WTF is with all the ConUS only sales? (1 Viewer)

[Quicksilver-75]

It drives me nuts when I see this. I ship and do stuff for people on PCF from all over the world and have yet to be inconvenienced in any way. So really, WTF?
Maybe I should just do things for Canadians, Europeans and non-con US states?

 

[gopherblue]

I am more than happy to ship to Canada, Oz or Western Europe, as well as select other destinations, so long as the buyer is an active participant on PCF. I've got an auction going for GCRs right now...just sayin'.

 

[dennis63]

I still ship to Canada (and just about everywhere else).

Shipping to Canada is pretty easy. (One extra form, but it's small.)

Shipping costs from the U.S. to Canada really spiked recently. A small flat-rate box use to be $16.95. Now it's 24.95.

Even then, if the buyer has no issue with the shipping cost, it should never be a problem -- particularly to the only country outside the U.S. where we can insure the package and confirm delivery.

 

[H|Q]

I have shipped a ton of chips all over the world and the only time, until recently that I've had an issue was when going to Europe. The responsibility is on the shipper to make sure the package is delivered. When going overseas, I have had a ton of issues which resulted in thousands of dollars in loss.

Going international, folks frequently ask me to mis-represent the value of the contents, which means I can't insure them for the full price, and it's illegal. There are usually plenty of buyers stateside, so I frequently keep things CONUS.

 

[Quicksilver-75]

I still ship to Canada (and just about everywhere else).

Shipping to Canada is pretty easy. (One extra form, but it's small.)

Shipping costs from the U.S. to Canada really spiked recently. A small flat-rate box use to be $16.95. Now it's 24.95.

Even then, if the buyer has no issue with the shipping cost, it should never be a problem -- particularly to the only country outside the U.S. where we can insure the package and confirm delivery.

Yeah. The rates have spiked tremendously! I just quoted a fellow chipper here $19 to ship a rack of Majestics to California...ouch. But besides the point. It's a tiny little green sticker: address, contents and value...oh the agony!

 

[xxmurrxx]

It would just be a damn shame if there was something you REALLY wanted and someone was unwilling to ship to you because you were in a different country.

International shipping rates are high, but I think most of us understand this... All deals I have done on this site the buyer / myself has paid the actual shipping costs.

 

[Jeff]

I've shipped everywhere. Its not the forms or the hassle. Its the risk. Large amounts require you risk adult money.

I would never sell on eBay and ship overseas. It's impossible for the buyer to assume responsibility on eBay.

 

[Quicksilver-75]

It would just be a damn shame if there was something you REALLY wanted and someone was unwilling to ship to you because you were in a different country.

International shipping rates are high, but I think most of us understand this... All deals I have done on this site the buyer / myself has paid the actual shipping costs.

^this every morning when my Feebay searches come through. Although with eBay I get it. eBay has fucked over so many sellers that shipping without using an expensive tracked method is crazy. They always side with the buyer and usually the vendor is burdened with months of waiting for some kind of recourse. But here, I'd like to believe is a little different. 95% of you guys I almost feel I know on a semi-personal level. Yeah, some stuff has happened...but it makes up a very small amount of the total commerce conducted here.

 

[Quicksilver-75]

I've shipped everywhere. Its not the forms or the hassle. Its the risk. Large amounts require you risk adult money.

I would never sell on eBay and ship overseas. It's impossible for the buyer to assume responsibility on eBay.

In the cases where the above statement is true I've always made it very clear that tracking and insurance is a must! To cover both parties.

 

[Craig D]

I have been lucky two people in this thread have shipped to me directly

But I have had to use a forwarding service that gives me a US address for others

It comes down to shipping costs

They have increased so much I have not purchased chips in 14 months

I have two sets of Paulsons totaling 2160 chips plus plaques and cards

Now only something real special gets purchased

If I was starting my collection today with the increased chip and shipping costs I would have about 600 chips for the same amount of money...

 

[Gear]

247parcel.com is your friend.

Change your address in eBay to the US address of 247parcel, et voila, you can bid on US auctions.

 

[Quicksilver-75]

I have been lucky two people in this thread have shipped to me directly

But I have had to use a forwarding service that gives me a US address for others

It comes down to shipping costs

They have increased so much I have not purchased chips in 14 months

I have two sets of Paulsons totaling 2160 chips plus plaques and cards

Now only something real special gets purchased

If I was starting my collection today with the increased chip and shipping costs I would have about 600 chips for the same amount of money...

Again. I sympathize with the high costs of shipping. But I don't think sellers are doing non-Americans a "favor" because the shipping would be too high. It's a choice. I'm just trying to determine the motivation, whether it's a nationalistic thing or laziness..

 

[CdnBeerLover]

It's a choice. IMO, the US market is currently strong enough that they can exclude others if they want to. If stuff languishes on the classifieds, they may re-consider, but the potential buyers in other countries may have moved on.

That said, it works both ways. I know that if I have two offers for something I'm selling, and one of them is from someone who limited their own sales, that will sway my decision.

 

[dennis63]

Again. I sympathize with the high costs of shipping. But I don't think sellers are doing non-Americans a "favor" because the shipping would be too high. It's a choice. I'm just trying to determine the motivation, whether it's a nationalistic thing or laziness..

It's not "nationalistic." It may not even be lazy. Consider the possibility that these sellers were thinking about any or all of the following:

• not being able to insure their items going to a foreign country
• not being able to confirm delivery and fearing a false claim of "I never got the stuff."
• fearing a true claim of "I never got the stuff."
  
• not trusting the security or integrity of foreign customs services or delivery services -- at least not enough to risk the value of the box.
• not trusting that the package will survive the long international trip, and not wanting the hassle from the customer when it doesn't.
• not wanting to deal with requests to lie on the customs forms to save the buyer some of the VAT.
• not wanting to document the details and values of the deal on a U.S. government customs form, or deal with the shipping or postal clerk and the other angry customers behind them when they (invariably) fill out the first form wrong, or the wrong first form.
  
• fearing they might get in trouble if they fill out that customs form wrong. (The threats are printed right on it.)
• not wanting to get the foreign destination address format wrong. (Many are nothing like America addresses.) Maybe they'll just look stupid. Maybe they'll lose the whole shipment and their money.
  
• not wanting to give more of their money to Paypal or E-Bay because the money is moving internationally.
• not wanting to deal with questions and complaints from the buyer about how long it is taking to arrive. (Continental U.S? Two or three days. Elsewhere? Two to three weeks.)

 

[Quicksilver-75]

A few of those points are fair. Some border on extreme paranoia, and some don't apply. I get your point. I would also point out that last few transactions that have blown up here on thhe site were U.S. To U.S. sales.

 

[Quicksilver-75]

247parcel.com is your friend.

Change your address in eBay to the US address of 247parcel, et voila, you can bid on US auctions.

I just realized something! @ChaosRock is my overburdened 247parcel.com! And he even tracks my packages for me!

Thanks Paulo. I promise I'll stop. I must confess; I do it for an excuse to see bubbles..

 

[ChaosRock]

I just realized something! @ChaosRock is my overburdened 247parcel.com! And he even tracks my packages for me!

Thanks Paulo. I promise I'll stop. I must confess; I do it for an excuse to see bubbles..

Hahahaha... Any time Steve! And Bubbles loves when you're around...

Btw, whener you're around next time on a Fri or Sat, let's try and get a game together with @detroitdad , @mike32 ...

 

[Quicksilver-75]

Hahahaha... Any time Steve! And Bubbles loves when you're around...

Btw, whener you're around next time on a Fri or Sat, let's try and get a game together with @detroitdad , @mike32 ...

Bubbles love it when ANYBODY is around. I love his big tough-guy barks when you're not home. It always makes me chuckle. I especially like the front-window stares cast by the suspicious neighbours...."there's those ontario plates again!"

 

[ChaosRock]

Bubbles love it when ANYBODY is around.

Yeah, true...

I especially like the front-window stares cast by the suspicious neighbours...."there's those ontario plates again!"

The underground US-CAN chip connection!!!

 

[slisk250]

I just realized something! @ChaosRock is my overburdened 247parcel.com! And he even tracks my packages for me!

Thanks Paulo. I promise I'll stop. I must confess; I do it for an excuse to see bubbles..

Never heard about 247parcel but someone I know here must really feel Paulo's pain!!!!! It's a funny story really and I'll share it in due time.

 

[Big Jilm]

Extra forms, extra costs (which are often haggled over by buyer), extra questions, extra time (including waiting in ridiculous lines up to an hour to drop off packages personally to a postal worker vs dropping them in a bin with no wait), odd requests to alter value of contents (which fucking pisses me off), and for some of the reasons listed above in dennis63's post. It is MUCH easier to ship CONUS. What?

I am not anti-global shipping, and I will do it; but I admit it is a PITA compared to CONUS.

 

[slisk250]

I just paid for those Flamingo 1s in Germany and covered the fees. I've never done it before but I worry about them getting to AZ safely. It is a risk due to shipping but I trust Felix.

 

[mipevi]

I've used the services of reshipping companies in the past to get what I want. Not just from the US, but from France and Germany too. Costs a bit more but has worked great.

So post your ConUS only sales, I understand it makes things easier for you, and if I want the item bad enough I'll still buy it from you. But don't post a sale giving priority to US residents over others, that makes the rest of us seem like second class chippers.

 

[manamongkids]

@Quicksilver-75 message me anytime there's a sale for a US only, I'll proxy for you. You tell me what you want, can ship to me and I'll reship. No sweat off my back and you've been great to deal with in the past

 

[MegaTon44]

Speaking as someone who just listed their first set of chips for sale and indicated CONUS as a shipping designation, I would like to apologize if anyone is offended by this. To be honest, I'm a very inexperienced seller of anything. I get nervous when I'm mailing anything, triple checking the address, over-insuring packages, trying to be super prepared so the post office employee doesn't look at me like I'm a moron.

Since joining this community a month ago, I have seen CONUS a lot, so I just figured I'd default to this for my first sale because I consider many of you folks experts. Is it being lazy? Possibly, because I'm sure I can dedicate enough time researching international shipment to assuage any paranoia I may have. In the future, I plan to reverse my ignorance, but I'm just trying to get a sale under my belt, even if narrowing my scope to the U.S. could lose me a buyer.

Irony = selling a poker chip set CONUS after buying the set from a Canadian company

 

[bergs]

But don't post a sale giving priority to US residents over others, that makes the rest of us seem like second class chippers.

I've seen alot of threads lately regarding people trying to influence how people sell their chips. It's not that your second class chippers - it's just that getting my chips from me to you across a vast ocean is a pain in the ass and involves more risk. If people don't like that, use proxies that take responsibility for the financial burden of the next hop over the water, but I don't think anyone should be trying to strong arm people into doing something they don't want to do.

 

[Quicksilver-75]

Speaking as someone who just listed their first set of chips for sale and indicated CONUS as a shipping designation, I would like to apologize if anyone is offended by this. To be honest, I'm a very inexperienced seller of anything. I get nervous when I'm mailing anything, triple checking the address, over-insuring packages, trying to be super prepared so the post office employee doesn't look at me like I'm a moron.

Since joining this community a month ago, I have seen CONUS a lot, so I just figured I'd default to this for my first sale because I consider many of you folks experts. Is it being lazy? Possibly, because I'm sure I can dedicate enough time researching international shipment to assuage any paranoia I may have. In the future, I plan to reverse my ignorance, but I'm just trying to get a sale under my belt, even if narrowing my scope to the U.S. could lose me a buyer.

Irony = selling a poker chip set CONUS after buying the set from a Canadian company

No worries Megaton. I don't want you to feel singled out. As I indirectly stated earlier I understand why you would be more cautious selling here vs eBay as you aren't well known to us and vice-versa. In my generalization of our community here I often forget that PCF gets new members all the time. Not to mention the bevy of members that have lives and hardly ever post . In my myopic view I take for granted the fact that I've known 90% of the people here for quite some time. On that note I am happy to say that unlike listing items on eBay, you are dealing with a fairly small community. And in furthering that notion, I would happily vouch for that 90%. And God bless Tommy for allowing us to buy and sell for FREE..

 

[Quicksilver-75]

@Quicksilver-75 message me anytime there's a sale for a US only, I'll proxy for you. You tell me what you want, can ship to me and I'll reship. No sweat off my back and you've been great to deal with in the past

I really appreciate that. I'm sure Paulo could use a break.

 

[bogart]

I have been curious about this for some time now as well. I think it's actually saved me a shit-tonne of $$ though, from all those TRK impulse buys I used to do!

 

[BGinGA]

Dennis and Big Jilm pretty much summed it up for me. No second-class issues, but 1) it's a pain-in-the-ass, and 2) it's a lot more risky financially. USPS won't even sell insurance on a SFRB that isn't domestic. Only packages I've ever had get lost forever were both overseas shipments. It's not only just the $$ risk, either - many of the shipments I send are irreplaceable chips, and I don't want them to disappear from the planet, even if I get reimbursed for their supposed 'value'. Limiting sales to CONUS is less risky, and less hassle.