Where To Shop? WWW.ALTHEA.KR

Althea is a website that sells Korean cosmetic brands such as Etude House, Innisfree, Missha, 3CE and Laneige at affordable prices as compared to the retail stores outside of South Korea. Unfortunately, they are currently only shipping to Malaysia and Singapore :(

The website has a simple and user-friendly layout. There are distinct categories like 'Skincare' , 'Makeup', 'New Arrivals' etc, which make it easy for one to browse through and shop.
For those of you wondering what 'Trendy Items' are, they are unique korean cosmetic products that are beyond the usual brands but are highly popular among Koreans.

Most excitingly, they have DAEBAK 1-FOR-1 DEALS which are so worth it. 
2 Laneige Water Sleeping Masks for SGD$30?
2 Banila Co. Clean It Zero Cleansing Balms for SGD$29?
DAEBAK!

[SHIPPING FEE] Althea provides FREE international delivery with all purchases above SGD$50. Yes, delivery to your very door step with no price to pay (well other than your $50 or more of course). For those of you who don't have enough in your shopping cart, try combining purchases with your friends and family :)

[PRICE] General range of prices: Lip products: SGD $4 - $15

Creams: $14 - $25

Wash off Masks: $7 - $15

If you are looking at higher end products, they usually fall out of this range; this is just a generalisation of the more common roadshop brands.

[AUTHENTICITY] I'm sure you have your doubts because how can these products be so much cheaper than retail? Well this is because these products are directly shipped from Korea and trust me, they are of the same price ranges (sometimes even cheaper). 

I know, it's hard to believe that something this good exists.

[REFUND POLICY] And to further ease your doubts, Althea provides full refund upon customers' returning their products within 30 days. 

[MY EXPERIENCE] 
A few days ago, I ordered a parcel from Althea but I forgot to screenshot the process so here's an example. As it is the Christmas season, there is a coupon code 'XMAS-SG' that deducts SGD$7 off your bill so look out for such deals on their homepage before ordering!
The points can be accumulated from contests on their Facebook pages and with every point, a dollar is deducted from your bill. https://www.facebook.com/altheasg/  or https://www.facebook.com/altheakorea/ ) 

After I have confirmed and sent my order, Althea sends an email updating me on my points and the new order I've made. And that's not all, after the parcel has been shipped, a new email providing me with a tracking number and updates on my parcel was sent. 

[THE GOOD]
-Affordable
-Convenient and easy to browse
-Sense of security as a customer with the constant updates
-Offers,contests,coupon codes and DAEBAK deals
-Free shipping over SGD$50
-$10 worth of credits for new members

[THE BAD]
-Limited range of products in each brand
-Few brands. Products from Mamonde, Aritaum etc are not available.

[THE UGLY] 
none :)

Well, I hope you guys found this post resourceful and it gave you a better idea on how to order on Althea. I'll update this post when I have received my parcel :)


-UPDATE: 21st December 2015!!-

I ordered my parcel on 16th December and I received it on the 21st, which is pretty alright considering that they did mention that delivery would take 5 to 8 days. 
The box is wrapped with a pink packaging and with an 'Althea' logo at the side. 

So this is how it looks like upon opening the box: A free mask from Etude House and a Lucky Draw Ticket (Althea is currently having a Lucky Draw and the winner gets a free ticket to Korea for 5 days and 4 nights. *crosses fingers* )

I really like how the box is in bubble wrap so that makes 2 layers of packaging and each item is individually in bubble wrap as well! Thumbs up for their effort!

My order:

1. The saem Urban Eco Harakake Toner ($15)

2. The saem Cover Perfection Tip Concealer ($5)

3. Innisfree Jeju Mineral Sparkling Cream ($24.30)

4. 2 Laneige Water Sleeping Masks (2 for $30)

5. Skinfood Rice Wash off Mask ($7.25)

Totals up to $81.55 but i had $10 worth of credits as well as the XMAS discount(-$7) so YAY $64.55 and trust me, it is a steal considering how a Laneige Sleeping Mask alone costs SGD$42 in stores.

Overall, I'm really really satisfied with Althea and will definitely order again in the future! :)