Handoff one: your order reaches a GuaBase buyer
The only handoff where every decision is still cheap to change. Get the option, the note and the first bill right here.
The order handoff at a glance
- Who holds the item
- The seller, still on a shelf in China. Your money sits with GuaBase until a buyer places the seller order, which GuaBase estimates at about one business day after payment.
- Your move
- Pick the exact option and quantity, write anything the options miss into the order note, then pay.
- Money at this point
- Item cost, the seller's domestic shipping to the warehouse, and the GuaBase service fee: 5% of item cost, minimum CNY 15 per order. No freight yet.
- Status on screen
- Pending (action: Complete Payment), then Paid (Wait for Update), then Purchasing (None Required).
- Where it snags
- The seller changes the price, the item sells out, or the option bought is not the one in the photo you liked.
Four starting points for an order, picked by scenario
GuaBase gives you a search bar that takes words, an image button, a box for a product URL, and a purchase request form. They lead to the same order, but they are not equally precise.
- Paste the link when you already have the exact Taobao or Tmall listing. The system pulls that listing's details, options and prices, so there is nothing to guess.
- Upload a photo when you have a picture but no link. You get visually similar listings, which may come from different shops at different prices.
- Type keywords to browse. The home page that day suggested T-shirt, Football jersey, Fashion toy blind box, Manager desk, Sensor and RC plane spare parts, which tells you the catalogue is far wider than clothes.
- Send a purchase request for anything else: a link from another platform, a listing GuaBase's search has not indexed yet, or a part you can only describe. You share the name, quantity and requirements; the team reviews it and confirms a plan and a quote with you before any payment.
The 1688 question, read from three official pages
1688 is Alibaba's wholesale marketplace, and it matters if you want bulk quantities or factory listings. GuaBase's pages do not agree about it. The long guide How to Buy from Taobao Internationally, published July 13, 2026, says in its questions section that GuaBase supports Taobao, Tmall and 1688, and that 1688 orders get a recheck of price, stock, options, minimum order quantity and domestic shipping. The How It Works page says Supported: Taobao, Tmall. The home page lists the same two under Supported Platforms.
Our reading: treat 1688 as available only if the order page offers it when you try, and if it does not, send the link as a purchase request and let the team say yes or no. Do not plan a wholesale order around it until GuaBase confirms.
What the first payment holds, with two worked orders
The fee is worked out on the item cost only, never on shipping, and the CNY 15 floor applies per order. That floor shapes small orders more than anything else.
Three tees in one order. Three at CNY 39 is CNY 117; 5% would be CNY 5.85, so the CNY 15 minimum applies. Add CNY 8 of seller shipping and the first payment is CNY 140, about USD 20.97 at the 6.6776 rate GuaBase showed on October 22, 2026.
One jacket. A CNY 420 jacket with CNY 10 of seller shipping: the fee is CNY 21, the first payment CNY 451, about USD 67.54.
Both numbers are our own examples. Try yours in the calculator.
Vetting the seller before the buyer does
GuaBase says its buyers carry out basic seller verification before purchasing. That is a floor, not a reason to skip your own look. Here is how to judge a seller on Taobao or Tmall in the few minutes before you paste the link:
- Shop age and ratings. A shop open for years with steady ratings has more to lose from a bad parcel than one opened last month.
- Buyer photos, not studio photos. Reviews with customers' own pictures show the colour and finish the studio shots can flatter.
- Sales on the option you want. A listing can sell thousands of one size and almost none of another.
- Consistent listings. If the same shop shows the item in three different colours under one option name, expect to write a careful note.
Tmall shops are brand or authorised stores; Taobao covers everything from established shops to one-person sellers. Neither label replaces reading the listing.
Where the order handoff goes wrong
Most trouble at this stage comes from one of five places, and each has a known way out:
- The seller raises the price after you pay. GuaBase asks you to pay the difference or cancel. Cancel before the purchase and the item amount is usually refunded.
- The item sells out. The status becomes Out of Stock for that item, and the unavailable amount is usually refunded to the original Stripe payment method.
- You picked from the main photo. The headline price often belongs to the cheapest option; check the option text and price together.
- You treated the first bill as the total. Freight, any carrier surcharges and import duties all come later.
- You changed your mind after Purchasing. Once the seller order is placed, the service fee is generally not refundable and the item follows the seller's return rules.
An order still at Pending can be dropped with Cancel Unpaid Order. A paid one goes through Request a refund, where available, or a support ticket with the order number.
Questions people bring to this handoff
Does the first payment include international shipping?
No. It covers the item, the seller's postage to the warehouse and the service fee. Freight is priced after packing.
Why is the GuaBase price slightly different from the Taobao page?
Marketplace prices can include flash sales, member prices, coupons or regional offers tied to one account. GuaBase says it adds no markup and confirms the final cost at purchase.
Can I pay with PayPal?
Not at the time of writing. GuaBase lists Stripe Checkout as its payment method; Stripe may show your local currency through Adaptive Pricing.
How long until the seller ships?
GuaBase estimates one business day to place the purchase. After that the seller's own dispatch time applies, which varies by shop.