You might not have heard about Temu yet if you were more interested in the big football game on Feb. 12 than you were in the commercials — including Temu’s now-famous 30-second commercial that encouraged you to “shop like a billionaire.” From seemingly completely out of nowhere, this e-commerce brand blasted into our lives and immediately went viral.
What is Temu?
Temu is an e-commerce company that sells a wide range of inexpensive goods for surprisingly low products.
One peek at Temu.com and you can quickly see what all the hullabaloo is about. You have two ways to shop Temu: either online or via the app (downloadable for Apple and Android devices). According to CNN, Temu is the most downloaded app and has already “surpassed Amazon and Walmart.” But there’s one notable difference between Temu and Amazon — the shipping time frame.
How Fast is Temu Shipping?
Everyone knows Amazon is famous for its quick shipping methods. So, when you want/need your online order stat, shop on Amazon. But when you’re not in a rush, you’ll be rewarded with free shipping within seven to 15 days from Temu.
The online retailer doesn’t overpromise on its shipping speed. Orders have actually been known to arrive faster than the predicted delivery window. Temu uses USPS and UPS for deliveries, and if you opt to pay for speedier shipping, if it arrives late, you’ll receive a credit to use on your next purchase in the amount of the shipping fee. Pretty cool, no? Plus, you get free expedited shipping on orders over $129.
Is Temu Legit?
Regular Amazon shoppers will likely agree that Temu is kind of like Amazon in the sense that it has products you never knew existed. Some of those products might even look familiar like a VS Pink knockoff bag. You won’t find many (if any) brand names at Temu, outside of a few Lenovo products. The prices are seriously dirt cheap. And almost too good to be true.
As cynical Americans, we all want to know if this overnight sensation is legit. The short answer — yep! Temu is 100% a legit company. The company is actually pretty transparent about its shipping, refund policy, FAQs and other topics you may need help with.
But here are a few things you should know about shopping at Temu:
- Temu officially kicked off in Sept. 2022.
- The online retailer is a marketplace where third-party sellers list their products directly to consumers (not unlike Amazon).
- Temu is an American subsidiary of Chinese-based PDD Holdings Inc. However, the American online retailer is straight out of Boston.
- Temu can offer its quality products at a low warehouse price by using PDD Holdings’ network of merchants and partners.
- Temu offers a purchase protetion program on every order.
- You can use Apple Pay, PayPal, Google Pay, Afterpay and Klarna as payment options, along with credit and debit cards. Basically, safe payment options.
- Shoppers get 90 days to return (most) items — for free. Items you can’t return are the obvious ones: clothing that’s been worn, washed, damaged, or without tags, packaging or a hygiene sticker, or in an incomplete set; items labeled as non-refundable; and free gifts (duh!).
- Temu is pronounced, “tee-moo.”
The post What Is Temu and Where Has It Been Hiding? appeared first on The Real Deal by RetailMeNot.
