Stewmac shipping outrageously expensive and NOT eco-responsible

[Kevin Christianson]

As good as Stewmac's products might be their shipping charges are really exorbitant and eco-UNfriendly and irresponsible. If I want to buy an endpin or string pins which weight less than an ounce Stewmac will charge me over 8 dollars and use a big USPS fixed price box stuffed with paper for me to throw in the landfill. Why can't they use a bubble wrap envelope instead for small orders? LOL if I buy their Waverly endpin they charge about five bucks but I better buy something else because I'll be charged over 8 bucks for the huge box and the shipping cost. If I buy that same $5 item on Amazon I'll be charged over $15 dollars with "free shipping"! Yeah, don't lie -- the shipping charge is hidden inside your sale price.

[rickbella]

Have you contacted StewMac or Amazon to raise these valid-sounding issues?

[MikeEdgerton]

Just so I understand this, throwing out paper that breaks down and goes away in a landfill is less eco-responsible than using a bubble wrap plastic product that will never break down in a landfill and stay there forever? Interesting take. Totally contrary to conventional wisdom.

The price is what the price is, you have choices in this world. If you don't like the prices you can buy where you do like the prices.

[mandroid]

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[ajh]

I keep coming across outrageous shipping and handling charges for very small items.....and that does push me to other vendors or not to buy at all. Valid as they may be to the vendor that is why Amazon is so popular....the shipping charges. Not (necessarily) the prices. To me the "Eco" thing does take that argument to another place though. Not many people reuse bubble wrap even once.

[Bill McCall]

As good as Stewmac's products might be their shipping charges are really exorbitant and eco-UNfriendly and irresponsible........ If I buy that same $5 item on Amazon I'll be charged over $15 dollars with "free shipping"! Yeah, don't lie -- the shipping charge is hidden inside your sale price.

What a great business opportunity you have discovered.

[Murphy Slaw]

Different vendors have different rates. Shipping is high, unless you use the U.S. Mail these days.

Paper and trees are renewable, what's the big deal?

[Nick Gellie]

You can save a lot of money by paying annual membership fee. I get stuff shipped to Spain for free. It would cost me an arm and a leg otherwise.

[Sue Rieter]

Different vendors have different rates. Shipping is high, unless you use the U.S. Mail these days.

Paper and trees are renewable, what's the big deal?

Shipping is EXTREMELY expensive in general these days (in my recent experience). I doubt that a padded envelope would cost much less than that flat rate box. I sent a small padded envelope 2 towns over (same zone) recently; it cost almost $4. I also recently sent a (not giant) piece of framed artwork to my daughter across the country, and it cost over $30 to send. And just to grouse a tad more, it was Priority Mail (the price difference was small and I wanted it to spend less time in the system). It took a week and a half to get there.

Sue

Sue

[jim simpson]

It used to be that you needed a minimum to order from Stew-Mac so I would sometime check with friends who also needed stuff so I could put an order together to make it more economical. These days, I just look at a few things I could use and add them to my order. At least you don't have to have a minimum. Stew-Mac also sells on Ebay, they have their freight factored into the selling price. I would say overall, they are pretty smart to be able to maintain a specialty business.

[dscullin]

Here’s the scoop from stew Mac. If you order frequently, a membership might be cost effective.

https://www.stewmac.com/shipping.html

[Pittsburgh Bill]

[QUOTE=MikeEdgerton;1789474

The price is what the price is, you have choices in this world. If you don't like the prices you can buy where you do like the prices.[/QUOTE]

I agree with your assessment of the eco choice of paper vs. bubble wrap. However, your admonishment of the writers dislike of Stew Macs shipping costs might be a little strong and certainly uninformative. The buyer obviously likes Stew Mac's product line and perhaps other attributes Stew Mac may offer. He merely stated that he finds their shipping costs and practices distasteful. More appropriately, would be to inform the writer that shipping and handling are a profit center for the company. As per common business practice they could lower shipping costs but would then perhaps need to raise the price of their product line. Companies require revenue sources to remain in business. Obviously Stew Mac has found that marketing a lower price point on products and upcharging S & H generates more business than raising prices and lowering S & H costs would generate.
Either way it works out the same. May more or pay less S & H, but we are going to pay somewhere. That is life.

[pops1]

It's not just Stu Mac, a lot of places are charging more for shipping. For the last two years I have noticed many places charging more. They are paying someone to pack the box or envelope and hopefully they gave them some of the raise in shipping costs by a raise in their wages.

[Jeff Mando]

1. For the record, StewMac shipping has always been high, even 35 years ago.......I could add their products are priced high, as well....
2. People want shipping to be FREE, cheap shipping isn't good enough. I tried $2.00 shipping on my eBay sales thinking it would attract buyers (knowing it was costing me more than that to ship the item, but it didn't seem to help.....?)
3. Most anytime you buy one small item, like a pick or a bridge pin, the shipping will be more than the item -- StewMac or not....
4. Also, for the record, StewMac has some handy stuff that you can't get anywhere else, so there's that.
5. I hate add-on gimmicks, fine print, and last minute tricks, in general, BUT -- if you are in the instrument repair BUSINESS, the StewMaxx shipping membership is a good deal. I work for a shop where we order something every week -- great deal! For a hobbyist, maybe not.
6. I agree, it burns me up when a small item can ship for $3.75-4.00 and INSTEAD the seller uses an $8.30 flat rate box from USPS. It REALLY burns me up, when I pay the $8.30 and the seller sends it in his own box for $3.75 and keeps the difference........do that daily and it's like he's getting free lunch, courtesy of his buyers....
7. Contrary to logic, you can't stick a bridge pin in a letter envelope and put a stamp on it and expect it to get there BECAUSE the post office has rollers that the mail passes through and will "squeeze" out the item. That's why you sometimes receive empty envelopes in the mail! Sometimes you get lucky, I used to do it all the time, sending small screws, etc. -- usually it works fine, but that is no way to run a business, IMHO.

whoops, I better stop before this turns into a rant..........

[MikeEdgerton]

I agree with your assessment of the eco choice of paper vs. bubble wrap. However, your admonishment of the writers dislike of Stew Macs shipping costs might be a little strong and certainly uninformative. The buyer obviously likes Stew Mac's product line and perhaps other attributes Stew Mac may offer. He merely stated that he finds their shipping costs and practices distasteful. More appropriately, would be to inform the writer that shipping and handling are a profit center for the company. As per common business practice they could lower shipping costs but would then perhaps need to raise the price of their product line. Companies require revenue sources to remain in business. Obviously Stew Mac has found that marketing a lower price point on products and upcharging S & H generates more business than raising prices and lowering S & H costs would generate.
Either way it works out the same. May more or pay less S & H, but we are going to pay somewhere. That is life.

The sun came up this morning. It will go down tonight. You don't have a choice on that one, it will happen no matter what. If you don't like the prices a company charges then you have choices. You can buy from them and dislike the price, you can buy someplace else or you can choose not to buy. There really isn't an argument to be made of that assessment. You make an assumption about the OP's inability to recognize a company profit center. I choose not to assume they are unable to make that assessment. You've gone to great lengths to explain what everyone here probably already knows and has it helped anyone? I don't know. I stand by my answer.

[DougC]

Yea, there is that 'take it or leave it' comment again. Makes you feel powerful doesn't it? Actually you're being screwed like the rest of us. 'The way things are' are that way because we did not find alternatives earlier. So thank the original poster for the effort.
Speaking of alternatives, I think Elderly instruments has better shipping prices.

[Pittsburgh Bill]

The sun came up this morning. It will go down tonight. You don't have a choice on that one, it will happen no matter what. If you don't like the prices a company charges then you have choices. You can buy from them and dislike the price, you can buy someplace else or you can choose not to buy. There really isn't an argument to be made of that assessment. You make an assumption about the OP's inability to recognize a company profit center. I choose not to assume they are unable to make that assessment. You've gone to great lengths to explain what everyone here probably already knows and has it helped anyone? I don't know. I stand by my answer.

Your point is well taken and I do not disrespect your point of view. I'm just not so sure the OP fully understands the costs companies charge for S & H. If he already had that understanding, would he have complained about their S & H charges? Perhaps, but I think perhaps not.
You were not the one that made the complaint about S & H costs. Thus the reason I went to great lengths to explain what you, me, and perhaps many others already know. My post was in an attempt to be helpful to the OP and not to be helpful to those not asking the question.
Peace

[j. condino]

I get a lot more frustrated when I pay good money for an item and they drop it in a 35 cent unpadded envelope that allows it to get destroyed during shipping than when I pay an honest price and they overpack it.

It is a sad state when we live in times where a greedy corporate %$#@off like Bezos has such a hold on our society that people come to expect things like free shipping as being acceptable and they somehow have no connection to thousands of workers getting paid sub par wages under questionable and or dangerous circumstances. Every time you make a decision insisting on free shipping, the consequences trickle down...

[Drew Egerton]

Yea, it's a worldwide issue unfortunately and not just one vendor.

I'm obsessed with buying old records on Discogs though, and you can usually get multiple records through media mail for about $4-5.

[Roger Adams]

I don't think I will be losing a lot of sleep over this......

[DougC]

I don't think I will be losing a lot of sleep over this......

Maybe you should be. Monopoly is just a board game. Right?

[sliebers]

I reuse the paper for many things, packaging, fire starter, to protect my workbench when staining, etc. What I don't use gets recycled. Amazon almost always uses a giant box for small items packed with bubble wrap or "eco-friendly" plastic bags filled with air. Amazon also uses tons of plastic bubble wrap envelopes. Those will be around forever.

Stew Mac has always had high shipping costs. Not as bad as some companies. It's the way it is. There really is no free shipping.

[HoGo]

Here’s the scoop from stew Mac. If you order frequently, a membership might be cost effective.

https://www.stewmac.com/shipping.html

That is true. Especially if you order few things from outside of US it will pay off twice. First the membership costs you probably less than shipping of relatively small item overseas and the taxes/VAT are typically calculated from full price including shipping cost so that will be lower too.
I don't care about most of their specialty gizmos but I've had good experience with their tuners and few things that are hard to get elsewhere.

[Nick Gellie]

You have to be a Prime member here in Europe to get free shipping. The same goes for Stewmac. Because I order more than a couple of things at a time from Stewmac it is worth it. Saved me a bunch.