Officially an Expat in Korea: iherb.com

I have finally completed my first order from iherb and I am now officially an expat. :D
Why? Almost every expat in Korea that I've come across the net would source their non-Korean supplies from iherb ranging from hard-to-find specialized food to supplements for human and even pets.

Sure, there are imported goods in the leading supermarkets but oftentimes they can be limited and would not include other specialized food items and supplements. Moreover, they can also be a little expensive with having to cover the brick-and-mortar store expenses. Shopping online electronically, on the other hand, can be a bit cheaper and actually more convenient as well. The delivery system is quite established with a flat rate of more or less 4USD or even free depending on the minimum order.

I've actually made an account months ago and made a few attempts early this year for my first order which I've never really completed at all. I bided my time, hoping to find some things locally. But alas, with the MERS thing going, people tend to venture out less nowadays. Plus hubby needed some herb spray for his rashes and I don't think any of us will actually see a doctor for that specially now.

What really drove me to making my first order were the essential oils and oats. I have ran out of my winter supply oats which I bought from gmarket sometime around December. It actually took me about four months to finish the 4.5 kg bulk order. I find it a bit expensive now after seeing more choices from coupang and iherb. I thought about trying out coupang but the language complexity of the site would take a bit more time to decipher for me. I ended up in iherb to try out other brands and score other products as well.

These other products are the essential oils. I am pretty keen on DIY sprays around the house for storing our winter stuffs, treating the pests from my small garden, getting rid of smell from shoes and even socks and many other things. I haven't found a decently-priced source here in this small town.

Iherb seems to be the answer. I can pay using my regular check/debit card from a local bank as long as it has the VISA logo. There were two options for the delivery company: CJ and the Korea Post. I chose the former this time. That company usually deliver around midday in our area, unlike Korean Post which usually show up late in the afternoon. (Yeah, I usually keep track of couriers' schedule.^^,) Now, I just have to double check if my order will have additional tax/duty when it gets here. I'm crossing my fingers I won't have to shell out extra bucks later on.

My first order was pretty modest with 10 items, 8 of which were EOs and only 2 were bags of oats. I'll be looking at other food items like herbs and condiments next time, along with more EOs. I just have to be careful not to go overboard on my following orders.

It would take 2-7 days before it gets here via CJ Korea Express. I'll expect it around late next week or the week after. And as every first timer in iherb, I now post my Reward Code for anyone who might want to make use to get some discount on their orders. Just in case some happen to stumble on this blog post. Either type this code LWJ371 at the end of shopping or follow this iherb link.

I'll try to forget about this now until the parcel gets here...and maybe I'll be able to post another about it.