Delivery companies abroad

[Paullas]

Ok so i brought this up in a thread but would like to ask here if that's ok.

I have a product i want to get in the expat market but i am struggling trying to get competitive prices on shipping abroad. My product is between £5-£10 and is a parcels that fits in a standard letterbox so isn't that big. Can anyone recommend

A: Can people list who they use to ship abroad and how have you negotiated shipping abroad deals.
B: an anyone help/advise on tapping the expat market ( has anyone done this before)

Thanks in advance.

 

[ian]

As mentioned in the other thread, my company use Interlink Express and they have been excellent. What I can't factor for is whether your customers would pay £10+ for postage on an item worth less; I doubt it, which leaves you with standard Royal Mail Airmail which isn't actually too bad.

 

[Paullas]

Hi ian.

I will be creating an expat package which will be £14.99 so if i can get delivery say £4.99 i think it should be ok. Just trying to find the right people to speak to about this i am finding hard at the moment. as i just get general replies saying look on the website for charges.

 

[ian]

If you set up an account with a courier, you'll get substantially better rates, but unless you are sending thousands per day, you'll get no where near £4.99 for a trackable 'courier' service to Europe and beyond.

What you could achieve just through the post office (or Royal Mail collection if you eventually send enough) is standard airmail, which is just a few £ depending on weight.

Through the course of my business, I've used every single courier and service; some with success, others without, but obviously the product will ultimately determine the service to use.

 

[Paullas]

If you set up an account with a courier, you'll get substantially better rates, but unless you are sending thousands per day, you'll get no where near £4.99 for a trackable 'courier' service to Europe and beyond.

What you could achieve just through the post office (or Royal Mail collection if you eventually send enough) is standard airmail, which is just a few £ depending on weight.

Through the course of my business, I've used every single courier and service; some with success, others without, but obviously the product will ultimately determine the service to use.

Thanks for the reply, i will do some more digging around for the best places and compare them to what the post office offers. This is all new to me so still learning along the way.

 

[ian]

Give me a shout if you need any guidance.

 

[Skinner]

We used to use DHL and UPS, with both of them as your volume grows, so does your discount. They are also amenable to short term discounts for you to do special offers.

Both of them will often get more flexible if you work some kind of exclusivity as well.

In the UK we use DPD, the only word I can use to describe them is Outstanding. I've not used to them for outside the UK but maybe worth a look.

 

[ian]

For the record, DPD and Interlink Express are owned by the same parent company, Geopost, using some of the same hubs and helping each other out. They dominate the UK market because of their 'predict' services etc.

I use to use UPS but eventually got sick of their 'residential' charge; a levy of ~£1.50 they put on every parcel to a home; it was ridiculous and believe they still have this nonsense charge. It was open to abuse too, as drivers would select the delivery was residential and gain a further commission in their pay!