Why I buy Summer Fridays Birthday Cake balm from US stores to save money in China

Table of Contents

• Why I think the Birthday Cake hype is real
• The massive price difference I found
• My experience with a freight forwarder
• Shipping estimates for my package
• What I learned about China customs

Why I think the Birthday Cake hype is real

I have been seeing the Summer Fridays Lip Butter Balm in Birthday Cake all over my TikTok feed lately. This 2026 limited edition shade has a subtle pink shimmer and a scent that actually smells like a fresh bakery. While we can find some Summer Fridays products in local boutiques here in China, the Birthday Cake flavor is almost always a US exclusive or it sells out before I can even click 'add to cart'. I decided to track down the source in the USA to see if I could skip the local markups. Keeping up with us trends is much easier when I shop directly from the brands themselves.

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The massive price difference I found

I noticed a huge gap between what Sephora US charges and what resellers on domestic platforms are asking for. In the US, the balm retails for about $24. By the time it reaches a local reseller in Shanghai or Beijing, the price often jumps to over 400 RMB. Even with international shipping, I found that buying directly from a US store saved me a significant amount of money. I used a shipping calculator to compare costs and realized that ordering a few tubes at once made the unit price even lower than buying just one locally.

My experience with a freight forwarder

Since Summer Fridays doesn't always ship directly to my doorstep in China, I used a package forwarding service to bridge the gap. I signed up for a tax-free us address which allowed me to avoid US sales tax at checkout. If you are new to this, I suggest following this step-by-step guide to set up your account. For those who find US checkout processes difficult with local credit cards, I highly recommend using a proxy shopping service where they buy the item for you. You might also like: Read more: Is the Summer Fridays Birthday Cake Balm a piece of cake vs. a recipe for disaster when shipping to China?

Shipping estimates for my package

To help you plan your own haul, I put together these estimates based on my recent order of three lip balms and a moisturizer.

What I learned about China customs

When I ship my beauty hauls to China, I always stay mindful of the General Administration of Customs regulations. For personal use, I try to keep my total package value under 1,000 RMB to avoid more complex commercial clearance. If you only buy a couple of balms, the freight forwarder usually handles the basic documentation, but be prepared to pay a small percentage in import tax depending on the current 2026 rates. I have found that as long as I don't order 20 tubes at once, my packages clear through customs in about 3 to 5 days without any major issues.