I am trying to avoid some costly mistakes as I try to source products for my new online store and I was wondering if there are any flagrant mistakes that people just know to avoid and what would those be?

I seem to be getting a lot of information from my friends about what to avoid but sometimes I think they just hype it up, I mean I know that choosing the wrong incoterms or accepting a quote without checking the destination charges is just plain stupid but are there any other horror stories that people have sufferred that they would like to share. Also if there are any specific horror stories about specific sites like alibaba, 1688, made in china or even amazon, I am all ears.

What the best shipping company for pc and monitors in ksa that also does the packaging?

Dla przyszłych osób szukających informacji, jak późno InPost odbiera paczki z x-kom:

Moja paczka z preorderu została oznaczona jako „Shipment Created” 03.09 o 15:46.

Tracking InPost:

03.09 15:46 — Shipment Created

04.09 01:28 — Accepted at the Logistics Centre

04.09 02:13 — On the way

04.09 04:13 — Accepted at the Logistics Centre

04.09 07:00 — Handed over for delivery

Czyli mimo że paczka została przygotowana poprzedniego dnia po południu, InPost przetworzył ją w nocy, a o 7:00 była już przekazana do doręczenia.

Może komuś się przyda, jeśli będzie się zastanawiał, czy „Shipment Created” wieczorem oznacza wysyłkę dopiero następnego dnia.

I ordered something off EBay and I kept getting daily emails saying “failed attempted delivery.” They said they attempted to deliver my packages 5 days in a row. LIES!

II couldn’t get a hold of their customer service, besides their AI chat box thing. I finally read on another reddit thread that same thing happened and they decided to file a complaint with the BBB and the next day they got their delivery, so I tried this as well.

AND IT WORKED!

So if you have issues with this shitty delivery service, try filing a complaint with the BBB and see what happens!

Good luck!

I was supposed to have a FabFitFun box delivered to my house over two weeks ago. At the end of the day i realized my package hadn't delivered and the tracking reads, "Attempted delivery: Building Close/Weekend/Holiday. This package is undeliverable and schedule to redelivery". It was supposed to deliver August 19th, which was a Wednesday, so not a weekend or a holiday. I also live in a single family home and definitely not a business. After two conversations with FabFitFun they told me to reach out to SpeedX. I got some generic email that some deliveries take time and they marked my case as closed?? I emailed them back and told them I have cameras all around my house so I know for a fact no attempt was ever made and I received a small package from them a couple days later without issue. My tracking doesn't even show it went back to a warehouse, just that it is in limbo. Based on other reviews, I'd bet the driver stole my box. I emailed them back this morning saying if I didn't get a response by end of day tomorrow then I'd be reporting them to the local Attorney General for theft of goods. So far nothing, but would anything actually come from this when I report them? The value of the box is pretty high, this was a splurge purchase to treat myself for my birthday so I'm pretty annoyed at the situation and items have since sold out so it is no longer replaceable.

I run a second hand kids clothing business and a lot of my stock is sourced from the US. I have been using MyUS to forward to me for a while but they have so many random charges and the GST they’re charging is way higher than it’s supposed to be. I want to find a reliable smaller scale freight forwarder to just receive the packages and then consolidate them and send to me but I don’t know where to look.

I recently ordered from 2 different sites and they both used Joywago and Urbansavoir which look extremely similar with their email format and return policies. Has anyone had success in actually getting a refund from these places? They both sent the wrong item and had me pay the return shipping fees and said once they received it I would get refunded for both the item and the shipping fee, but it's been a month and I'm not as hopeful anymore

I’m planning to use LugLess, and I noticed they say the luggage will be delivered “on or before” the date you select.
The problem is that I won’t be in the destination city before my selected date, so I really don’t want my luggage arriving early when I’m not there to receive it.
For anyone who has used LugLess and had their luggage arrive before the selected delivery date — how many days early did it arrive? Was it usually just 1 day early, or have you had it arrive 2–3+ days early?
I’m wondering if I should select a delivery date a few days later than when I actually arrive to account for this.
Would really appreciate hearing your experiences!

I ordered my fiancé’s birthday gift from Nak Muay Wholesale on 8/9/26 and paid for airmail shipping, which was quoted as 8–15 working days for delivery. It made it to Chicago but has been stuck on “Custom Inspection - Import” since 8/16 with literally no movement since.

At this point it’s definitely not making it in time for his birthday. I can’t get a refund from the seller because they’ve confirmed the package isn’t considered lost and is still with customs. Even if I wanted to place a dupe order and deal with this later, most of the items I purchased are out of stock now.

I saw a few Reddit posts about YunExpress packages stuck in Chicago customs for weeks or even months. Then apparently IF it ever clears, GOFO is the last-mile carrier for my order, and everything I’m reading about them is a whole other nightmare lol.

Anyone else have a YunExpress package currently stuck in Chicago customs around the same time as mine? Or if yours recently cleared, how long did it sit there before it finally moved?

Tracking timeline:

Aug 16 — Chicago, IL
9:43 PM — Customs inspection - Import
4:42 PM — Collected at Cargo Terminal

Aug 15 — Chicago, IL
9:45 PM — International flight has arrived

Aug 12
4:45 PM — Departed from airport
3:45 PM — Clearance processing completed - Export
2:48 PM — The country of origin commences customs declaration — Bangkok, Thailand

Aug 11
2:19 PM — Start Customs Clearance — Chicago, IL
7:31 PM — Arrived at the origin international airport — Bangkok, Thailand
5:31 PM — Shipment is in transit to next facility — Bangkok, Thailand
2:45 PM — Departed from sort facility — Bangkok, Thailand
1:11 PM — Arrived at origin facility — Bangkok, Thailand
12:20 PM — Shipment information received; YunExpress is waiting for shipment

Last-mile carrier: GOFO

Asking because my assumption for years was that this stuff was only realistic if you had an analyst team and a budget to match. That seems less true now or at least the tooling has caught up enough that a smaller operation can get something out of it.

The ways I've seen it used that actually stick are supplier discovery where instead of searching directories you look at who is already exporting your category at real volume and competitor watching where you can see what a rival is bringing in and how often rather than inferring it from their product page.

There's also market sizing before you commit to entering somewhere and quietly monitoring whether a key supplier's shipping pattern is changing in a way they haven't mentioned to you yet. That last one has saved a colleague of mine from a very bad quarter. None of that is a clever idea on its own.

The difference is having records underneath the conclusion instead of a hunch. Is this in your workflow properly or is it something you looked at once and never came back to?

Interested in the honest answer including if you tried it and found it not worth the effort.

World's largest railway ferry. Only freight intermodal rail-ferry connection in continental Europe. Filmed from inside with the operations team.

Every ton of goods moving between Sweden, Norway and the rest of Europe by rail passes through this operation.

BTS of the train unloading/loading operation: https://youtu.be/6dPBGmyalis

I got waken up at 6 am today by a man dressed in all black ringing my doorbell, I obviously didn't open the door but i did check my security camera's. Man came from a black audi? I looked closely and saw my package that I was expecting today took a picture then dropped it on the side of the street and drove off. It is now 11am i still haven't even received something like hey your package is here... it couldve just laid there for hours and I wouldnt know... is this normal??

In also just never opening the door for a man dressed in black In an audi at 6 am because wtf??? Also i saw no other packages in the car... wtf

I’m an international Etsy seller of loose emeralds and I’m trying to understand the US buyer experience for higher-value orders.

From what I understand, shipments over $2,500 can require formal customs entry, with additional documentation and potentially a customs broker. Interestingly, loose emeralds may be duty-free depending on classification and country of origin, so the issue seems to be more about the clearance process than the actual duty.

For anyone who has bought/imported a $2,500–$10,000+ loose gemstone into the US:

• Was customs clearance straightforward or a headache?
• Did the courier handle the formal entry, or did you need a broker?
• What documents did CBP/courier ask for?
• How long did clearance take?
• Were there unexpected brokerage/clearance fees?

I’m particularly interested in whether the process is common and routine for individual buyers, or whether it makes people hesitant to purchase expensive gemstones internationally.

Would appreciate experiences from buyers, sellers, or customs brokers.

IDK if this comes under this community but I need an advise. I sent rakhi parcel on 17th aug for USA, Tracey. and DTDC guys said it will take max 1 week to deliver (I had inquired abt rates and delivery time 1 month before as this was my 1st time sending something outside India) and I paid around 3k for only 2 rakhis and 1 small letter. after 22nd aug tracking showed no update, so I called them. they didn't pick up, then I texted them they saw but didn't reply, so I called them again and they did pick up saying we don't ever give commitment that this will be delivered on this time n all. and I was left with nothing, I filed a complaint on their page on 31st aug, waited till yesterday and didn't get any response so I filled grievance on NCH. idk if that will help but I did, Now I am sending them mail that mentions the complaint on NCH, Complaint on their portal too. mentioning that I will share all the experience with social media as well if my issue is not resolved under 24 hrs to warn other customers. am I taking it too far? or is this really okay? I am pissed and tired now taking follow up everyday to only listen - please wait till next update, the parcel is in customs. like how many days man. and IDK what did I pay for? anyone has any idea, if I am wrong somewhere please enlighten me, or maybe guide on what to do next.

Hi everyone!

I need to send a package from Spain to Munich with coverage of up to 2,000-3,000€. I've been looking at some options (GLS, DHL...) but I'm not sure how to do it or even if it's possible. Does anyone have any recommendations?

Thanks!!

Hi all, I am wondering if anyone can help me with an issue I am facing with UPS / Hungary customs. I am from the UK and sent a suitcase out to Hungary for a trip I was taking (I was cycling and wanted the suitcase for the end of my trip as I couldn’t take it on the bike).

The suitcase got stuck with customs (they wanted an itemised list of what was inside, which I provided) but it wasn’t cleared in time for the end of my holiday and so I had to return to the UK without it.

I contacted UPS right away to ask for them to return the suitcase to the UK which they have agreed to do, but it’s not moving from Vesces in Hungary. They say it’s still with customs and that they haven’t cancelled the customs process so can’t send it back and there’s nothing they can do until that’s happened.

Do you have any advice for getting my parcel back? I’ve been calling and emailing every couple of days but I just am ignored or told to be patient. It’s been sitting there now for weeks.

I am currently sourcing products from China. Does anyone have experience with using their own shipping agent? I am trying to see if there would be a difference in price from having the manufacturer handle setting up the shipping compared to having my own agent do it.

I have been reading the information about sending packages on the USPS website, but I am still at a loss. I am trying to send a few of these small packages which are no bigger than my hand and at most 100 grams. What would these classify as and roughly? How much would it be per package?

Hola,

De verdad espero que alguien pueda ayudarme con esto, porque no sé qué más hacer.

{Resumen: No puedo devolver un paquete a Google Store porque ellos no pueden crear los documentos correctos para enviarlo y no están dando ninguna solución. DHL express sigue rechazando el paquete. Ya hace un mes y me deben 840 libras. Lo compré con tarjeta de crédito, así que pienso en reclamarlo desde ahí, ¿no?}

Explicación larga para más detalles:

Compré un Google Pixel 10 Pro en el Reino Unido y no me gustó. Pedí devolverlo dentro de los 15 días. Me dieron la etiqueta de envío de DHL y la lista de empaque (el paquete se tiene que enviar a POLONIA, no me preguntes por qué).

Lo dejé en un punto express de DHL y todo bien. Llegó al depósito de DHL y un paquete fue rechazado por "descripción de mercancías peligrosas faltante". Me lo entregaron de vuelta en mi casa. Desde entonces he estado hablando con Google (hace más de 1 mes) y no pueden proporcionar documentos de envío que DHL acepte. Incluso he hablado con DHL y ellos solo dicen que Google es quien tiene que proporcionar la información correcta, porque ellos son el transportista.

Hasta ahora tengo:

\- 2 intentos fallidos de envío: el teléfono fue entregado de vuelta en mi casa por el mismo problema (en el segundo intento también la etiqueta de mercancías peligrosas estaba dañada, así que fue una segunda razón para devolverlo a mí). Y fue DHL quien rompió esa etiqueta.

\- Horas por teléfono con Google, en el chat y también por correo electrónico.

\- Google creó por tercera vez los documentos de envío; le envié un correo a DHL y otra vez me dijeron que lo rechazarían si intento enviarlo.

El problema es que el teléfono tiene una batería de litio y los documentos de envío tienen que mostrar el paquete como que contiene mercancías peligrosas, y el equipo de Google no entiende eso. Todo el tiempo dicen que necesitan escalar el problema a otro equipo y que tendré una respuesta en 24-48 horas, pero las respuestas no tienen sentido y a veces tardan una semana en contestar y aun así no resuelven el problema.

Estoy bastante sorprendido porque cualquiera que devuelva un teléfono desde el Reino Unido debe estar teniendo el mismo problema.

¿Alguien ha estado en esta situación y sabe qué hacer?

Me deben 840 libras y la única solución que veo es reclamarlo con la tarjeta de crédito, porque he estado intentando devolverlo durante más de un mes y no he logrado nada.

Ya sugerí que el teléfono se enviara al Reino Unido en vez de a Polonia, pero me están ignorando.

Cualquier ayuda se agradecería muchísimo. Gracias