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why not ship to Canada??????

Started by jimpapa, 03/05/2009 09:32PM
Posted 03/05/2009 09:32PM Opening Post
Why do so many u.s sellers refuse to ship to Canada.
it doesn't cost them anything. any duty charges are billed to buyer.

is it ignorance?
they don't want the additional 33 million customers?
conus is easier to spell then Canada?

would be interesting to know.

Posted 03/05/2009 09:48PM #1
Jim,

My only problem with doing business with Canadians has been the very slow and inconsistent mail service. Mail that takes 2~3 days within CONUS takes weeks or a month to/from Canada. I've mailed stuff to Finland, Poland and Chile and had it get there faster. What's up with the mail service?
Posted 03/05/2009 10:19PM #2
jim papa said:

Why do so many u.s sellers refuse to ship to Canada.
it doesn't cost them anything. any duty charges are billed to buyer.

is it ignorance?
they don't want the additional 33 million customers?
conus is easier to spell then Canada?

would be interesting to know.


This is probably a good opportunity for me to be better educated on the matter. If I put an item up for sale and shipped it to a buyer in Canada, does it cost me more to ship it there? Assuming I'm only accepting money orders, do I get paid in U.S. dollars, or do I have to deal with currency exchange?

I probably sound ignorant here, but if I know that it isn't any more of a hassle to ship to Canada, I wouldn't have a problem with it.

Oklahoma State University--The University of Oklahoma!--GO POKES!! GO STATE!!
Posted 03/06/2009 04:11AM #3
Don't forget people, once the mail gets up here on the Northern side of the border, all the mail is delivered by dog sled. wink


Posted 03/06/2009 05:31AM #4
So, let me ask this: if customs is the gating factor, does this mean that the delays
are carrier independent? That is, have the same loooong delays been known to
occur when the USPS and Canada Post are eliminated from the equation by using,
say, UPS or FedEx? [ Or, do they use sled dogs too? ]

Thanks,
Dan

Posted 03/06/2009 10:46AM | Edited 03/06/2009 10:49AM #5
jim papa said:

Why do so many u.s sellers refuse to ship to Canada.
it doesn't cost them anything. any duty charges are billed to buyer.

is it ignorance?
they don't want the additional 33 million customers?
conus is easier to spell then Canada?

would be interesting to know.


As others have said, there are a variety of reasons. Some of us are just lazy, I am pretty lazy when it comes to shipping stuff, it is something I dislike doing and any added complication, filling out customs forms for example...

Anyway. One issue that has not been discussed is payment. I sold a scope to someone in Canada and all went well except for the fact that he paid me with a Canadian money order.

Well, US banks, at least my US bank, don't just cash Canadian Money Orders, they put them up for collection which takes several weeks and IMMSMW, cost me $10. If you are doing Paypal, (which I don't do), you can avoid payment hassles and I believe there are Canadian money orders that are more cashable in the US.

My main point is for anyone doing business with someone in Canada, make sure you are aware of the various payment issues before you enter the transaction.

But the main reason for not selling equipment to Canada, it's too cold up there and I don't think my equipment would ever forgive me for sending it away from the moderate temperatures of San Diego... smile




Jon