Johannesburg-based Saba Mika proudly calls himself a “drop-shipping expert.” This basically means that the 36-year-old spends around five hours each day taking screenshots of trendy clothes and shoes from Chinese e-commerce websites, sharing them on Facebook Marketplace and WhatsApp groups, and ordering the goods if he receives any orders. Over the past two years, Mika has made up to 20,000 rand ($1,074) in a good month.
But this was never his career plan.
A marketing graduate from the University of Lilongwe in Malawi, Mika moved to South Africa in 2018 with the hope of finding a job that matched his qualifications. After two years of a fruitless search, he decided to become a drop-shipping agent. “Drop-shipping is an easy way to make money,” Mika told Rest of World. “For those of us who cannot find work, it has become a way out of poverty.”
Mika’s work is increasingly becoming risky, however, as South African authorities crack down on illegal imports from China. In October and November 2023, the Johannesburg police and revenue service officials reportedly confiscated and destroyed illegally imported clothes, shoes, and handbags worth billions of rand.
University graduates across Johannesburg, Durban, and Cape Town told Rest of World they opted to become drop-shippers after failing to find formal employment related to their educational qualifications. They said they found drop-shipping an attractive option as it required little to no investment. But they now run their businesses under constant threat of raids by tax authorities.
The unemployment crisis in South Africa, coupled with a surge in the popularity of low-cost Chinese clothing from platforms like AliExpress and Shein, has made drop-shipping a lucrative career. Nearly 32% of the country’s population is unemployed, and the acute shortage of jobs has also led to anti-migrant violence in recent years.
“What we are witnessing is not merely a change in consumer behavior but a socioeconomic phenomenon that has far-reaching implications for the unemployed populace,” Bathabile Moreki, e-commerce expert and CEO of entrepreneur mentoring firm Township Economy Transformation in Franchise Eco-System, told Rest of World. She said the accessibility of this business model and the low cost of Chinese goods are driving the growth of drop-shipping. “The rise of e-commerce now makes it easy for individuals, who were previously constrained by financial barriers and lack of resources to become small-scale business owners through drop-shipping,” Moreki said.
China ships over $100 billion worth of goods to Africa, of which countries like South Africa, Congo, and Zambia account for the biggest portion. In 2022, online retail in South Africa crossed 50 billion rand ($2.6 billion), fueling the popularity of drop-shipping. But there are concerns about Chinese counterfeits — which currently account for up to 10% of the South African economy, according to the Consumer Goods Council — and growing worries over Chinese brands making South Africa their dumping ground.
Kimberly Mutandiro/Rest of World
“Our main concern is whether offshore-based online clothing companies and e-commerce sites are conducting their businesses legally,” Michael Lawrence, executive director of the National Clothing Retail Federation, which represents local clothing retailers in South Africa, told Rest of World. “Whether customs duties are being paid and whether declarations are being made … these factors have a significant impact on the pricing of the products and adversely impact local dealers.”
Illegal items add to the problem of unemployment in the country, Siphithi Sibeko, head of communications and media for the South African Revenue Service, told Rest of World.
“There are various other reasons why certain goods are detained and barred by customs, some of which are related to whether they meet South Africa’s safety, regulatory, and health standards, amongst others, and would therefore be barred from entering the country,” Sibeko said. “These goods also undercut the industry, causing unemployment and exacerbating poverty and inequality.”
The tax authority’s crackdown has made matters difficult for those who had finally begun earning an income through drop-shipping, after struggling to find employment for years. Mohammed Dembele, who drop-ships items from AliExpress, told Rest of World the police frequently raid his shop in Johannesburg, where he sells goods that don’t get picked up by online shoppers. The police often also confiscate the goods.
“There are issues around customs fees and import tariff breaches on goods that come from China, so the clothes we sell are considered illegal, and police are often after us,” he said.
Despite the setbacks, Dembele still ends up making some money, and has kept the business going. A migrant from Mali with a degree in business administration, he began drop-shipping in 2021, after struggling to find a job for two years. “I dropped my resumes at many companies around town and even applied to many jobs online, but it was all for nothing,” he said. “It’s as if drop-shipping came to my rescue.”
Peter John, a qualified mechanical engineer from Malawi, works as Dembele’s assistant and manages their Facebook Marketplace orders. He moved to South Africa in 2021 after completing his degree, but was only able to find work for six months as an intern. Drop-shipping is now his full-time job, John told Rest of World. He sometimes also makes door-to-door deliveries to customers. “My first temporary job as a mechanical engineer paid far less than what I now make through drop-shipping,” he said. “My dream is to start my own e-commerce business so I can make more money.”
Drop-shippers who use Chinese apps are now finding ways to navigate the regulatory crackdown.
Fikadu Bata, a Durban-based drop-shipper, told Rest of World he works with partners in Johannesburg and Cape Town, ordering clothing in bulk from China to sell in South Africa. His shipments from China are often tracked and seized by the police and tax authorities.
But Bata isn’t too concerned. “Bringing in Chinese brands is profitable, but it’s also risky. It’s all about having the right contacts,” he said.
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