This holiday season, it's almost as simple to shop on the other side of the world as it is to buy from your local store.
International online payment services like AliPay and PayPal are trying to ensure that a South Carolina fashionista can buy a faux fur vest from China with just a few clicks on her computer and a New Zealand bikie can use his smartphone to pick up a rare part from a Colorado company.
These services come as shoppers and retailers alike have a growing appetite to buy items from any country, regardless of distance and regulations. In fact, a PayPal report estimates that by 2018, about 130 million shoppers will be spending over $US300 billion ($A324.59 billion) a year across the border, up from $US105 billion in 2013.
"The reality is pretty much nothing in a store is locally produced, so 99 per cent of what you're buying is already a cross-border transaction. We're cutting out the middle-man," said Anuj Nayar, senior director of global initiatives at PayPal, which is being spun off by eBay Inc.
Companies are working on fixing the biggest hurdles for international shopping: The perception that it costs a lot and takes a long time.
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They're handling the conversion of currency behind-the-scenes and giving shoppers the prices in their own currency.
They're including tariffs and customs duties in the overall price of an item. And they're being transparent about shipping times and enabling shoppers track packages online.
Online retailers are benefiting from the interest in overseas shopping.
About 25 per cent of PayPal's transactions, for example, are international, with about 2,000 cross-border transactions per minute.
And some retailers that work with PayPal, like Australian-based companies KeepCup, which sells reusable coffee cups, and WallFry, which sells wall art for children's rooms, have opened warehouses in other countries like the US and UK to keep up with demand from overseas.
Pro's Closet in Boulder, Colorado, which was founded in 2005 as an online-only bike parts and accessories store, also has seen big gains.
By selling on eBay and working with PayPal, 45 per cent of the company's orders are international. Orders come in regularly from shoppers in Canada, Australia, Germany, Brazil and China.
