What Are QC Photos? A Plain Explanation
QC photos are the reason buying through a shopping agent works at all. Here is what they are and how to use them.
QC means quality check
When a seller on Weidian, Taobao or 1688 ships your item, it does not go straight to you. It goes to your shopping agent's warehouse in China. Before the agent ships your parcel abroad, a warehouse worker photographs every item. Those are the QC photos.
Most agents take three to six photos for free: the front, the back, the tag and the size label. Many add a tape measure.
Why they matter
Seller photos are often borrowed from retail or from a better batch. QC photos are taken by a third party, under plain warehouse light, of the actual item that was shipped. They are the honest view of a listing.
That is also why other buyers' QC photos are so useful: they show you what that listing really delivers before you have paid anything.
What you can do after your QC
If something is wrong, such as a wrong colour, a wrong size, a stain or a broken zipper, you can ask the agent to return or exchange the item with the seller before it leaves China. Once your parcel has shipped, that option is gone.
If everything looks right, you approve it and it goes into your next parcel.
