Hello,
I'm Cassandra, the graphic designer and social media manager for Aspen Grove Rustics. We're a small company of artisan carpenters who specialize in making furniture from reclaimed barn wood and dead standing aspen trees.
This is the first company I've worked for that has uses Etsy so I am still learning about the way things work here. I've taken the time to read the sellers handbook and I've spent some time on the forums reading tips from other Etsy sellers.
One thing I noticed is most of the content on Etsy is catered to the sellers of small items. Our company has a system in place for packaging the furniture, and we get special discount rates through Estes Express. What we are struggling with is trying to decide how we're going to list the shipping cost.
As you know, trying to ship a bunk bed is much more complicated than putting a necklace in a flat rate box and dumping it in a post bin. The cost to ship depends on how far the shipping destination is, if they're in a remote location, and whether or not they will need a lift gate. If a shelf is going to Denver, Colorado from Utah the fright may just be $50, but if it is going to Schenectady, New York it may cost three times the cost to produce the shelf.
I would love to hear from other Etsy furniture manufacturers- How do you handle shipping costs?
