Help desk, a glossary of seller lines and the questions readers send
Most problems are fixed by the agent, not by this site; what helps is knowing where to go and what the seller already said.
Where to take a problem first
When something goes wrong, the fastest route depends on where the piece is. This site cannot act on an order; the agent can. Take each problem to the place that can fix it, with the evidence it will ask for.
- Before the piece ships from China
- Message the agent from the order page and, inside the return window, request a return or exchange. Attach a screenshot of the listing and the warehouse photo side by side.
- The seller has not shipped
- Ask the agent's support to chase. Check the listing for a pre-sale window and the shop notice for a pause first.
- The parcel arrived damaged or short
- Use the agent's claim route straight away; the reporting clocks after delivery are short.
- Something on this site is wrong
- Confirmed corrections are dated in the change log, with the page and the reason for the revision.
Glossary of seller lines and agent terms
The glossary puts each common seller line in Chinese beside an English reading, then the agent terms you will meet once the piece reaches a warehouse. Shops vary the wording, so look for the core characters rather than an exact match.
| Term | Chinese | What it usually means |
|---|---|---|
| Colour line | 色差以实物为准 | shade differences from light and screens are not a fault |
| Hand-measured margin | 手工测量 存在1-3cm误差 | seller states a measurement tolerance; confirm units, endpoints and actual variance |
| Named trait | 介意慎拍 | look at the words in front of it: the trait is disclosed |
| Threads and small flaws | 线头 小瑕疵不属于质量问题 | seller describes minor flaws; inspect whether the actual problem is structural |
| Creases | 折叠运输会有褶皱 | fold creases from transit are expected |
| Smell | 新衣有气味 通风即可 | seller suggests airing; the cause or persistence is not established |
| Sale piece | 特价清仓 不退不换 | no return or swap at the sale price |
| Made to order | 定制现做 不退不换 | made after payment; check custom terms and the specification |
| Pre-sale | 预售 付款后N天内发货 | ships within the window, counted from payment |
| Ask first | 拍前咨询 | confirm stock or size before paying |
| No seven-day return | 不支持七天无理由退货 | no-reason returns are excluded |
| Shop notice | 店铺公告 | applies to every listing in the shop |
| Friendly reminder | 温馨提示 | the heading over most reminder lines |
| Notes before you buy | 购前说明 | on Weidian, the platform's own folded template |
| Laid flat | 平铺 | how most size charts are measured |
| One size | 均码 | a single size; read the centimetres anyway |
| In stock | 现货 | the opposite of pre-sale |
| Restocking | 补货中 | ask before paying for that size |
- QC photos
- The standard photos an agent takes when a piece reaches its warehouse; LoongBuy, for one, normally takes three to seven.
- GL and RL
- Community shorthand for green light and red light: approving the QC photos, or rejecting them and asking for a return or exchange.
- Warehoused, stored, stocked in
- Different agents' names for the status that usually starts the return window.
- Trial pack
- Packing a parcel before you pay for shipping, to learn its final weight; Hipobuy calls it a rehearsal parcel.
- Consolidation
- Combining pieces from several shops into one international parcel.
- Self-help or fill-in order
- A form where you type the item details yourself, used when a link cannot be pasted.
Questions about warnings, checks and returns
These questions explain the decisions covered by the guide; they are not a count of messages received from readers. Longer answers sit on the pages linked inside them.
Does a colour line mean I can never complain about colour?
No. It covers shade, the difference that light and screens create. A different colour variant, such as navy where you ordered black, is still the seller's mistake.
Will the agent translate the seller's warnings for me?
Not usually unprompted. You can ask the agent's customer service or the buyer on your order to read a line for you, and the seller warnings page covers the common ones.
Is a no seven-day return label allowed?
China's rules let sellers exclude certain goods, some only with the buyer's confirmation, and since July 2024 require the exclusion to be marked prominently. Whether a particular label meets those rules, and what it means for a purchase made through an agent, is not something we can decide.
Why was my order cancelled as out of stock?
Usually the listing showed a size the shop no longer had. Ask-first listings and restocking notices are the warning signs. Some agents cancel automatically if you do not answer their stock message in time.
The piece is two centimetres shorter than the chart. Is that a wrong size?
If the listing prints a hand-measuring margin of one to three centimetres, the seller will treat it as inside the margin. Beyond the margin, raise it with a measurement photo.
Can I return a made-to-order piece through the agent?
Generally not. The national return rules exclude goods made to the consumer's order, and the featured agents leave custom-made items out of their return arrangements.
Do the warehouse photos prove the piece matches the listing?
They may show the colour variant, size label, quantity and visible condition when the relevant details are actually framed and legible. They do not confirm shade, measurements, smell or fit, and an unseen area is not proof that it was checked.
Why are warnings in pictures instead of text?
Sellers often bake the size chart and reminder lines into a detail picture, which keeps them in one place across listings. It also means translation tools miss them, so read the last pictures yourself.
Which agent should I use?
That depends on how you buy. The featured agents page matches six situations to the agents worth a look for each, without ranking them.