Post and packing

[VanillaKiln]

At the end of April the cost of postage is going up and I am getting ready to revise my shipping costs.

Did you know that Etsy do not add any fees to shipping but Paypal charge nearly 4%? Their fees are deducted from the selling price + shipping costs. So bear that in mind when calculating yours.

We are being encouraged to include shipping prices to Europe – which is great –but it is a real pain to get all the info from the post office's online price finder:

http://www.royalmail.com/price-finder

Does the post office charge the same price to all of the EU member countries? If so, does anyone know how to get one shipping price to them? When I go to the price finder it lists all the worlds countries individually which is very off putting!

Also the post office will not insure ceramics in the post and I wondered how sellers are packing their items so they arrive safely and economically? Some of my ceramic items are very fragile so I wrap the ceramic in pretty tissue with a nice tie and ceramic gift tag then add loads of large bubble wrap. This goes in a post office plastic bag and it does the job quite well because the item is well protected and the parcel is light. I got the bubble wrap with something I had ordered in the post and it has bubbles (3 x 3 cms) locked into perforated strips about 12 inches wide x 2 feet long. The bubble wrap is called Sealed Air New Air IB. Does anyone know where this can be purchased in reasonable quantities? I now find standard bubble wrap rather lame!

[Former_Member]

This is the link to the new prices, it has a map of which prices cover which areas too.
http://c435158.r58.cf3.rackcdn.com/Royal_Mail_Our_Prices.pdf

Just wondering if you send all your ceramic items in bubble wrap and a bag...?

All of my smaller items are wrapped in tissue paper (and sometimes a bit of bubble wrap too) and put in a small box...which is then placed into a padded envelope.
Much, much safer that way.

A possible work-around for the insurance thing is to label your items fine art/sculpture. Not sure if that would help, though...perhaps someone else has some suggestions ?

[VanillaKiln]

Thank you for the link, very helpful info there.

I have also been directed to the following site with shipping prices. The prices shown are the new ones that come into effect at the end of April:
http://www.seajays.org.uk/postage/indexnew.cfm

As for packing, yes I pack all my smaller items that way! It sounds risky and amateurish but in fact you could throw the package against a wall and the contents will not break because of the huge bubbles! It also cuts down the cost of jiffy bags, boxes and postage. Everything has survived so far!

I believe that if a ceramic item was broken in the post, Royal Mail would want to see a picture as proof and would not pay up for ceramic content. So insuring it under another description would be a waste of money.

I would love to hear what other ceramic makers do...

[damsontreepottery]

thanks for the info - I had no idea we were not insured!
I pack similarly in tissue, bubble wrap, polysyrene/ or starch packing, and box and jiffy bag! so far everything has got there safely!

[VanillaKiln]

Thank you for that!

Looking at royalmail's new postage prices for UK packages is interesting because they have simplified the costs and there is now a flat rate for all weights up to 750g. I'm not so concerned now about the weight of each small package which makes shipping in the UK easier at least! I'll fish out those boxes and jiffy bags!

Shipping costs abroad still depend very much on weight though, but I found this useful list showing all royalmail's European countries:

http://www.royalmail.com/delivery/delivery-options-international/airmail/airmail-zones#europe

Another useful bit of info for you: there is very little difference in the cost of shipping to royalmail's "world zones 1 and 2" so I'm going to lump the costs together as "everywhere else". Still dreading having to work this out as my stuff varies so much in weight...

hey ho!

[VanillaKiln]

Does anyone send their stuff Recorded Delivery or Special Delivery for peace of mind?

[VanillaKiln]

This is a good website showing how to pack pottery for posting:

http://pottery.about.com/od/thepottersspace/ss/pack.htm

I have looked at collect+ and they will not deliver artworks or ceramics.
Does anyone know a courier service that will deliver and insure ceramics?

[QueenOfTartsUK]

Hello everyone,

VanillaKiln have you tried searching on eBay for the P&P materials you need such as the bubble wrap you spoke of? Also I suggest using air pillows - they're very handy when packing bulky items.

I send my items via 1st Class Recorded if an order is over a certain amount. I use Special Delivery when a customer specifically requests it or they need a guaranteed delivery on a Saturday.

For weighty items over say over 1kg I start to compare prices with Royal Mail and courier services to see who's cheaper. To get quotes and services I use Parcel 2 Go. I've used them several times with various couriers and have had a positive experience.

http://www.parcel2go.com/

I can't seem to find information with anyone on what they compensate and what they don't. Does anyone have a link?

[VanillaKiln]

Great! Thank you for very useful info.

Of course, yes, ebay has something like it.

parcel2go looks good. They will take ceramics but will not compensate if they get broken.

[KilnFiredArt]

another site that compares courier prices is Transglobal Express. I have used them a few times

[hbceramics]

I am not sure there is any who will insure ceramics and glass items I suppose its too risky for them. I was taught at university to pack my work to with stand being dropped from 50 feet.

[VanillaKiln]

Did you test it? !!! Have you any tips for us Helen? How do you pack your fragile pieces?

[damsontreepottery]

Hi just reading through again, this is very helpful!

I have recently sent orders for 2 or 3 medium to large bowls which I packed in many layers of foam and bubble wrap and they arrived safely.

I sent them recorded delivery and the post office said they are insured so long as they are packaged properly.
Also that with recorded delivery they are treated carefully!

I also wrap them in copious amounts of FRAGILE tape!

So far everything has been ok!

[QueenOfTartsUK]

Now that it's been a few months since the postage rise, has anyone seen a change in their sales pattern or is it pretty much the same?

I think a lot of customers found the rises off-putting at first, but people seem to be getting used to seeing similar prices everywhere.

I can't believe it almost costs the same price to ship a 100g packet within the UK as it does worldwide!

[VanillaKiln]

I have not had enough sales to comment Carmen.

Having received plates for the promotion i have learnt a bit more about good packaging.

Polymer clay items are so light and unbreakable. really good product for mail order as they fit in a jiffy bag!

All the ceramic clay items i received survived the post. Most came in a box. i was surprised to see one (no names mentioned!) packed in a jiffy bag which went through my letterbox and landed on my hard porch floor without breaking!

I would suggest that ceramic items go in a box or someting rigid. My huge bubble wrap is still one of the methods i use effectively. But if the item is going abroad i now put the (wrapped or boxed) ceramic in a large box surrounded with lots of packing material.

[QueenOfTartsUK]

Did you know that items that are 1kg and over are cheaper to ship via courier services like collect plus.

Royal mail charge (ships within 1-3 days):
£4.30 for 1st Class
£5.25 for recorded
for a packet at 1kg

£6.50 for 1st Class
£7.45 for recorded
for a packet at 1.5kg

£8.30 for 1st Class
£9.25 for recorded
for a packet at 2kg

Collect plus charge £3.33 (+VAT) making it £3.99 to ship a packet at 1kg to 2kg with a size limit of 50cm x 30cm x 30cm fully tracked in 3 days+.

So people who ship heavy, reasonable sized ceramics could save loads by using a courier, but I'm not sure about the insurance coverage on either shipping service.

I hope this information is useful.

[hbceramics]

Just re read this thread and realised I never answered you Vanillakiln, I havent actually tested the 50 foot drop but I pack my ceramics very well so that I am confident that if it is dropped ( which they probaby are) and if it has other heavier boxes put on top in transit etc ( which they probably are) they will survive. My packaging is functional mainly recycled and not at all pretty ( although I will gift wrap if requested) Each piece is wrapped in several layers of bubble wrap then I use a rigid cardboard box and the bubble wrapped item is placed on a bed of shredded paper and flo pack, more shredded paper and flo pack around and on top of the item. I make sure the item is firmly packed but has a bit of give so in the packing. I then close up the box and give it a shake (very technical!) if I can feel any movement I add more packing and shake again. Then I put in my card etc tape up the box , job done ! If packing more than one item wrap each individually in bubble wrap, never let them touch, put packing between to cushion and do the shake test. : )

[VanillaKiln]

I must apologise for giving out some incorrect information at the start of this thread! (I was just repeating what a post office member of staff told me).

It is, in fact, only ceramics sent as 'Standard Parcels' that are not covered for compensation if damaged with Royal Mail. So if ceramics are sent first class, second class, special delivery, recorded delivery; if they are properly packaged and labelled "Fragile handle with care" you can claim compensation.

Good news :)

[AbsolutelyClay]

Thank you all so much for this thread. For along time I was put off selling my ceramics through the Internet because of the postage and packaging aspect. I have been taking a very softly softly approach up until now. This conversation has encouraged me to do a bit more with etsy and move the shop on a little more. Thank you.