hoosierhiver
Well-known member
UPS has changed it's pricing, they are now basing cost on size of the package instead of weight. This is bad for large-ish, light weight packages like ukuleles, expect to pay more if you ship with UPS.
UPS has changed it's pricing, they are now basing cost on size of the package instead of weight. This is bad for large-ish, light weight packages like ukuleles, expect to pay more if you ship with UPS.
I don't think this is new. I have been paying for "dimensional weight" for quite some time now.
I don't think this is new. I have been paying for "dimensional weight" for quite some time now.
2nd that. UPS delivered a very poorly handled box but mim packed it really well and inside box with my kala was fine.I don't have a UPS or FEDEX account, and find the post office to be my best priced and safest option for shipping music items (guitars, ukes, amps, etc.).
I didn't think it was possible for UPS rates to get any higher! With gas prices going down it makes sense to raise rates (??!!??). USPS Express Mail is 40% of the cost of equivalent service with UPS. The post office gets all my business. FedEX would be my next choice if I could negotiate a good rate with them but I don't ship the volume necessary to qualify. I'd probably not ship at all if my only choice was UPS.
In PR we live in a gated condo. USPS has a key and can deliver inside the gate. The others will either leave us a note stuck to the gate, to pick it up, or they will just toss it over. I actually prefer the latter, as both of their pick up facilities are not easy for us to get to, considering that we rely on public transportation down there.I live in a rural area. My post office is 8 miles east from my house, the Fed Ex facility is 10 miles north of me, and UPS facility is about 10 miles south. My house is on a private graveled road half a mile away from the mailboxes on a secondary road (no line markers.) It is not a private road because I live in a snooty neighborhood. It is private because the county and state don't want to maintain it.
I normally don't mind when stuff is dropped off on my doorstep as the eaves will keep things fairly dry. I appreciate that somebody drove the extra half mile to get me my boxed online goods.
The downfall of my rural mail delivery is that not all carriers drop off at my doorstep. My laptop was left under the mailbox and sat out all day while I was at work. (It is halfway down the line of mailboxes in the attachment.)
So, I would rather pick up a ukulele at the UPS/USPS/Fed Ex facility than having it left for me. I liked that my three best ukes needed a signature from Fed Ex. I went there to pick up my goods from them. So for me, having a signature required is a good thing.
Shipping prices are something I factor in when I buy online. It might be that buying a ukulele in a hard case with minimal outside packing will have to be the way for me from now on.
But you have to appreciate an oxymoronic phrase like "dimensional weight." It's sort of like "fruit-flavored lighting."
I second what Main Mike said... (who is the best handler of packages can be debated for days... and has been... this is about a price increase)
I have had comparable quality from UPS and USPS. I usually "lose" one uke a year to damage from each of the delivery services. So I pack well and suck it up when/if it does happen... BUT...
I use USPS for east coast shipping because it is cheaper. UPS for west coast above a soprano for shipping.
What was once $15 to deliver a package to Arizona is now $28.
A shipment to Montana that usually is $12 is now $26.
And since I usually include shipping this is a sudden and unexpected blow to me and my business.
I get comments every now and then where people allude to the fact that they think I make a lot of money. But honestly, I make enough to get by, support my family, and we live simply as a result. So, the loss of $10-$15 a package is devastating to me and my business and is leaving me scrambling to find a better option. So, I am checking with FedEx and hoping they offer the same rural pick-up service that UPS offers because with this sudden and drastic price increase it really is going to put a major dent in my family's income and it worries me.