[Elecraft] Reality of "Shipping and Handling"

[Don Wilhelm]

And add to Ken's comments that the boxes to ship items in cost money 
too.  I keep boxes for shipping back repaired Elecraft gear, and if it 
is going UPS, I have to pay for the boxes - which average $2.50 each 
since I purchase them in quantities of 20 instead of 1000 (which would 
reduce the price to about $1.00).

USPS is nice because they provide some size boxes at no cost, and I take 
advantage of that whenever I can.
What the customer is charged (in my case) is the actual cost of 
transport, and does not include cost for shipping materials and my 
packing time or gasoline to get to the post office or UPS shipping site 
- other firms add a "handling charge" to cover those costs.

73,
Don W3FPR

On 6/17/2013 2:44 PM, Ken G Kopp wrote:
> Rose ships covers and cases all over the world ... or rather I should
> say -I- pack and ship them for her. (:-)  I'll wager we're one of the
> larger shippers here on the reflector ... with the exception of Elecraft.
>
> Powerwerks is most likely losing money at $6.49, and it has nothing to
> do with the cost of the item(s) being shipped.  They will have numerous
> "hidden costs" ... all shippers do.  It just depends on how deeply one
> wants to burry them.   If one lived in the same town where they're
> located, I doubt that you could drive there to pick up an item without
> conduming  $6.49 in fuel ... maybe more.  One's time also has a finite
> value.
>
> There's address and return labels and likely a label printer to print them,
> bags for the item(s) and probably another label on that bag.  Then there's
> the shipping packaging, be it a small padded envelope or a carton.  If it's
> a carton, there's the cost of "peanuts" or other cushioning material.
> "Bubble pack" is suprisingly expensive. (;-)  Padded envelopes cost
> $.50 to $2.50, depending on the size, even bought in 100 lots as we
> do.  Don't forget the shipping costs ths shipped pays their suppliers
> when they purchase shipping supplis
>
> Oh, and there's the cost of paper and ink for the printer that prints the
> packing lists and labor costs of the person(s) who does the shipping
> operation.
>
> I'll almost guarntee they're losing money at $6.49.
>