A new local website designed to showcase the best of US-based merchandise has launched to help Australian shoppers take advantage of the strong Australian dollar.
Online Shopping USA, the brainchild of Australian entrepreneurs James Harris and Ei Sabai Nyowas, was set up to offer Australian shoppers keen to cash in on the strong Australian dollar a range of bargains when purchasing from American online stores.
According to Harris, the site targets a predominantly Australian female shopper with disposable income who is prepared to shop for a bargain and/or branded products that are not readily available in Australia.
Product from stores and brands available for purchase on the Online Shopping USA platform at discounted prices, include: Gap, Saks Fifth Avenue, Fashion Junkie, Shopbop, Bebe, Burberrry, Dianne Von Furstenburg, Prada, Calvin Klein, Marcs, Missoni and Forever21.
However, the website is not massively stocked, offering only select items on sale, but Harris said the range is less about the volume of products, and more about a focus on carefully hand-picked items that offer the greatest savings for customers.
“These shops are hand-picked by our editors for their quality products, speedy delivery and efficient service offering bargains you might not be able to find in Australian high street stores or are much, much cheaper in the US,” Harris said.
“We are very excited to have established Online Shopping USA, and our shoppers can be assured that we’ll be delivering the very best deals from US online stores so they don’t have to go hunting around for bargains. Issues of taxes, delivery times, shipping costs and returns policies are all detailed on the site making it a one-stop shop so our shoppers will have a great online shopping experience.”
Harris also believes that one of the barriers that influences people's decision to shop online is the lack of information and trust in the security of overseas online stores and said the Online Shopping USA portal aims to “remove that barrier”.