Wemakeprice and Tmon Face Payment Delay Crisis
Consumer Who Ordered Samgyeopsal Receives 'Cheongpodo Candy'
"It's Consumer Deception," "Are You Mocking Us?" Complaints Emerge
As TMON and WEMAKEPRICE, subsidiaries of Qoo10, a Singapore-based e-commerce platform, are embroiled in controversy over delayed settlements, consumers have been posting complaints one after another, saying they received completely different products from what they ordered due to the settlement delays.
A consumer who ordered Samgyeopsal received a delivery package. Inside the package, there was a single green grape candy lying alone. [Photo by Online Community]
On the 24th, posts titled "I ordered pork belly, but green grape candy was delivered" appeared one after another on online communities and social networking services (SNS). They ordered 1kg of refrigerated pork belly for grilling through vendors registered on WEMAKEPRICE, but received text messages from the vendors stating that due to WEMAKEPRICE's financial situation, they sent different products instead of the ordered ones.
Photos shared by consumer A show that inside the delivery box, where pork belly should have been, there was only green grape candy. The seller explained, "Due to WEMAKEPRICE's financial situation, sellers like us may not receive settlements, so we sent different products instead of the ordered ones," and added, "Once WEMAKEPRICE is able to recover funds, we plan to reship the ordered products." They also added, "If you want to cancel even now, please submit a cancellation request, and we will assist with a quick cancellation."
A vendor selling Samgyeopsal on Wemakeprice sent a message asking for customers' understanding due to settlement payment issues. [Photo by Online Community]
The inquiry page for the product was flooded with angry consumers' complaints. They posted messages such as "I ordered 2kg of pork belly but received only one piece of green grape candy," "I didn't cancel because the tracking number appeared, but what is one candy, this is not a joke," "I left a cancellation inquiry but they shipped it anyway and only green grape candy arrived," "Please refund," and "This is deceiving consumers," criticizing the vendor's inadequate response.
This incident arose as WEMAKEPRICE and TMON, subsidiaries of Qoo10, failed to settle sales proceeds to vendors on time. Industry insiders estimate that based on the current estimated payment amounts for WEMAKEPRICE and TMON, the damage scale is expected to exceed at least 100 billion KRW.
On the 17th, WEMAKEPRICE proposed compensation measures to vendors, promising to complete settlements by the end of this month and offering delayed interest payments at an annual rate of 10%. TMON also announced on the 22nd through a vendor notice that "due to some vendors suspending sales, the payment of settlement funds has been disrupted, affecting transactions of our products," and stated, "Although settlement payments are expected to be delayed inevitably, we will normalize the situation as soon as possible."
As the large-scale settlement delay incident involving TMON and WEMAKEPRICE spreads, the government is reportedly planning a comprehensive inspection of e-commerce settlement cycles, fund custody methods, and scales.
© The Asia Business Daily(www.asiae.co.kr). All rights reserved.
