Carcinogenic bargains: Wish criticized
A laboratory investigation shows that the discount platform Wish sells products that should not be on the market in this country.
The US platform Wish, which mainly sells cheap Chinese products, is gaining ground in Switzerland. In terms of turnover, the online store is already the eighth largest Swiss online store - Wish generated 185 million francs in Switzerland in 2018, the same amount as LeShop. A threefold increase in turnover within three years.
Products are sold at rock-bottom prices via Wish and delivered directly from China. The platform is particularly popular with young people in Switzerland. Due to the extremely low prices, expectations in terms of quality are low, says Patrick Kessler, President of the Swiss Mail Order Association, to the SonntagsZeitung.
However, the hunt for ultra-cheap products - including counterfeit branded goods - has a catch. Products are being imported that violate safety standards. The newspaper reports on a test carried out by the Swiss Consumer Forum at an independent laboratory. According to the test results, Bluetooth headphones that cost just CHF 16 instead of CHF 296 are "not marketable".
The reason: various substances that are hazardous to health exceed the limit values. One of them is even considered carcinogenic.
Other tests - for example by the German TV magazine "Wiso" - came to the conclusion that certain products were "potentially life-threatening". Touching the power supply unit could result in an electric shock.
Wish has no security checks. Chinese retailers can register directly on the platform and sell their goods to customers from all over the world. Wish is not very impressed by the Swiss test results - the Bluetooth headphones in question are still on sale, even though the consumer forum has informed the online retailer about the questionable substances.
Swiss consumers also seem unimpressed by potential health risks. They continue to order diligently from Wish. The boom is being spurred on by another factor: Because China is considered a third world country by the Universal Postal Union, retailers there benefit from reduced postal rates to Switzerland. Free shipping is therefore often offered. An uneven playing field that has long been a source of discontent among Swiss online retailers.
