What's new

Shipping prices for online vendors

What online vendors, with decent or standard arrays of shave creams and soaps (interpret as you will), have the best shipping rates?

Generally it has seemed a better idea to order several items at once, but it's annoying to find a $7 shipping charge when I just want to order a $5 2 oz. travel size shave cream (I realize, too, that this is just the liability of ordering stuff online).

Something around $7 has seemed minimal for a lot of the sites I've tried, and this often seems totally unnecessary to me based on the weight, content, and packaging needs of what's inside.

Thx
 
It seems that your expectations are not in tune with business realities. While I would like to think that shipping should be free, someone has to pay for it. First off, take a look at parcel post minimums, UPS ground minimums, and Fedex ground minimums... You know, the 5 business day deliveries.. Add in the cost of a box, packing stuff, label, and a round trip to the post office and try again. BTW, what kind of shave cream are you buying from an etailer for $5?:mellow:
 
guenron said:
It seems that your expectations are not in tune with business realities. While I would like to think that shipping should be free, someone has to pay for it. First off, take a look at parcel post minimums, UPS ground minimums, and Fedex ground minimums... You know, the 5 business day deliveries.. Add in the cost of a box, packing stuff, label, and a round trip to the post office and try again. BTW, what kind of shave cream are you buying from an etailer for $5?:mellow:

Having done alot of shipping in my own business, I can attest that shipping low cost items is usually a money loser for the business. The couple of bucks you pay for shipping usually doesn't cover the labor it takes to pack, ship, and track the package, add in the materials and there is no way you can do it for less than most etailers charge. The only way that it makes sense to order small items online is to buy some quantity so you spread the cost accross multiple items....this way the shipping doesn't hurt so much!! Also consider that you are usually saving a few bucks off local retail prices so in many cases you break even and didn't even have to leave your living room to get your item.
 
g8orshavr said:
Having done alot of shipping in my own business, I can attest that shipping low cost items is usually a money loser for the business. The couple of bucks you pay for shipping usually doesn't cover the labor it takes to pack, ship, and track the package, add in the materials and there is no way you can do it for less than most etailers charge. The only way that it makes sense to order small items online is to buy some quantity so you spread the cost accross multiple items....this way the shipping doesn't hurt so much!! Also consider that you are usually saving a few bucks off local retail prices so in many cases you break even and didn't even have to leave your living room to get your item.
Roger,
I think we agreed?:a2:
 
Being in a position to ship lots of things lately, I think shipping prices are probably too low, if anything. If you can find a place that charges the actual rates by weight, you are doing well. Packing stuff well, both in terms of material and time, is a major expense, especially when you are shipping stuff that likes to leak, like shaving supplies.
 
I think there's a difference between a vendor who uses shipping charges as a profit centre and someone who simply wants to recoup the cost of shipping materials - for instance, there's a lot of e-bay vendors who charge astronomical shipping charges - such as a $10 flat fee regardless of item size, value or fragility.

As for the labour involved in packaging, I think that e-tailers should factor this into their pricing, as its a necessary part of doing business. I don't like it when people price low and then nickel and dime their customers.

As for the cost of shipping, I have found the USPS letter or package post is the best way to get things from the US to Canada at reasonable prices - compared to Canada Post shipping rates, the USPS rates are a bargain.

Anyhow, just my two cents.
 
To answer the original question about specific vendors, here are some places I've found that only charge shipping rates. This would lead me to believe their material and labor costs are part of the original price.

QED
Saint Charles Shave
Honeybee Spa
Lee's Razors gave me a good shipping rate for my order from them

The English Shaving Company always gives me a great rate for being overseas and typically beats other overseas companies.

Note that most places are leaning towards USPS Priority Mail, a fact I tend to believe comes from the flat rate envelopes and boxes.
 
Hi all,

Shipping is a major issue for many of my customers. I ship only USPS Priority Mail for a reason. First and foremost, it's fast and extrememly reliable. The majority of my shipments are over 1 lb, which gives me a choice of Parcel Post or Priority. Parcel Post rates are usually very close to Priority rates, but there are many advantages to Priority. Besides the speed of delivery, there is a free Delivery Confirmation Tracking Number, where my customer can follow the progress of the package.
USPS provides free boxes for Priority, whereas if I shipped by another method, I'd have to buy boxes and pass the cost along either in product price or handling cost. Also, Priority shipments are eligible for free carrier pickup at my door, whereas with other methods, I'd have to drive to the PO, and with current gas prices, I'd have to pass that cost along somewhere. As to the other costs of packing, such as labor, tape, bubble wrap, etc., well, I just absorb those but many shippers can't or just choose not to. For all the above reasons, I only charge actual USPS rates.

Shipping is a time consuming operation. Over recent months, all shipping rates have increased from all carriers. Another consideration is geography. The further you are from the seller, the higher the shipping cost will be.

Another suggestion I can make for Ebay buyers is, any reputable seller should be willing to provide a combined shipping quote BEFORE you purchase if you tell them what you're contemplating buying, how many, and your zip code. That way, there's no surprises. If you're considering multiple purchases from the same vendor, check the listing to see if they combine shipping costs. If it's not listed, ask the seller. By reading listings carefully, and asking questions before you buy, you should be able to get the best value at the best price.

Hope this info is helpful.

Honeybee_Sue
 
Sue
Do you use the flat rate box's from USPS? I would bet you could fit a bunch of soaps and other goodies in it for the flat rate! :biggrin:
 
Hi Jim,
I sure do use the USPS Priority Flat Rate boxes all the time. They're pretty substantial for a flat rate. I can fit at least 10 of my shampoo size bottles in them, or a whole lot of soap for $8.10 shipping.

HB Sue
 
Shipping is such a delicate subject sometimes! The problem with charging exactly what the post office charges someone is you have to keep a record of the charge and go back and charge each person individually for the shipping and then wait and hope they will send the money for shipping after the fact.

I incorporated the pay pal shopping cart into my website which seems to be reliable but am limited with only one pricing spread, no matter what the item is.. If I ever decide to ship larger heavier items I will be in trouble.

I charge $4.50 for one item and an additional $1 for each item after that up to a maximum of $8.50 for the total combined shipping of any order within CONUS. It seems to work out well, sometimes I am ahead of the game, and sometimes I lose out. I consider it a learning curve at this point, but do my best to make sure that I am fair without micromanaging every order... impossible even to think of!

With all fairness, every person from outside the US so far has been good enough to email me and ask about shipping rates. These cost much more and you all have been very respectful of this. Thank you.

There are many vendors on ebay who charge $.99 for an item and then $25 for shipping... I have learned this the hard way more than one time.. shame on me! I am overly senstive about shipping costs because of this. I do not recoup the money for the boxes, tape, time and gas to get the post office. Nor do I really want to. I am happy to just do the best job that I can. It is tough sometimes..... :wink2:

Bear Hugs!

Sue (Mama Bear)
 
guenron said:
It seems that your expectations are not in tune with business realities. While I would like to think that shipping should be free, someone has to pay for it. First off, take a look at parcel post minimums, UPS ground minimums, and Fedex ground minimums... You know, the 5 business day deliveries.. Add in the cost of a box, packing stuff, label, and a round trip to the post office and try again. BTW, what kind of shave cream are you buying from an etailer for $5?:mellow:


I guess I'm just used to ordering books online. I realize that books get special low rates for their relatively high weight, but a $7+ shipping minimum on several of sites I order shaving stuff from, for items that are very light, is exasperating. And this price rises steeply when additional items are added, even when it's nothing fragile or spillable, so it hasn't helped much to defray the initial level shipping cost. Shipping has often been well over half of the price of my order, and not infrequently equal to or more than the price of the items I am ordering.

Anyway, the $5 order I was considering was the 2 oz. travel-size version of the Nancy Boy shave cream I had been wanting to try. (Why is that uncomfortable to say?) Obviously, this kind of order is never going to have a good ratio of item cost to shipping cost, but I would at least like to figure out how to minimize how much is lost to shipping (besides just ordering a lot each order).
 
bthomasb said:
I guess I'm just used to ordering books online. I realize that books get special low rates for their relatively high weight, but a $7+ shipping minimum on several of sites I order shaving stuff from, for items that are very light, is exasperating. And this price rises steeply when additional items are added, even when it's nothing fragile or spillable, so it hasn't helped much to defray the initial level shipping cost. Shipping has often been well over half of the price of my order, and not infrequently equal to or more than the price of the items I am ordering.

Anyway, the $5 order I was considering was the 2 oz. travel-size version of the Nancy Boy shave cream I had been wanting to try. (Why is that uncomfortable to say?) Obviously, this kind of order is never going to have a good ratio of item cost to shipping cost, but I would at least like to figure out how to minimize how much is lost to shipping (besides just ordering a lot each order).
Here comes the STANDARD B&B SOLUTION to any problem relating to buying shaving kit.:001_tt1: Ready? First, join the mailing club, whatever at Nancy Boy. You'll be treated to some of Eric's counterculture commentaries, and a 15% discount. Next, if you really want to test the shave cream do it this way:
Order the Road Trip. Your savings as a member probably covers the shipping.:001_wub: Plus the fact, I forgot to mention, you are treated to some very fine products too.. The facial wash, hair conditioner, et al have received very good reviews from those who have used them (deservedly so). I use them and have a shelf full of this stuff.
 

Tony Miller

Speaking of horse butts…
I'm with Honey Bee Sue on this one. I use only Priority Mail Insured for everything I sell. No extra fees for packing, etc....and my materials are free from the USPS. My online calculator figures weights and if anyone gets cheated it's me on some higher $$ items the website always shorts insurance on! I pick up the diference though so the buyer gets a deal.
Small items go at actual weight and average $6.50 - $7.70 insured for strops, etc.. while complete sets go at flat rate $8.10 + insurance.

International shipping is a crime though. A 2#-3# box to either the UK or Australia via Airmail Parcel Post is an easy $24 or more. There are other shipping choice overseas but only Airmail Parcel Post carries insurance.

Tony
 
Top Bottom