The Shashinki experience
As I mention in my previous post, I would be writing a short review on my experience purchasing my new gear with Shashinki.com
I was at my hometown when I wanted to purchase the 5D Mark II, there were no shops that sell such high end camera in the area. Thus, I look at shashinki.com and was tempted to try. If I am in PJ, I would’ve just gone to YS photography in SS2 or Aver Awards which offers a slightly more attractive package.
What to do, hand itchy. I won’t talk about the price, Shashinki is a little bit more expensive than the brick and mortar shops I asked earlier in KL, but I wanted to try the experience of buying from them. It was Monday night and I am leaving to South Korea early Saturday. So I need the items quickly. I emailed shashinki asking how soon can they deliver and the owner and infamous Dr. Koh Kho King replied that they will send it within 3 days else a full refund. I did not hesitate any longer and purchase it.
The buying process is quite smooth except for the payment. For Malaysian customers, they do not have a proper credit card payment system as they are using PayPal. Only bank transfer for Public Bank and Maybank are available. If you are paying Paypal, you will be paying a slightly higher premium as Paypal has a really lousy exchange rate. There is a way to fix that, you can choose to charge your credit card in USD and use the local bank rate instead.
Because this was a big purchase, there are some ding dong on the emails coming in and out to communicate and verify the payment. I did not like this, but I am glad in the end it came through. The total purchase is a bomb, aproximately around RM 15 000, but luckily the card that I was using has a RM 35 000 limit. ;P
Waiting for the item to arrive is real pain. Wait and wait, finally it did arrive in time! Wow. I am impressed with POSLAJU and bravo. Perhaps I have been instilled with the wrong perception about Malaysian local services. POSLAJU is impressive. Plus, it’s on a Christmas week.
I opened the package and check all the stuff, it was nicely boxed, wrapped in bubble wrap and polystyrine ball. I tested it all and it was all in good condition.
The only thing that I think Shashinki could’ve done better is to give some free gifts. A 15k purchase and only a free filter? OMG. They could’ve at least thrown in another screen protector for the Canon 5D mark II’s LCD screen.
So would I buy from Shashinki again?
Yes I would. But only for small and hard to find items. I find that doing a big purchase, local stores does give a better deal. But the large and variety of stuff that is available in the website is impressive. I am impressed and would say that, they did keep their words and part of the commitment. They deliver the items on time and safely. Buying from the comfort of your own home is definitely a plus if the item is not in a significant amount.
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Interesting read. I don't live in Malaysia but hang out there from time to time. And I thought I'd skip lugging a lot of gear and buy cheap in Malaysia. But it turned out that it's not that cheap... More surprising is that the online shop is a bit expensive as well. (Live in Sweden.) Here, the online shops are almost always cheaper compared to "real" shops.
About the "brick N mortar shops" sure some of them have cheaper prices but you usually got to wait for the item for at least a couple of days if not more. N a bit scared to buy more expensive items from them. Since I don't know them personally.
Thanks for the comment Ronin. I agree. The online shopping segment in Malaysia is not as mature as the ones in Europe. Hopefully it will soon. :)