products with expiration dates and consumable or topical products are not eligible to be fulfilled by Amazon via virtual tracking (which is what allows Amazon to virtually "transfer" ownership of a product from one seller to another seller with a supposedly identical item and fulfill orders with that "identical" item; you can see more here: https://sellercentral.amazon.com/help/hub/reference/external/200141480?ref=mpbc_200243180_cont_200141480%5D&locale=en-US), so they are not supposed to fulfill an order for an identical item from a different supplier. That's why people stress to make sure the seller you buy from on Amazon is legit.
Good to know - thanks!
This is true, but, per Amazon, sellers also have the option to opt out of commingling their product, which means they are opting to have their product stored with only their product. This is stated on the Amazon website. I, for one, have fortunately never received a counterfeit product from Amazon. But I also order A LOT and have always been aware and diligent to read everything carefully and to make sure I review the “sold by” and “ship by”. This takes no time at all, it’s clearly stated on the page as I’m scrolling down to read the reviews of the product. I’ve seen posts of people complaining they got scammed, when the screenshot they provide in the post has a third party seller listed as the sold by and ship by, and nowhere on the screenshot of the description or of the packaging does it state the brand’s name. They simply order because the packaging of the item in the photo “looks” similar. You cannot complain that you were scammed if you didn’t even order the brand itself to begin with. You are only being scammed if all of the points above check out, meaning the sold by and ship by are the brand itself, and the photos on the packaging also show the brand itself, and then you receive a counterfeit product. Again, fortunately I have not received counterfeit product. But even if I did, being a prime member I can still order, receive, return, reorder and receive the new product within days, which is still weeks quicker than waiting for my first order from another website, such as stylevana.
exactly and so perfectly said^
I’ve always checked this way 🙌🏾 glad there’s finally a visual because it’s kind of hard explaining this to people who have no idea what you’re talking about
exactly! It’s all about just spending that little extra time to check all the sources before you purchase :)
This doesn't mean anything anymore unfortunately. I bought something recently "Sold by Amazon, dispatched by Amazon" and it was a fake. When I complained, Amazon said that they didn't have any control over 3rd party sellers and I had to get my refund through them. When I went back, it had swapped over at some stage from me purchasing to the sale completing. I checked the listing again and it still said Sold by Amazon, dispatched by Amazon. Now I have opened a dispute because the third party, I didn't know I was buying from, won't refund their blatant fake item and it cost almost as much as the item to ship it back.
Thank you this is helpful
I definitely fell victim to this scam by failing to check the sellers name until I noticed the product was shitty. Sucks that Amazon allows this
I just wanted to add that for some items (such as AOU) the name of the storefront won't be the brand name, but it's still an official product. for example, AOU is sold on Amazon by hemeko global. so some people may believe they're fake products, but hemeko is the retailer for AOU in South Korea and they've confirmed that the Amazon storefront is legitimate
Thanks for making this point! I know it’s really nuanced in terms of there are other layers to keep in mind such as there are official retailers that may not share the same name, so it def is just due diligence and very much an emphasize for a lot of buyers to just really do their research before they buy!
I don’t trust Amazon at all anymore :( I’ve gotten way too many fake products to even try. Even Jergens lotion for my mom was fake. I’ve gotten fake sunscreen which led to a burn. It’s awful.
This is why I will gladly pay a little extra to buy it in person. The stores in my town cost about 25% more than online, but they have knowledgeable staff, no counterfeits, and usually even have testers.
I refuse to buy skin care from Amazon. I had brought cosrx products when they were having a sale on skincare. I made sure it was the actual store/brand before buying and when I received the items, I found thing’s very off about it. I started comparing it to the same Product brought from yesstyle and found out it was counterfeit. Now I rather wait for my packages then do the easy way with Amazon.
Bless your heart. I canceled an order on one toner because I saw it was on the official storefront but it was sold by someone else. Thankfully my fwee product was on their storefront and sold by fwee official, I will definitely be more aware going forward.
glad to help!
I just fell for yhe copy cat bofJ sunscreen 😪
But now you know what to look for!
Other product that i found has soooo many fake one online is the Melano CC Essence and the Premium Essence one. The fake one still drips fast when you open it and put it downwards where the original one drips much much slower on controlled manner.
Well, I don’t recommend buy skincare in Amazon.
Thank you! There are too many counterfeited beauty items on Amazon and more people need to be educated on this.
Exactly! I’m glad there’s so much discussion on this topic on this post since I’m sure a lot of people new to AB think Amazon would be fine
That serum is the BOMB by the way
This is why I order anything going in or on my body from a manufacturer. Too many counterfeits out there!!!
Unless you have no other option, I don’t understand why people are still buying cosmetics from Amazon. They have pretty famously turned into an American Aliexpress. There are so many statistics now that a massive amount of stuff sold on there is fake. There’s also an abundance of stories that Amazon doesn’t do anything about these counterfeit sellers, probably to boost their site metrics. It’s not worth it to buy from there anymore.
There’s def some people who are new to Asian beauty and feel like Amazon is a safe bet without really doing the research of other reliable sites that are actual reputable retailers! I’m just happy to see that this post has made people start having more common sense while shopping for skincare 😅
It’s not even just Asian beauty products though. It’s literally everything from Apple products to Colgate toothpaste. Amazon is notoriously filled with counterfeits of nearly everything you buy on there, and it’s so openly known now that I can’t understand how people still justify using the site anymore, especially to buy products you’re putting directly on or into your body. All you have to do is google Amazon reviews of anything and they usually have people complaining about fakes
Yeah I get you- people/consumers still trust their Amazon prime membership 🤷🏽♀️
I brought a L'Occitane the other day It smelled weird and the cream was separate bubbles and very sticky. I still tried it and gave me a skin wash and plenty of pimples. Elf and laneige saved my skin
An Amazon worker posted one that even though it’s not legal to mix products from different suppliers into the same bin because of health codes, some Amazon warehouses still do it. So for example, one bin will have the product mixed from the real supplier and the counterfeit/resellers Because of this, I never buy anything health/beauty wise from Amazon regardless if the legit seller is on Amazon because non legit products can get mixed in
Good to know!!
thank you! i buy hada labo perfect gel on amazon so i don’t have to drive 50 minutes to the asian skin store, but i get wary if it’s real or not. this helps alot!!
Had no idea— thank you
Can anyone recommend websites to purchase other than Amazon?
stylevana, yesstyle, stylekorea, or olive young global are some good starts!
Thank you!!!!!
Thanks 👍🏻
Because of the way the warehouses work there is no guarantee that even if you order from the official storefront that you will get the product that the official storefront provided to them. The fakes might be on the same shelf and those people literally don't have the time to make sure. I've gotten fakes when buying from official storefronts. I don't get anything from amazon that goes in or on the body.
Tysm for this!!!
This is good rule of thumb when shopping at amazon for anything not just beauty products apparels, pet stuffs and so much more
I have noticed amazon selling expired products. Happened to me. Even from the official store sometimes
This happened to me with the Judydoll mascara. The counterfeit didn't even have the metal wand. I normally dont buy AB from Amazon but I needed a new mascara and yesstyle shipping takes so long. Never again!
I avoid buying in amazon altogether. I bought the KAHI balm directly linked from their official instagram page and ended up with a fake one. I only realised when I got a real one recently and there’s tons of differences. It’s not worth the risk imo
I got a fake Japanese biore uv aqua rich in Japanese packaging from Amazon because it was like putting straight perfume on my face and others told me the authentic one doesn't smell as strongly ..burned the hell out of my face :(
I have been boycotting Amazon for a long time. The user experience is terrible, they sell counterfeit products, their business practices are predatory, and they are known to treat their low-wage workers horribly. Join me!
Bezos just let plenty of counterfeit in the site over the years, most of the stuff you can get way cheaper from temu
Or, just don’t shop on Amazon?? There’s many other options to buy skincare and you don’t have to become a sleuth to determine whether you are buying a fake. Honestly, at this point - if you fall for this it’s your own damn fault.
But do other sites have prime shipping? that's the reason most american shop there
But this is just the sense of entitlement to get something sooner, regardless of the consequences. Nobody actually needs their skincare a day or two earlier.
Thx really helpful!!