Shopee exits Spain: Chinese bargain era ends

Shopee closes in Spain as the cheap Chinese goods trend fades

How long does a bargain last? Less than it takes for the package to arrive. Shopee, the platform that arrived promising to restore the low prices AliExpress had in 2014, has announced the closure of its operations in Spain. It issued a brief notice stating it was leaving "for reasons we cannot explain," affecting only this region; it will continue operating in Poland within Europe. The news comes just as more people had started checking the app for the trinkets AliExpress no longer offers at such low costs.

For those who have spent years buying screws, cables, and watches from non-existent brands, the blow has its irony. Shopee's arrival was marketed as a return to the past: the same prices as a decade ago and, crucially, the ability to pay via PayPal. Some boast of having placed twenty orders where refunds, when issues arose, were processed without hassle.

The promise: 2014 prices and PayPal payment

The hook was simple, which is why it worked. Where AliExpress had raised the bar—and prices—Shopee entered with a cheap catalog, free shipping, and a payment gateway that reassured those previously burned. The circulating comparison was explicit: it’s like AliExpress in 2014, but with fewer surprises.

Trust wasn’t blind. Early warnings pointed to sellers who didn’t ship and orders automatically canceled with refunds. Not a disaster, but it clarifies the model: platform mediates, seller decides, buyer hopes. Still, most agreed it was worth trying. At those prices, the risk was acceptable.

Why Shopee’s free shipping stops being free after the fifteenth item?

Here came the first cold shower. Free shipping had conditions, and they changed. Initially, there was a low minimum purchase. Then, that minimum rose to €5. Below that figure, each item incurred €2.55 in shipping fees per unit.

The detail that ruins the bargain is another: there’s a monthly purchase limit. Fifteen products. Exceed it, and free shipping ends. The calculation is devastating for those buying knick-knacks priced around one euro: adding two and a half euros per piece turns savings into losses. Moreover, the fine print was written so it was hard to decipher.

Add VAT to this. The platform charges it upon shipping to the EU, at a rate slightly below the general 21%. Before 2021, any package under €22 traveled tax-free. That cushion no longer exists, and it shows.

AliExpress isn’t an alternative either

If Shopee leaves, AliExpress remains. And AliExpress has long stopped being a refuge. Complaints are widespread: prices have skyrocketed. A decent MP3 player went from €80 to €130. A budget phone bought for €80 now costs nearly double. Coupons, once weekly, are scarce.

Shipping doesn’t help either. Some orders take months: one cited case took three and a half months to arrive, stuck in customs for twenty days. Conversely, some received four orders in about twenty days, well-packed and acceptable quality. Experience depends on the seller, not the platform.

The closure: France in March, India earlier, and here now

Shopee’s exit isn’t isolated. In Europe, it operated only in Poland, France, and Spain. It closed in France in March and exited India months ago. With Spain gone, only Poland remains. Official reasons aren’t explained; circulating hypotheses point to counterfeiting issues or lack of profitability when the business relies on coupons.

They close without saying why. Nor is it necessary. The closure leaves bargain hunters with one big door and a bitter feeling: good things don’t last, bad things do.

What people bought (and what arrived)

The useful catalog was narrow. Counterfeit sports clothing turned out okay: tracksuits at €30 and jerseys at €15 that visually mimic originals. Material quality differs, but it withstands use. This is where real savings occur.

Then there’s the ugly side. An order for a surveillance camera—around €12—arrived as a rubber piece in an envelope. Not a shipping error; it’s a scam, occurring when sellers vanish and platforms stop responding. Deliveries, by the way, go through operators creating their own legends.

With AliExpress pricier, Shopee closing, and VAT always charged, the era of laughably cheap trinkets seems over. Left are watches from invented brands and hope something arrives. After all, saving two euros meant praying over a Correos tracking number for a month.