General
Share and discuss tech, products, business, startups, or product recommendations
Start new thread
Hyowon Kim

🛒 What’s something you tried to buy online — but just couldn’t?

by

Hey PH! đź‘‹

We’re a small startup getting ready to launch an e-commerce service in North America, and we’ve been digging into one key


question:

  • What kinds of products are people actively searching for online — but still can’t buy easily?

Think:

  • Niche or hard-to-find items

  • Products only available via shady or overpriced sites

  • Stuff you’ve had to import manually

  • Or things that just weirdly... don’t exist online

We’d love to learn from your experiences.

If you’ve ever had one of those “why is this so hard to find?!” moments, feel free to share in the comments — or take this 2-minute anonymous survey:

👉 https://forms.gle/hnA3TQch7UVmKuuM7

Thanks so much — excited to build something people actually need 🙌

35 views

Add a comment

Replies

Best
Anthony Cai

Hi Hyowon Kim,

Great question! One product category I’ve found surprisingly difficult to purchase online is specialized art supplies, especially those used in traditional Asian painting techniques. They’re often niche, not widely stocked by major retailers, and when available, the prices can be quite inflated or shipping is complicated. It would be amazing to have a reliable e-commerce platform that curates these hard-to-find items with transparent pricing and easy shipping options. Looking forward to seeing what your startup brings to the market!

Best of luck with the launch!

Hyowon Kim

@anthony_cai 
Hi, Thank you so much for your thoughtful response.

As you mentioned, creating a platform that offers transparent pricing and easy shipping for these niche items is exactly what we're aiming to build.

I truly appreciate your encouragement, and I'm excited to share more as we grow.

Thanks again!

Felix Guo

I grew up with some pretty niche Asian treats (hello, shrimp-flavored crackers and those specific brands of Korean rice cakes). Every once in a while, I get a craving, but unless I’m willing to pay a 300% markup or risk buying from a sketchy-looking site, it’s a no-go. Amazon sometimes carries them, but either they’re gone in a flash or the shipping fees are wild.