Posted by Administrator on 1/7/2013 to
As of January 14, 2013, Canada Post will be implementing major changes to rates and services to the USA and international destinations.
These changes will primarily affect small/lightweight/lower value items in the <250 gram and <500 gram weight classes.
Changes to US Shipping
Small Packet Ground...will no longer exist.
Small Packet Air...is being made unusable as Canada Post will no longer insure these shipments.
Tracked Packet...this is a new service with ship times similar to Expedited Parcel/USPS Priority Mail. Same rules as Small Packet: limit of 1 kg, limit of 90 cm length + width + height, and maximum insurance coverage of $100 CAD.
This new "Tracked Packet" service is actually good for items right at the 1 kg weight limit, as you now get tracking. However they are losing the discounted structure of Small Packet methods, so items that are under 250 grams are almost as much as items at 1kg!
In this most extreme example, something light like a Wizard Ring or Ranger Key or other capsule toy would cost under $6 for shipping via Small Packet Ground to anywhere in the USA. With these new changes, that same item now costs around $15!! That's a 250% increase folks!! Items that ship at the 500 g and 1kg rate will also see increases in pricing, but not quite as drastic.
Changes to International Shipping (Outside of the USA and Canada)
Small Packet Air...is being made unusable as Canada Post will no longer insure these shipments.
Tracked Packet...this is a new service with ship times similar to USPS International Priority Mail. Same rules as International Small Packet Air: limit of 2 kg, limit of 90 cm length + width + height, and maximum insurance coverage of $100 CAD.
In this most extreme example, something light like a Wizard Ring or Ranger Key or other capsule toy would cost under $10 for shipping via Small Packet Air to almost anywhere in the world. With these new changes, that same item now costs between $40-$50 depending on where you are!! That's a 400-500% increase!! Items that ship at the 500 g and 1kg rate will also see increases in pricing, but not quite as drastic.
Because of these changes, we will no longer have calculated shipping on the website for customers outside of the USA and Canada. You will have to contact us directly for a shipping quote and we will process your orders manually.
How These Changes will Affect "It Came From Japan!"
We hope to offer the best value to our customers, and with these new shipping rates it will be very difficult to do that with smaller items. Obviously we can't charge $15 to ship a $10 item to the USA, or charge $40 to ship a $10 item to London for example.
To combat this, we will be selling more bundled items and sets rather than individual small items. Combining items to maximize the shipping cost is our only short-term answer to this crisis.
In the future, as many other small Canadian business are doing, we hope to be able to offer a lower-priced shipping solution by shipping from the USA through the US Postal Service since we are so close to the border. However this brings up other logistical problems, such as border crossing, etc., so it will take us some time to get this figured out.
On a final note...
Obviously we are not happy about this situation, and this should provide some insight into the extreme cost-of-living in Canada. Quite frankly these actions are criminal and a perfect example of price-gouging. We're tired of explaining Canada Post's incomprehensible shipping rates to the world, there is simply no excuse. UPS and Fedex are not realistic alternatives for small items as their rates out of Canada are even more absurd.
With the shipping situation, Canada simply cannot compete on the world market. "It Came From Japan!" has operated out of both Japan and the USA over the last 12 years of doing business before moving to Canada; we have always been very international friendly and love our overseas customers! We are greatly saddened as Canada has essentially closed its borders to international business.
For more information, please see Canada Post's shipping guide here (pdf link). Feel free to write them angry letters and post nasty messages on their Facebook page ;-)
As always, your continued support is greatly appreciated! We'd love to hear your feedback on this subject.