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AIBU?

Share your dilemmas and get honest opinions from other Mumsnetters.

Original poster

Temu tat

142 replies

PepsiCoco · 04/10/2023 19:01

What stupid things have you bought?

I avoided it for so long then I got distracted by organisers and getting my life sorted so I started clicking away. Ended up with lots of tat that is just adding to the crap I’m trying to organise.

Got these drawers, thinking they would do as a bedside cabinet for DD. Clearly didn’t give the size and looked bigger in the picture.

Temu tat
OP posts:
Createausername1970 · 05/10/2023 08:19

KoalaChaos · 04/10/2023 23:20

I've been re-gifted some temu stuff and had some baby stuff bought for me.

I was given some pajamas that were bought for someone else but were the wrong size for them but fit me perfectly. And they are the COMFIEST things imaginable. Summer pajamas I should say. Not fluffy winter ones so nice and light and floaty and stretchy.

Also got bought a baby carrier (papuce???? not a chance of spelling that right)
That was great. Does exactly what you want it to, comfy and practical.
And some random toys too. Floor mirror / teddy bears etc.

Also lots of people have bought us baby clothes from SHEIN which is the same stock from the same warehouse and thats all great quality too.

Papoose is the word. I only know as I was once in a school play that involved native Americans.

Pix56 · 05/10/2023 08:22

FancyRat · 05/10/2023 08:06

So it's ok to bully people about the choices they make in life, when yours are no better? Ok then.

You're not being bullied @Pix56 xxx

😂😂

Witty comeback alert 😂

Flickersy · 05/10/2023 08:23

Beezknees · 05/10/2023 08:01

A lot of those options take time and money which not everyone has. Charity shops are absolutely shit these days, last time I went it cost me £6 bus fare to get there and 4 hours of looking to find one item that was suitable. With Vinted again you have to find things in your size, trust that the poster will post when they say they will and that the item is as described.

Buying bulk on Shein or Temu gets free delivery and guaranteed things that you like in your size. It is what it is.

Show quote history

£6 and 4 hours of wandering around a high street vs enslaved children. Which is worse I wonder... it's a real poser that one.

latenightpartyrings · 05/10/2023 08:27

Genuine, if naive, question: If I want to buy e.g. hair bobbles, paper clips or even a basic pen, how do I know where is 'OK'? Amazon and eBay I assume are selling from the same places as Temu; cheap high street shops ditto; expensive high street shops ditto with fancier packaging and higher price; Etsy etc. often ditto with something hand-drawn or sewn over the top.

Chocolatepeanutbuttercupsandicecream · 05/10/2023 08:32

I just felt like anything that cheap, there had to be a cost somewhere.. I also suspect quality isn’t going to be great (but realise it’s a privileged position to be able to care about those things).

Flickersy · 05/10/2023 08:35

latenightpartyrings · 05/10/2023 08:27

Genuine, if naive, question: If I want to buy e.g. hair bobbles, paper clips or even a basic pen, how do I know where is 'OK'? Amazon and eBay I assume are selling from the same places as Temu; cheap high street shops ditto; expensive high street shops ditto with fancier packaging and higher price; Etsy etc. often ditto with something hand-drawn or sewn over the top.

It can be hard to know, but if the prices are incredibly cheap then someone else is paying the price somewhere.

Stick to reputable shops like Boots and W H Smiths and known brands like Bic which manufacture in France and the US.

StrawberryWater · 05/10/2023 08:45

I've bought loads off stuff of Temu. Mostly I buy:

Kitchen stuff so draw organisers, cutlery, fun cookie cutter shapes etc.

Stationary. Their large notebooks are especially amazing!

Lego - their small sets are so cute and they do a knock off version of adult Lego and I bought The Titanic for £130 (the real Lego version is nearly £600! 😳). There's absolutely no difference between the two sets other than the price and the fact the bricks are unbranded.

I also like their pin badges and Christmas decorations (not sure what the decorations will be like as I only ordered them a few days ago but I'm excited).

Mischance · 05/10/2023 08:48

I have bought one thing from them: a set of tiny art paint brushes that I could not find anywhere else. They are fine. But I would not make a regular thing of buying from them.

Love your drawers OP!!

My DD bought me a present online for Mother's Day - I do not know who from. It was a ceramic palette for mixing paint in. When it arrived it was the size of a small leaf!!!

Stroopwaffels · 05/10/2023 08:48

There's absolutely no difference between the two sets

Yes there is. One is ripped off, counterfeit and illegal. You don't know what materials have been used to make the bricks, whether they contain illegal chemicals, they haven't been safety tested, you don't know whether they have been made by enslaved people etc etc etc.

Beezknees · 05/10/2023 08:50

Flickersy · 05/10/2023 08:23

£6 and 4 hours of wandering around a high street vs enslaved children. Which is worse I wonder... it's a real poser that one.

Show quote history

It's not a big deal to me. But when you are struggling to choose between heating and eating, you might not have £6 spare. It's very privileged to believe that everyone has easy access to charity shops and spare cash to get to them.

FancyRat · 05/10/2023 08:53

@Pix56 I don't need a witty comeback to you.

Why do you have a phone? You're quite happy to support slavery as long as you're not a hypocrite apparently.

Didn't occur to you that not everyone buys these things new.

UnhideMyGratitude · 05/10/2023 09:12

Beezknees · 05/10/2023 08:50

It's not a big deal to me. But when you are struggling to choose between heating and eating, you might not have £6 spare. It's very privileged to believe that everyone has easy access to charity shops and spare cash to get to them.

Show quote history

It’s not privileged to resist buying the tat on Temu and Shein.

If you don’t give a shit about people doing slave labour then don’t be surprised when people don’t give a shit about people struggling in this country too. What goes around comes around.

happsy · 05/10/2023 09:14

I have done a comparison between stuff I bought on Amazon vs Temu - the exact same item, exact!
I now look on Temu first before Amazon. I bought a wash bag for 14 pounds on Amazon, same thing 6pounds. Why am I going to waste 8pounds??

thebutcherswife · 05/10/2023 10:37

But how did we all cope before all this unnecessary crap was around? Why do we feel the need to fill our houses, wardrobes, lives with such utter shit? Ask yourself, why do I need this? And more importantly DO I need this? Will I use it for years and years to come or is it just something that’s in fashion/style this month before the next must have piece of crap gets bigged up by some Z-list influencer?

readingmakesmehappy · 05/10/2023 10:40

Nothing. Don't buy from Shein either and try to buy as little from China as we can as we don't trust that the supply chain is ethical. Trying to offload tat rather than accumulate more.

OhmygodDont · 05/10/2023 10:47

I’m awaiting a delivery. Everything I ordered I would have ordered on Amazon at three to four times the price.

I paid via PayPal so good luck selling on my card details 😂best they getting is my email address which they already have for my order.

autumnpumpkinlattes · 05/10/2023 11:03

I hate the 'all or nothing' attitude on threads like this. The reality is a lot of people need a mobile phone but nobody needs all the random stuff on Temu. I am trying my best and just because I have a mobile does not mean I need to think 'F*ck it, I may as well go in 100% and buy everything I need for my house from Temu'. Gosh IMAGINE if everyone used that logic - we'd be screwed!

'I used an aeroplane this year therefore I may as well not recycle as I clearly don't give a stuff about the environment'

'I eat meat therefore I may as well abuse my pets as I clearly don't care about animals'

'I own a mobile phone therefore I shouldn't give a stuff about about children being forced to make plastic drawers'

It's just not how the world works. Nobody is perfect but a lot of us are trying to be better.

Mischance · 05/10/2023 11:11

We live in a global interconnected world now - that is just how it is. And inevitably we will finish up buying items from cultures that function very differently from ours. On amazon, many products are from third party suppliers and we have no details of their supply chain and their ethics.

I have trawled around for details of Temu's practices, but can find no corroborated details - I would be interested to see any if someone else can find them.

I often wonder what happens when international buyers boycott products from companies who pay very low wages in another country. What would happen if we ceased to buy them? Would the workers lose their jobs and finish up with no income, rather than just a low income? If so I imagine they might be a bit sick about us in the west salving our consciences at the expense of their livelihood, however small. It is all a conundrum.

SideBob · 05/10/2023 11:19

Buying from Temu is not a charitable act. Nobody buys products made using child/slave labour to keep people in employment.

OldTinHat · 05/10/2023 11:26

Lots of crafting bits which have been great. Always use PayPal though so they don't have my card details.

SmokeyToo · 05/10/2023 11:29

That's what puts me off. If it needs an app on my phone, I won't use that service.

Notcontent · 05/10/2023 11:39

I don’t it matters whether it’s Temu or Amazon or Shein - all these platforms sell things which are the product of near-slave labour and will end up in landfill very quickly.

Mischance · 05/10/2023 11:45

SideBob · 05/10/2023 11:19

Buying from Temu is not a charitable act. Nobody buys products made using child/slave labour to keep people in employment.

Indeed - but what happens to these workers when the west boycott them? We cannot just ignore that.

BBno4 · 05/10/2023 11:46

So much!!!
Prime bottle key rings for my children, fake pokemon cards, cake and biscuit stencils, trainers, sandals, leggings, sunglasses, scarfs, watches, bags, fake airpods, a shoe rack which also holds jackets and school bags, soap bar holder, mini brand toys, hats, tracksuits, Paris at night canvas, wall decals

Gosh I have bought a lot but it is free delivery and I get a lot of coupons emailed to me.

The quality is a lot better than wish.com so I'm happy.

Stroopwaffels · 05/10/2023 11:54

Prime bottle key rings for my children, fake pokemon cards, cake and biscuit stencils, trainers, sandals, leggings, sunglasses, scarfs, watches, bags, fake airpods, a shoe rack which also holds jackets and school bags, soap bar holder, mini brand toys, hats, tracksuits, Paris at night canvas, wall decals

All of life's essentials them. Total tat.