After the duty exemption ended, Shein, Temu and AliExpress lose a third of sales
The three platforms generated 566 million euros in Germany in the third quarter – 35.5 percent less than a year earlier. Their market share fell to 3.1 percent.
Graphic: TERRA WORLD NEWS (own graphic based on the sources listed)
Asian shopping platforms Shein, Temu and AliExpress have lost significant sales in Germany. In the third quarter (July to September) their combined revenue was 566 million euros, down 35.5 percent on the same period last year, according to figures from the German E-Commerce and Distance Selling Trade Association (BEVH). Their share of German online retail fell to 3.1 percent, from 5.3 percent in the second quarter.
The decline follows the end in July of the 150-euro customs exemption for parcels from outside the EU. Small consignments up to 150 euros now carry a flat fee of 3 euros per product category, with a 2-euro handling fee added from November. "The higher charges are hitting low-margin, low-priced products from Asia hard," said BEVH managing director Alien Mulyk.
Overall online retail in Germany grew 2.9 percent in the third quarter, after just over 5 percent in the second. Mulyk called on the EU to strengthen market surveillance authorities and enforce existing law.