Suppliers and shipping

[advtracing]

Are supplier in the usa discounting there items and then making it up on shipping ?

I am after 2 yards of 914 yellow plaid so went to auto atlanta , shipping according to them $96us !!!!! what no way

go online to usps postal , bubble bag to take the goods inc shipping $26us !!!!

I mean what the hell , thats fraud

[72targa]

I don't know if it's fraud but you could call back and complain about shipping costs and state your findings re:USPS costs...

[Soterik]

John,

Late reply, just saw this. I think there is something to be said for larger companies monetizing their shipping end. But they aren't you and I who arguably don't monetize it and see our time as basically "not valuable" in terms of the packaging and shipping process. They have employees, we don't, and they have to be paid, so it becomes part of the equation.

The other issue is "tracking" a package. I can't track a US Postal service First Class mail package (which is what price you are quoting). I can track using US Postal service Priority Mail and this is considerably more expensive. I also wouldn't ship you in a bubble bag, it's too risky. Fabric doesn't break, but it can become damaged in shipping if the bubble bag tears, ask me how I know. I now ship all items "overly" secured in packaging to reduce the risk of a claim.

I personally give all customers the options in shipping, but if they choose the cheapest I then have to tell them that I can't guarantee the delivery if there is no tracking capability. But... even when you do that, if they package doesn't get there (and it does happen), what do you say to the customer if the package doesn't arrive? Tell them that they are screwed? No, you can't and you reship on your own dime, and lose the cost of the item in a 2nd shipment.

2 yards of material is probably at least 3 pounds, maybe more. A 3 lb package is $47 (not including the box) to Australia via Priority Mail. I think it might be more than 3 lbs. But ok, it's certainly less than $96. At the same time, the yardage you are looking at can be purchased elsewhere I believe as I'm pretty sure it's a repro fabric that I've seen in Essen. If so, then they have to be competitive in the marketplace and have only a reasonable markup. At which point they do have to somehow monetize the packaging and shipping.

I don't know about you, but it takes a while to package and ship. In order for it to look professional it has to be correctly packaged, and marked w/ a part number etc etc. So, there is some time involved with packaging.

I'm not condoning $96 to ship, but it's certainly much higher than the $26 you are estimating.

There's always a live thread on this over on Pelican as there's always complaints on shipping costs, particularly as it relates to "free" shipping on the value of the order, or how small parts can be particularly expensive to ship.

I'm spending the first half of today (Sunday) in my office with one of my sons packaging an order for a retailer. It needs to be "perfect" to redirect to their ultimate customer (they expect this) and I can't monetize it as I ship under "their" Fedex number.

Anyway, if it helps, and it's cheaper to ship it to me, I'll turn it around for you for only the cost of actual shipping from me in Seattle to you. Might save you $30?

Cheers,
Eric

[advtracing]

Good Morning
It's always a catch 22 when deciding how to pack and what shipping to use , paypal has made it quite clear to me recently that Tracking is required or you will never win a claim .....
And companies have over heads no issue , but the goods and profit on the goods should reflect the costs not loading the shipping.
I have since found a supplier who will pack and ship at cost (tracked ) $40 and thats quite ok.
But thankyou for you kind offer Eric