MINI IMPORTATION: HOW TO ORDER, SHOP OR BUY FROM AMAZON AND EBAY IN NIGERIA

Nigeria has a lot of trusted online stores at the moment but there are still some items that you can get at a bargain from some foreign online stores in the USA like EBAY & AMAZON .

Amazon and eBay are USA online store where you can buy practically anything, and at great prices too. These platforms have items in varieties for almost any category you can think of.

Amazon is an American based website that has been in operation since 1995. It started as an online bookstore, but now sells all kinds of goods ranging from the electronic device, home appliance, and fashion stuff. Amazon has the best products with affordable prices that one can order. It allows users to submit reviews of each product by rating them from one to five stars.

Amazon is another great online store that one cannot afford to leave behind when we are talking about the online shopping website is Amazon.

Buying from eBay and Amazon has a lot of advantages like buying products that cannot be easily gotten in Nigeria at a cheaper rate, doing a mini importation business through this medium by buying used and new items that you can sell for good profit.

If you have tried using eBay and Amazon, you will realize that both of these websites don’t ship to Nigeria, except you are using a third party. In most cases, these third parties are torn in the flesh – they will rip you of all your profit.

In this post, I will show you two ways you can buy from Amazon or eBay and ship to Nigeria.

1.      UsingMallforafrica: This website can help you shop directly on eBay, Amazon, and lots of American websites. Fortunately, this website has been in operation since 2003 or thereabout, which means they have been in business for a reasonable number of years. The beauty about this website is that, you can either do a door to door shipping or pick up your goods from their various offices scattered around Nigeria. In this post I am not going to tell you why you should import or buy from eBay or Amazon; if you care to know, you can visit either of the websites and compare prices of products with Jumia or Konga. Then you will understand what am saying.

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Read how to start miniimportation business in Nigeria – step by step guide

Five (5) Reasons to Shop from MallForAfrica

•  You can pay in Niara (Forget PayPal, Payoneer, and dollar wahala)  

• Shipping costs just $1 or so

• You can get a Master Card from them to shop online

• They have over 120 stores you can shop from

•  It easy and fast Honestly, MallForAfrica has a lot to offer Nigerian online shoppers. The concept behind this website is to make it easier for Nigerians to order and pick up their products locally, especially on American and British websites.

The beauty part of this website is that shoppers don’t even have to use their credit card; when they join Mall for Africa, they will receive an MFA card, which is a prepaid web card, which they can use to make their purchases online. As for pickup locations, MallForAfrica has more than 15 of them, which means that there is a good chance that there is a location near your area. If you desire to shop on Amazon or eBay or any American store at all; you need MallForAfrica. Once you placed your order, then the next thing is to wait for the product to arrive at the pickup location and you go and get it.          

Read How to shop, order, buy, and ship goods from aliexpress in Nigeria

How to Open an Account on MallForAfrica

Step 1: Clickon mallforafrica

Step 2: Locate the Sign-Up button and get registered

Step 3: Fill in your details and click on CREATE ACCOUNT

Step 4: You will be sent a code to confirm your account vis your mobile number

Step 5: Update your profile after your account is created

How to Shop on MallForAfrica

Step 1: Go to mallforafrica

Step 2: Sign in to your account, click on start shopping and stroll down to choose your desired store or shop

Step 3: Choose the shop or store you want to use, read their instructions and agree

Step 4: Then Pick the product you want to buy and click check out

Step 5: Choose the delivery method: “Pick up” or “Door to door” You will get your goods within 2 – 15 business days.

Making payments

MallforAfrica has made it easier than ever to shop premium US and UK websites without ever having to use your credit card information to purchase items if you don't want to.

As an alternative to a credit card, they offer the MallforAfrica Webcard that can be used to shop on over 180 US and UK websites via their app. Once you register your account online for free you will instantly be given a MallforAfrica virtual webcard number. You can reload it with funds via an online transfer, wire, or through your local credit card. The MFA webcard is essentially a free and easy to use, reloadable debit card that is safe, secure and convenient for you!

Why use your MallforAfrica Webcard

• No transactional fee when you use your webcard

• No Minimum Balances

•  No Monthly fee

• No minimum purchase required

ü  Access to special deals and promotions through the MallforAfrica App

The second means you can buy from eBay or Amazon and ship to Nigeria is by using parcel forwarding companies. Parcel forwarding companies help you shop without borders. Most of them operate by giving you a unique U.S address to key in as your shipping address when purchasing any item from a U.S online store.
The store sends your item to your U.S address; the company receives the item then forwards it to you in Nigeria for a small fee.

Different parcel forwarding companies exists but a trusted one is MyUS.com as this parcel company has been used by so many Nigerians.

You would need to register with MyUS.com as either a Standard member, Premium member or Premium+Mail member.

ü  The Standard is ideal for the those with only an occasional shipment (preferred by most Nigerians)

ü  The Premium is best for avid shoppers that would benefit from package consolidation

ü  The Premium+Mail has the added ability to receive mail and catalogs. View all details here

Please note there is a one-time registration fee of $10, $20 and $30 respectively (for the different levels listed above).
During registration, you will be asked a series of simple questions that enable them to confirm your identity, avoid fraud, and activate your account immediately.
Within minutes of completing your registration, you will receive your new suite number and US Address. This suite number gives you dedicated space in their Distribution Center.
After that you can provide MyUS.com’s street address and your unique suite number sent to you for all of your online shopping.
Once your purchases arrive at their Distribution Center, they will help you export everything right to your door.
All you transaction details would be logged into your MyUS.com account so you can always follow up with it before it arrives in Nigeria.

Their delivery charge depends on the total weight of your package. Generally, you’ll get a better deal if you ship heavy (numerous) items. For example, they charge about ₦9000 for 1kg and about ₦35,000 for 10kg (that is ₦3,500 per kg). They usually deliver within 2 to 10 working days via DHL or FedEx.
The moment your shipment leaves their warehouse, you will be notified by e-mail and can monitor your package’s progress with their real-time Package Tracker.
You can start shopping from US and receive it to your doorstep without hassles.

Tips on How to Shop on Amazon and eBay

As a newcomer who wants to shop on Amazon and eBay, it is a little more than just putting items in your cart. Even before registration, there are a few tips you should know.

There is a search bar that provides you with result pages that aid in the search of the item you are looking for. There are categories listed but this makes your search and if you have a particular item, you can just search in the search bar for it.
When you find the item you want to buy, make sure to check the seller's information. It is always at the top of the listing, and also their ratings and feedback from customers. There is also the item information, shipping information, price and delivery time. You can also see the payment method the seller accepts.
Once you choose to buy the item, you will see the 'Buy it Now' button. Click on it to buy and you will land on the register or sign in (if you are not already signed in) options. You can sign in and pay, and that's all!
If you are bidding for the item, put in the amount you want to bid for and so long as no one outbids you for the item, it would be yours at the end of the bidding time.