Petemac

[Petemac]

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dan_at_awesome.tech, post: 265104, member: 114438 wrote:

Hi all,

my business also needs to send small packages overseas and is faced with limited choice and high costs…

Some questions/ideas:
1 Has anyone successfully negotiated reduced rates based on growing package count ?

2 Is there already a small business buying group for logistics ? ie. negotiating better rates through bulk buying, with accounts/billing etc totally separate.

3 Does anyone use 3rd party warehouses in USA or Europe, and if so, which are suitable for an Aussie small business ? That way I can save money by slow/bulk shipping to the warehouse, with domestic delivery from there.

I’m currently using DHL eCommerce. Most of my business is USA & europe.

Many thanks
Dan
Hi Dan, there may be an alternative for you that I can recommend but it depends a few things
1/ What is your qty per pick up?
2/ what is your average weight per shipment?

Cheers

Pete

[Petemac]

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johnnycashflow, post: 255606, member: 79207 wrote:

I ve been importing some items from overseas for various purposes, they are fairly fragile, some shipments are worth over $10k,
we pay for insurance, tracking from overseas (1st world country)

everytime, they just dump it on our front door step,
no signature, no nothing,

surely this isnt right, it could be stolen, it could get damaged by weather?

someone even suggested to claim to not receive it so that the delivery company will actually do the right thing?

can they simply just dump it on our front door/??

Hi, is it is the same carrier each time or various carrier you are using with the seam issue? Are you in metro or country area? The reason I ask is that even if using a variety of carriers, if in the country, they all may still be handled by the one freight agent.

Cheers

[Petemac]

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Micky P, post: 256636, member: 99641 wrote:

Hi,
Any suggestions on what the cheapest option would be to import 4 x 20 litre buckets (22kg per bucket) of a non toxic/ non flammable material, from the States to Aus.
Currently looking at a car importing company, who also does freight and the price is great.
$400 + GST (Insurance is extra) No other costs.

I pay for the goods to be sent to their US forwarding location and I need to collect the goods at the port of arrival.
The big downside to this option, is they only ship when they have a minimum number of cars, so the wait between loads may be 2-3 months, plus travel time. Not the best when planning to order more stock.

Unfortunately I can’t order larger quantities at this time, as it is only a small market and the product only has a shelf life of 6 months, but as the market grows, so will the orders.

I have received quotes from a number of freight forwarders in Aus, as well as DHL, UPS and the prices range from $2000 – $6000 AUD ( sea). Even at the cheaper end of $2000, it makes the product unviable.

Any suggestions would be great,

Thanks
Mick

Hi Mick, if you are interested in going via air freight,I did some calculations and based on the dead weight, could arrange for door to door for $945 AUS, not sure if that helps make it more viable for you. Transit time 5-7 days. Would need full dimensions to confirm that it would be sent as dead weight and not dimensional.

Cheers

[Petemac]

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NoWorriesMate, post: 256597, member: 77934 wrote:

Hi all!

Hope everyone is doing great.

I’ve started a new company and things are moving fast. I need a little help with some air freight questions. I need to send around 10 boxes of goods weighing a total of around 150kg. So far, I’ve gone to the usual couriers and got some quotes, and most of them are expensive.

My long term goal would be to use sea freight to help keep costs down, but at this moment, air freight will allow a quicker time to market.

Would anyone have any experience in this, and how I can keep my freight costs down?

Thanks much!

Happy to take a look for you. Give me a call on 0418 698 626 and can talk through options for you

Cheers

Pete

[Petemac]

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ibbi250, post: 259120, member: 110929 wrote:

You are right. I talked to them and someone told me that getting goods via shipping is not good and cannot be done because the CBM and weight is too less.

Contacted the supplier and they said the same thing :p. However, they have offered to send via air for about 800 door to door. I am still looking a cheaper alternative.

Hi, not sure if you have already done this but can set up an account for you for door to door, based on the dimensions and weights you have given, it would be $936 AUD, approx $700 USD

Cheers

Pete

[Petemac]

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solo_steve, post: 248160, member: 98707 wrote:

hi fellow shippers,

I’m starting an ecommerce business sourcing products from the UK. I’m looking to ship boxes (20 kg avg) from UK to Aus. Sea will take too long and I cant container ship in bulk to Australia first until I establish demand for the products.

Anyone know the best/most cost effective ways via air and the couriers that do so? IpostParcels is the best I can find @ ~$200 Aus per box via air 3-5 days. This is door to door service.

Would it be cheaper to ship to airport alone as air freight and then use a company like sendle to deliver from the Australia end?

Thanks in advance!
Just confirm the size of the cartons as freight is charged either actual weight or volumetric weight (based on physical size of the carton. So just check with the courier company once you know the carton size. All the best with the new venture.

[Petemac]

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What size weight are you looking at moving. If over 10kg there are some Economy services they may be up to only 48hrs slower than Express but at substantial savings.

Also, what are the goods? This may effect how Customs in Australia handle them
How are they packaged, ie cartons, crate or pallet?

Cheers

[Petemac]

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Always appreciate something willing to try something, I believe your margins are going to be to tight for a couple of reasons

1/ Saturdays will rule out most B To B deliveries, so you will have mostly residential deliveries. How many will not be home on Saturday (despite saying they will). So do you make sure that all have an authority to leave, redeliver for free (profit well and truly gone) or charge. If you charge, who to, sender (who most likely has the account with you) or the receiver? Good luck getting money out of receiver unless done before goods are redelivered.

2/ If you are the only driver, that’s fine but how many people want to work on Saturday without decent pay?

3/ Fastway for example is one of the cheapest companies under 25kg, yet ask anyone who uses them, whose driver is a franchise owner and see the turnover of drivers. Your price well undercuts theirs, so I think your driver turnover will be even larger

All the best

[Petemac]

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I run a freight consultancy and a number of my clients use combinations of TNT, Toll, StarTrack and Cope depending on where goods are being sent. They do use either pallets or in crates I have to agree with Bert, that whilst some goods are damaged by poor handling, the packing of goods also plays a large part.

Some of the reasons most companies are not keen on heavy furniture are

1/ Unless it is on a pallet or in a crate, it is difficult to move with a forklift without risking damage

2/ If on a pallet, majority of companies only have the driver onboard so if not delivered to a loading dock or a forklift available at receivers end, then tailgate service is needed. Not always available in every area, so they need to involve a third party agent

3/ Majority of times with furniture it is residential deliveries and furniture need to be delivered into the house. With just the driver this is not possible, If owner helps, there is still a max weight driver is allowed to lift

4/ A lot of times, furniture items are unstackable, ie can’t put anything on top when loading in the truck. This reduces the capacity of the truck which makes for insufficient runs. Margin on Nationals shipment in Australia are tight enough.

So

1/ Are your goods on pallets, skids or crated?

2/ Are they well wrapped?

3/ Are you delivering to residential or business addresses? Is a tailgate service required

Just some thoughts

[Petemac]

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bennygill, post: 246630, member: 58992 wrote:

I’m actually wondering what is the cost (courier costs only) for manufacturing in China and shipping out each single order directly from their Shanghai warehouse. What would be the DHL rates for those orders?

I’m talking about shipping single orders from China with the exact same weights and volume etc as above. Not shipping bulk goods.

You would have to talk with DHL China direct to get access to their Ecommerce rates but as far as I am aware this is only available to accounts based in China. You could access cross boarder for Express services through Australia DHL but the cost will totally blow out on such small items.

[Petemac]

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bennygill, post: 246621, member: 58992 wrote:

Perfect!

Do you guys have any idea what these bulk courier discounts are like when shipping from China? Not interested in EMS or Eparcel because they are too slow, just couriers like DHL etc

Your supplier should also be able to give you a price but if arranging yourself, there are a few variants that would determine which courier is best for you to use.
1/ Total weight
2/ Size of cartons – as this influences the volumetric weight, which can end up being larger that actual weight.
3/ Some carriers offer Express only whilst others have Express and Economy (Economy the majority of times either arrives the same time as Express or max 24 to 48 hours later)
Once you have an idea of weights and carton sizes, I can give you an idea of pricing with a few different carriers, as well as some info about their particular services offerings.

Cheers

[Petemac]

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bennygill, post: 246618, member: 58992 wrote:

Thanks [USER=50142]@Petemac[/USER] that price range is tighter than others have mentioned here, which is really promising.
They also give you $50 warranty,at no extra charge, to cover your goods, which is an added bonus plus based on the number of shipments you are aiming to send, there are option where this can be set up for batch processing, that will save you a lot of time as well.

[Petemac]

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Yoav, post: 242606, member: 88493 wrote:

Hi all,
I am running a new online based business and looking for the best and cheapest method to ship the product to the costumes in Australia.

The product weight 2kg, non-fragile cylinder shape (height 1 meter).

I was wondering which one of the many deliveries companies is a recommended of shipping within 5-7 business days with fair fees and reliable service.
Also, any discount for buying a bunch of parcels deliveries in advance?
Cheers and happy NY
Yoav

I agree with RegLog regards changing form cylinder to the triangular cartons many carriers rely on the use of conveyor belts, as such, the cylinders continuously roll and are therefore hard to scan and even roll off the belt sometimes, this results both in delays and manual handling. End result, they are introducing manual handling fees for these type of products. Also, do you deliver mainly to business or residential. If residential, watch out for residential delivery fees and redelivery fees (best to have an automatic Authority to leave on your web site when first making booking) Note, you will need to ask for a safe place to leave and mention that the buyer excepts all responsibility once the product is left at their designated spot.

[Petemac]

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Jai, post: 242372, member: 34448 wrote:

Hey all,

We have been with fastway couriers sending around 50 packages or more a week and they constantly lose our products and are impossible to get onto.

We are happy to pay a little more per package to make sure it gets there and is easy to chase up.

Who do you reccomend? and why?

Need help asap!

Thanks

Jai

Hi Jai, are you sending individual or multiple pieces to an address? What is the typical weight and dimensions? Is it mainly East Coast or Australia wide? This will help see what your alternatives may be.

[Petemac]

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Peach, post: 245090, member: 93192 wrote:

Hello there! I’m new to the forum and found it whilst trying to find an answer to my question.

Essentially I’ve been liaising to have a box sent to me from China. The size is 42x42x24cm, weight 5.5kg, and I’ve been quoted $80USD for shipping with DHL. That’s essentially more than what the items are worth, is this correct for a box this size?

One thing to take into account is that carriers either charge actual weight or dimensional weight (this is the volumetric weight and is based on the actual dimensions). Based on the dimensions of 42x42x24cm, your volumetric weight is actually 8.5kg. So if there is anyway of packing it smaller, than the price may be lower but as it is, the $80 USD sounds reasonable.

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