Enter the age of the online shopping agent.

Their mission is to find bargains for shoppers by tracking down items overseas or sizeable discounts here at home. The only catch is that the agents also charge for the service.

Fiona, an experienced 24-year-old online shopper from Shanghai, recently purchased a pair of boots from the United States, some lip balm from Japan, a handbag from South Korea and a pair of shoes from a local store with help from an online shopping agent.

"Many of the products I buy through agents are not available in the local market," said Fiona. "And because of the taxes and duties, almost all of the international brands are expensive here in China."

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