Single parents and the elderly use foreign shopping platforms like China-based Temu and Shein the most in Finland, according to a survey by the Consumers Union of Finland.
At the same time, the survey found younger consumers less enthusiastic about shopping outside the EU.
Out of around 1,000 respondents, 31 percent reported having ordered items from general merchandiser Temu, while nine percent said they have shopped at the similar AliExpress and four percent at the fast fashion giant Shein.
Shopping at Temu or Shein is more common in single-parent households. For example, 46 percent of homes with an adult and at least one child had shopped at Temu. The corresponding proportion in two-parent households was 33 percent, according to the survey.
Some 36 percent of respondents over the age of 65 said they had ordered products from Temu.
Last year, a survey found that Temu was the most popular online shopping choice among people in Finland over the age of 50.
Twenty-four percent of respondents between the ages of 18 and 35 said they had shopped at Temu, while 70 percent of that demographic said they had never bought items from online stores outside the EU.
Both men and women were found to be equally represented among Temu customers in Finland.
The vast majority, 85 percent, of respondents said they think that non-EU shopping platforms should have the same responsibilities as their European counterparts.
The Consumers' Union noted that using shops operating outside the EU can often carry risks.
The union-commissioned survey was carried out by data analytics firm Aula Research in September.
