Buying fabric - interesting
08-17-2013, 05:23 AM
#12
Junior Member
Join Date: Apr 2010
Posts: 114
USPS box vs envelope
Well, I supose it's like the US Postal Service. Yesterday I went to mail a package in a big brown envelope I purchased at Walmart. The big brown envelope would cost me $9.60 to mail. The lady working the counter at the PO handed me one of their free priority envelopes and nicely told me if I placed the big brown envelope inside the free priority envelope and re-addressed the package I would save over $4.00. Now, how do you explain this works?
It has to do with efficiency, as it was explained to me:
The boxes are all standard size, so can be packed tightly to ship, making them more cost efficient for USPS than any other shapes, therefore you can be charged less to ship these than the "per ounce/per pound" rate.
Your envelope may be smaller than the box, however it is an odd size and probably slides when stacked, therefore is harder to ship, so you pay the customary rate to mail.
08-17-2013, 06:35 AM
#13
Super Member
Join Date: Feb 2012
Location: Phoenix, AZ
Posts: 2,876
Well, I supose it's like the US Postal Service. Yesterday I went to mail a package in a big brown envelope I purchased at Walmart. The big brown envelope would cost me $9.60 to mail. The lady working the counter at the PO handed me one of their free priority envelopes and nicely told me if I placed the big brown envelope inside the free priority envelope and re-addressed the package I would save over $4.00. Now, how do you explain this works?
08-17-2013, 06:38 AM
#14
Super Member
Join Date: Feb 2012
Location: Phoenix, AZ
Posts: 2,876
It is likely that fabric.com ships with the Postal Service and Amazon, I know, ships UPS as they have a contract with them. Also with the Prime accounts they either absorb the costs or it is built into the cost of the items.
08-17-2013, 07:11 AM
#15
Super Member
Join Date: Jan 2011
Location: Small town in Northeast Oregon close to Washington and Idaho
Posts: 2,795
I buy Amazon Prime every year so shipping is free and I receive what I order in two days. Amazon sells everything related to quilting. Of course they sell sewing machines, but they sell everything fabric, thread, books, clips, rotary cutters, mats, just about everything and it's not just from Fabric.com. I shop there frequently. With Amazon Prime you get to watch most of their movies and TV shows for free, also.
08-17-2013, 10:18 AM
#16
Super Member
Join Date: Mar 2007
Location: Here and there
Posts: 1,669
Shipping fees charged by the merchants don't necessarily reflect what the shipping carrier charges. Some merchants make a considerable chunk of money from the overage they collect on shipping fees. Also, marchants have to hire someone to pack the goods and get them ready for shipping and the shipping fee reflects that labor cost. froggyintexas
08-17-2013, 01:46 PM
#18
Super Member
Join Date: Mar 2010
Location: Texas
Posts: 2,281
Ah, the wonders of the market! <G> If you buy over a certain amount at Amazon.com, postage is free. Ditto for fabric.com. I keep telling myself I'm going to make a list of all the online shops and their minimums for free postage.
08-17-2013, 09:24 PM
#19
Super Member
Join Date: Jun 2010
Location: 53 degrees North
Posts: 1,679
When purchasing (non fabric) recently in a shop, I had to order in the exact item I needed. The shop explained that if they sent it to me (post) they would have to charge more than if I ordered it through their own mail order facility, because the latter had negotiated a cheaper bulk rate with the post office. This was not in the US but maybe your post office does the same with big clients?
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