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Setting Myself up Once More. Why oh Why am I Doing This?

Before reading, please get the thesaurus ready so an ample supply of pejorative terminology is readily at hand before the responses come forth.

In my best Andy Rooney (by the way, that guy really annoyed me) tone....

Why is it stuff I order (and pay for right from the get-go) from a way many companies, both US and foreign, so often takes WEEKS to arrive....when items shipped from CHINA show up at my door in anywhere from about 7-10 days?.

Example: I wanted a GD razor as a guinea pig. $6.99. Order hit the system October 25-arrived today (OK, 11 days).

Gotta wonder why??????

Don't...PLEASE...don't bring up shipping from that wonderful, most beloved vendor from Portugal who has all the fine Semogue brushes and sees to it you will have it no sooner than 3 weeks.

Bestshave.net...Turkey. Never more than 2 weeks. Turkey is a pretty long way from here.

Connaught and Shaving.ie..British Isles. Average of about 10 days. Again, not close. But then Britannia does rule the sea!

Certain US vendors (one from the Pacific northwest in particular...NOT WCS!! They're the good guys)..still waiting for a week old order to be "fulfilled", in spite of the fact product was to be shipped by Early to mid-October. Yeah..I know, I know, I know.

Granted...the world shall not come to an end if a brush doesn't arrive quicksmart, nor will it be a critical blow to civilization as we know it if a package of assorted blades, razors, and soaps takes a while (albeit extended while) to show up at the door. But don't you ever just wonder...WHY???

Sloth? Indifference? Really weird postal protocols? Just being mean?

Anyway..................
I'm getting suited up in the Nomex outfit right now.
 

Doc4

Stumpy in cold weather
Staff member
Before reading, please get the thesaurus ready so an ample supply of pejorative terminology is readily at hand before the responses come forth.

 
Last edited by a moderator:
Many different reasons for delays depending on the vendor and where it is located.

First, some of the vendors are not doing this as a full-time job. For them they work on the orders when they can and going to the post office, UPS facility, etc. can take longer. These folks are a one person business.

Second, in some countries the postal service is VERY slow. This past summer I went on a fishing trip to Canada. Right after I arrived I mailed something home. Two weeks later I arrived home - before my package did! And I can tell you sending the package home from Canada was far more expensive than it is in the U.S. I have experienced the same delays when I travel in Europe. There is a vast difference in sending anything to the U.S. depending on what country you are sending it from. Germany and the U.K. have decent service but France, Italy, Spain and Portugal - among others - are very slow. And for some unexplained reason there are times when it just takes longer. I recall ordering La Toja directly from Spain. One time I received it in two weeks. The next time it took a month. The items were posted the day after I ordered it but took a lot longer to arrive in the U.S.

For me, the answer is that I only order from companies that proven to have a good track record in merchandise fulfillment.
 
Trust me you aren't alone in this. Slow delivery/shipping can be maddening at times. There was a time when certain products were carried by only one vendor. Good thing that changed.
 
Many different reasons for delays depending on the vendor and where it is located.

First, some of the vendors are not doing this as a full-time job. For them they work on the orders when they can and going to the post office, UPS facility, etc. can take longer. These folks are a one person business.

Second, in some countries the postal service is VERY slow. This past summer I went on a fishing trip to Canada. Right after I arrived I mailed something home. Two weeks later I arrived home - before my package did! And I can tell you sending the package home from Canada was far more expensive than it is in the U.S. I have experienced the same delays when I travel in Europe. There is a vast difference in sending anything to the U.S. depending on what country you are sending it from. Germany and the U.K. have decent service but France, Italy, Spain and Portugal - among others - are very slow. And for some unexplained reason there are times when it just takes longer. I recall ordering La Toja directly from Spain. One time I received it in two weeks. The next time it took a month. The items were posted the day after I ordered it but took a lot longer to arrive in the U.S.

For me, the answer is that I only order from companies that proven to have a good track record in merchandise fulfillment.
+1

I am a partsman for a CAT dealer in Canada and have worked in parts and warehousing since I've been out of highschool. When it comes to filling an order there are many variables that come into play, how many people are working on picking and packing, how long those people work, what days they ship out, what the shippers are like, and a bunch of other stuff. Some times this is frustrating but I like to think of it as if I forget about what I ordered it is like a mini christmas for me (except for the credit card bill hahaha)
 
I understand your anticipation for new items.

But, isn't it amazing that we have this thing called the internet where we can get reviews on items before we even buy them to see if they're good, type in a couple of numbers and have them shipped to our nice warm home?
 
Face it-we've all gotten soft.

As kids, didn't you send away for mail order stuff? It was always listed as "allow 6-8 weeks for delivery".

It helped build patience and character. Nowadays, if it's not on the doorstep within 48 hours we start a wailing and a bitchin' like someone had gone and done us wrong.
 
Face it-we've all gotten soft.

As kids, didn't you send away for mail order stuff? It was always listed as "allow 6-8 weeks for delivery".

I sure remember that, not only waiting for the item, but heck waiting for the catalogue just so you could order something, never mind the time it took to do chores to get the money! I remember my first magazine subscription (CARtoons), that had to be the longest 6-8 weeks in history!
 
It's not about postal services being slow. Unless there is a union strike, most are rather quick in the modern world. Including Portugal

The guy in china has the item in stock and 500 competitors who would undercut him and throw their own grandmother into the deal for good measure. That business is his main source of income. He has to be good at it, consistently, not when he feels like it

The guy in Portugal doesn't (on all accounts).

It's not about being soft. Service is part if the deal. If i need/want something soon there is a cost associated with it.

I recently looked for a micro hdmi cable.
The one in the store was $50
The one from the UK was $8
The one from China was $2.44

I ordered the UK one and it arrived in 4 days. It was defective. I ordered the one from China, 2 weeks later it arrived. Same exact product, but it worked. I emailed the UK seller, twice, and got a working replacement.

If I had needed it urgently, I'd buy it in the store.
 

Doc4

Stumpy in cold weather
Staff member
Face it-we've all gotten soft.

As kids, didn't you send away for mail order stuff? It was always listed as "allow 6-8 weeks for delivery".


There was no "tracking information" ... let alone an internet on which to do the tracking.
There was no "shipping confirmation".
Heck, there was no confirmation that your order was actually received.

You sent off your form with the stuff you wanted filled in, and hoped the guys at the warehouse could read your handwriting. Then you waited. The next thing that would happen, would be the mailman bringing you your parcel of stuff a couple of months later.
 
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