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CONUS Only

ReeRay

Member
What is it with this CONUS only sales stuff?

I'm forever mystified at this sales criteria. It it really so difficult/precarious/challenging to ship internationally?

I live in Thailand, I am a retired British citizen and I have a 100% feedback on Ebay over some 200 items valued at $12,000 in the last year BUT I still can't buy a $200 nothing with this restriction. And what's really silly is the CONUS restricted sales ALWAYS achieve a MUCH lower figure than I would pay!

I'm tempted to suggest that if brains were dynamite would these sellers have enough to blow their nose?

So, Rollei 60081 AF with 40mm PQS lens - everything as per OEM - $500 ONO- HUA HIN Soi 8 Thailand only!

Light hearted of course (maybe) :toocool:
 
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monza

Active member
Many people don't like having to wait in line at our understaffed government-and-union-operated post offices, although it's pretty easy to do the shipping online (for priority and express mail) and just drop it off without having to wait. It is not possible to ship first class international packages online however, that will require a wait. Private companies like Fedex and UPS make it extremely simple but they cost more, most buyers aren't willing to pay the additional. IMHO the postal service should simply subcontract out to private companies but that's another discussion. :)
 

back alley

New member
living in the 'good neighbour' country of canada, i am often frustrated in a similar fashion.

apparently, the postal system in the states is suffering from cutbacks and slow service and sellers have to often wait in line for up to an hour to ship parcels.

so close and yet so far...
 

ReeRay

Member
Anyway, providing you live next door to me and you've got the need I'll throw in a 150 CFi, a 30mm CFi and a Phase One 100Megapixel back for the same price - NO INTERNATIONAL Buyers, especially CONUS constipated residents - I ain't got the time or brains to deal with you! :LOL:
 

johnastovall

Deceased, but remembered fondly here...
I don't sell international because I don't want to deal with all the other countries customs and tariff issues which if something goes wrong will not get me good feedback.

It has nothing to do with the zero wait time at my post office...
 

Jack

Sr. Administrator
Staff member
Anyway, providing you live next door to me and you've got the need I'll throw in a 150 CFi, a 30mm CFi and a Phase One 100Megapixel back for the same price - NO INTERNATIONAL Buyers, especially CONUS constipated residents - I ain't got the time or brains to deal with you! :LOL:
Hey, you're the one who asked!

Robert hit it on the head for me too. I do ship internationally, but only via FedEx as I can do it all from my computer. Most international buyers however don't want to pay even the economy rate for FedEx International...
 
O

Oxide Blu

Guest
I'm forever mystified at this sales criteria. It it really so difficult/precarious/challenging to ship internationally?

I live in Thailand, I am a retired British citizen ...

You Brits can be so emotional at times. Just be happy you weren't born French. :D


I live outside of the US, am back in Calif for a few more day. My tailor is in Calif. I make choices, get fitted, then leave the US. My credit card is then charged, the clothes are shipped to me. The int'l shipping and paying customs where I live costs less than paying Calif's sales tax and taking the clothes with me.
 
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Stuart Richardson

Active member
If you guys think you have it bad, what about people in Alaska and Hawaii? They live in the US and CONUS shippers will not ship to them. The only reason I can think of for that is that they are offering a flat rate price, and shipping to Alaska or Hawaii is more. Barring a legitimate reason like Jack and Robert indicate, I think the real reasons that people say CONUS only are a lot more complex. A lot of people are just unaware that shipping internationally is not that difficult. Some are probably afraid of being caught up in an international payment dispute/scam (for legitimate reasons, or even for just some vague xenophobia), while for others the US is such a large market that they simply can't be bothered. They also might not realize that given the exchange rate these days, that people in Europe and the rest of the world might be willing to pay a lot more than US buyers. Like other huge countries, the US has an amount of insularity that more closely spaced or smaller countries do not have. It is easy to live there and not have to really deal with the larger world. Other massive countries like China, Russia, India etc all have this to a lesser or greater degree. The US probably has it to the greatest extent, given its size versus its economic power. While all I would say that all normal Americans realize that there is a larger world out there, for many of them it does not really enter into their mind to go out of their way to cater to international markets. We also have a different experience with international travel too -- people used to the EU don't really see international borders as much of a barrier -- in many parts of the EU, it is easy to hop into a car and drive across two countries without much of an issue, or commute from Copenhagen to Malmo etc. For the US, international travel usually means an 8-10 hour plane ride, visa and passport controls, customs issues and so on. It is just a different way of experiencing the world.

I will say though that when I lived in Brooklyn, I would ship internationally, but indicated that I would not use the USPS. I needed to walk 20 minutes to the post office, wait in line for 45 minutes or so, walk 20 minutes home. FedEx and UPS both had outlets 5 minutes away, they would pick up the package, it could all be setup online -- it just worked better. It is funny to see the difference. I now live in Reykjavik and the post office is incredibly easy to use -- they even have things like tape, wrapping paper, markers and scissors for you to use...for free! These are things you would never find in most US post offices. In the williamsburg post office you would be lucky to get a pen without a scowl and a warning that they better get it back.
 
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Terry

New member
Well,
With a camera now MIA between here and Sweden through the USPS I am rethinking my desire to ship internationally.
 

ReeRay

Member
Now I understand.

Here, in 3rd world Thailand, I ring Fed-Ex who then call to my home and collect the package/parcel and even complete the paperwork for me. This is usually the same day providing I call before 10.00 a.m. They bring their own packaging and boxes and wrap everything up ready for shipment. I simply provide coffee.

Conversely, when a package arrives, they telephone my home and establish what time is convenient for them to deliver. In between of course, they've already sorted customs on my behalf. Give or take 15 minutes they arrive. Couldn't be easier.

I recently acquired a Minolta Multi Pro Scanner from Canada - extremely heavy and delicate. Cost of shipping and all the above service was $160. I have no problems with paying this amount. Delivery was 5 days door to door. They even waited whilst I set it up to ensure nothing was broken!

p.s. I forgot to say - The Fed-Ex office is a 600 kilometer round trip to me!
 

Diane B

New member
Well, out here in the hinterlands, they closed our contract USPS and I have to drive into town or the next town. Unlikely I will have to stand in line too long except for the holidays, but parking is a pain. Within the same driving distance there are 2 UPS stores (used to be Mailboxes, Inc) where they will pack, do paperwork, etc.--and offer a lot of other services, but at probably 3-4x the cost or more. FedEx is also within the same range, but I just paid 3x what I would have with USPS to ship a project at ground prices. So--it seems to me that if the buyers are willing to pay the shipping prices for UPS or FedEx, then shipping International for me with one of the commercial shippers would be the better way to go. However, many buyers would balk at the difference in prices--thus, more of a pain to deal with the cheaper shipping than may be worth it for international shipping and just easier to do CONUS.
 

monza

Active member
I have shipped hundreds of packages in the last couple of years via USPS internationally, and none have been lost. I had one M4-P that left JFK on its way to New Zealand and two weeks later, tracking said it was still leaving JFK. I called USPS and the package was in NZ customs the next day.

It gets a little iffy shipping to some countries (corrupt customs officials) so it's best to undervalue the package. If the customs form says it's a $1500 camera, it may not make it through customs. If it says $50 used camera, it breezes on through. I use third party insurance in these cases, but have never had a claim.
 
V

Vivek

Guest
USPS first class international (the cheapest option)- from the US to the Netherlands is faster (ans SAFER) than shipping from Texas to Washington.:thumbs:
 

mwalker

Subscriber Member
I too get frustrated at the US Post Office service. But if you limit your sales to the CONUS you're missing out on a huge market place especially with the dollar so weak.
 

etrigan63

Active member
I once shipped a video card to a 14-yr old Brazilian kid who won a contest on one of my websites. I shipped the card via DHL (they had the lowest rate) but were a bit dodgy when I asked them about the import tariff in Brazil. They said they would let me know. 6 months later a collection agency calls me and demands I pay DHL $1500 in tariffs! The video card was $299! I requested the supporting documents from DHL and after another 6 months (and no documents materializing) the collectors were at my doorstep (figuratively) with a payment schedule that involved $500 a week for three weeks. I faxed a letter to the BBB and the US Dept. of Commerce complaining about these shady practices and 24 hours later I got a call from the Office of the President of DHL. 24 hours after that, the collectors were gone, the debt was gone, and DHL left me alone. I avoid international shipping whenever I can.
 

monza

Active member
It's easy to not fill in all the blanks on the international airbills for DHL, Fedex, and UPS. Always mark that duties are to be paid by the recipient!

Vivek is correct, I have sent stuff to him via first class and it took four days. Express Mail took longer and got stuck in customs!
 
Well,
With a camera now MIA between here and Sweden through the USPS I am rethinking my desire to ship internationally.
Well, as you know, the Viking spirit of robbery is still alive here in Sweden...:rolleyes:

Seriously, though, I´ve bought things quite a number of times from the US and from Britain, and not a single package has gone astray or been delayed. I wish I could say the same about our domestic mail....
 

wjlapier

Member
USPS first class international (the cheapest option)- from the US to the Netherlands is faster (ans SAFER) than shipping from Texas to Washington.:thumbs:
Texas to Washington state is two days.

Last international sale took too long in PO. That said, alot of my sales have been international--even to Russia this last year. That one made me nervous until I got an email the buyer received his lens--three weeks after I shipped.
 
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