Amazon rating is as high as 4.7 stars! The value of China's "ghost money" has increased tenfold!

On the vast stage of cross-border e-commerce, all kinds of goods are going overseas to seek new market opportunities. Among them, an unexpected category - Chinese funeral supplies - has quietly become popular overseas, becoming a clear stream in the field of cross-border e-commerce and opening up a new business growth point for Chinese sellers.

According to media reports, last month, on Halloween, the Western Ghost Festival, Chinese ghost money became popular overseas, as it has done many times over the years. A stack of $1,000 ghost money can be sold for $5, 32 times the price in China.

Is this ok?

Recently, the search and order growth rate of Chinese funeral supplies such as ghost money and paper products has shown an increasing trend year by year, attracting the attention of a large number of cross-border e-commerce sellers.

In recent years, the custom of burning paper money has gradually moved beyond the East Asian cultural circle and entered the international field of vision. In English, ghost money is called "joss paper" and "ancestor money". According to Google Trends data, searches for ghost money around Halloween and Christmas in 2022 reached a new peak worldwide.

During Halloween overseas, many consumers buy funeral supplies to commemorate their loved ones or pets. On the streets of France, a little Chinese girl was selling funeral supplies such as paper money, which was welcomed by the locals. The most distinctive products were funeral supplies such as a full set of Apple products and a small bag from Donkey Brand.

What the editor did not expect was that on social software such as Twitter and Instagram, many bloggers began to pay attention to this oriental "spiritual ritual" and were keen to publicly introduce "ancestor money" online. They shared their experiences of burning paper money and gaining "unexpected good luck" after learning about China's paper-making culture, and taught foreigners how to burn paper money, and even gradually incorporated rituals with Western religious and ethnic colors into it.

Under the popularization of science by these enthusiastic foreigners, more and more foreigners have joined the army of buying ghost money. According to Google Trends data, around Halloween and Christmas in 2022, the global search for ghost money reached a new peak.

Today, buyers of Chinese sacrificial supplies include people from all over the world, including Russia and the United States. Almost all European countries have orders, and online shoppers from Mauritius, Egypt, Israel and other places are not left behind.

Many foreigners call it ancestor money, josspaper, etc., and also derive terms such as Hellbank and Heavenbank. Its selling price is much higher than that in the domestic market.

On foreign e-commerce platforms such as Amazon, the price of ghost money, which only costs a few yuan in China, ranges from US$7 to US$13.

Take a listing with the Amazon's Choice logo as an example. This ghost money has a specification of 200 pieces and a price of $6.99 (about RMB 50.76). Surprisingly, although this product has only sold more than 50 times in the past month, the product rating is as high as 4.7 stars. There is also a listing with a specification of 400 pieces and a price of $11.99 (RMB 87.07), which also has a rating of 4.7 stars.

One of the ghost money combination sets, priced at US$12.99 (about RMB 94), won praise from many consumers.

Not only on Amazon, the above-mentioned products can also be found on eBay, and the prices of some products are even slightly higher than those on Amazon.

In domestic channels, the price of 100 pieces of the same product varies, ranging from 0.7 yuan to 2.5 yuan. Based on the cost of 2.5 yuan, the price of 200 pieces of ghost money on Amazon has increased tenfold; based on the price of 0.7 yuan, it has increased more than 35 times.

Some businesses further develop funeral supplies that adapt to local culture based on the local cultural characteristics of the importing country.

Not only ghost money, but all kinds of paper products also have a different market overseas. Previously, paper products were mostly traditional Chinese objects, but nowadays, paper products of various new technology products, whether it is sports cars, private jets, the latest cameras, laptops, or even practical home appliances such as washing machines and televisions, are extremely common.

It is worth noting that in addition to funeral supplies, traditional metaphysical products such as feng shui and fortune-telling are also experiencing a new consumption boom overseas.

According to data from a certain cross-border e-commerce platform, buyers of Chinese Feng Shui products include people from all over the world, including Russia and the United States. Orders are placed from almost all European countries, including Germany, Spain, Italy, France, Belgium, the Netherlands, Switzerland, Greece, etc. In addition, there are online shopping users from Mauritius, Egypt, Israel and other places.

You can even find some independent websites overseas that specialize in selling Feng Shui and other related accessories, such as Buddha&Karma, Energy Muse, etc. The various bracelets, necklaces, pendants, rings and other accessories they sell are mostly priced at dozens of US dollars, which is about more than 200 RMB, while similar accessories are only sold for dozens of RMB in China; some products made of natural crystal and gemstone materials are priced at hundreds of US dollars, which is relatively expensive .

It can be seen that Chinese culture is setting off a new trend overseas, and products related to traditional culture are also becoming increasingly popular. For cross-border e-commerce sellers, it is advisable to tap into the consumption needs of overseas consumers from these aspects and explore more products with business opportunities.