[TenaciousTees]

Hello everyone,
I was wondering how to go about shipping charges for an internet shirt business. I have ben told that USPS is th cheapest, but are they the best???, who has the best prices??, and when is it better to set up a small business account with a courier( i.e. delivery company)???.
Thanks

 

[Rodney]

For t-shirts, USPS seems like a good choice. I'm pretty sure they have the best prices, and Priority Mail has a pretty decent delivery time and free tracking (if you do it online).

If you ship a lot of bulk orders or a high volume of orders, you may want to setup an account with UPS, FedEx or DHL or something like that if you can get good rates from them.

I occassionaly ship a shirt Next Day Air during the holidays for customers that specifically request it.

If you search for shipping here at the forums, I'm sure you'll find some other good threads about it as well

 

[TenaciousTees]

Thanks Rodney. Much appreciation.

 

[honeyflip]

I was wondering about those details myself. Thanks for the info, Rodney.

 

[MinusBlindfold]

I was wondering about those details myself. Thanks for the info, Rodney.

Same here. Also, Rodney, lets say one is barely starting and has sold a couple (lets say between 20-30) of shirts online, each shirt going to a different state (cont. 48). How much is the average cost to ship one shirt, and what packaging do you use, and the cost of the packaging? thanks for the help.

 

[Shuffy]

I'm with Rodney . . .

USPS is the best way to go for T-shirts---
1 tee normally ships in the US for $3.85 . . (under 1 lb)
4-5 Tee's is just at or a tad over 4 lbs -- however you can get 6 - 8 Tee's in a flat rate priority box for $7.70 ..
of course you have to learn how to fold the tee's for them to fit nicely . .
.. I have been told that I take to much time in my packing department . . L*~
anyway,...T-shirts orders over 8 -- it becomes a science -- as far as who to take your shipments to for the best rate on weight . . .

you can get your USPS shipping supplies from your local post office or order them online since the supplies are FREE . . (I loooove FREE) . . go for it . .

Personally, I use a flat rate e'lope and a tyvek e'lope for shipping 1 or 2 Tee's
3 or more Tee's then I tyvek the tee's and then put them in a priority box...
buyers like the idea of weather protection and the extra steps almost insures a repeat buy . . of course when the buyer opens their package . . it's like Christmas again . . LOL*~ . .
for orders that I ship to a different address other than the buyers address, I included a Greetng card from the gift giver to the gift receiver at no extra charge to the buyer . . . WHAT a great response I rec'd from that little FREE add on . .

and of course . . ALWAYS, always include a few extra business cards with a discount on the back for the gift giver and the giver receiver . .
your cost on giving FREE greeting cards and sending extra business cards, is less than 25 cents a buyer . . . BUT 25 cent 'might' bring you additional business in the near future . .

Diane

 

[Rodney]

Same here. Also, Rodney, lets say one is barely starting and has sold a couple (lets say between 20-30) of shirts online, each shirt going to a different state (cont. 48). How much is the average cost to ship one shirt, and what packaging do you use, and the cost of the packaging? thanks for the help.

1 t-shirt through the USPS Priority Mail (2-3 day average delivery time) currently costs $3.85 per shirt. Next week on January 8, 2006, the pricing will go up .20 cents to $4.05 for up to 1 pound Priority Mail.

Sometimes you can get 2 t-shirts in under a pound depending on the t-shirt size and weight (like 2 smalls is usually always under a pound, but 2 XXL is usually just over 1 pound).

You can get free packaging through the USPS website, which makes it even more attractive. I usually send shirts using their TYVEK envelopes here:
http://shop.usps.com/cgi-bin/vsbv/p...isplay_products/productDetail.jsp?OID=1684828
(which reminds me I need to order some more today )

I set my shipping at a flat rate of $4.95 for as many shirts as the customer wants. So far it works well. I don't have to change my shipping because of the recent price hike and it's still not too high. It all evens out when I ship orders that cost over $4.95