Interntational Shipping at GouletPens.com

For the longest time I didn't have international shipping available at GouletPens.com. Why? Because there are so many factors with automating international shipping online......cost of the items, weight, size, and location! It all factors in to the price of shipping, and my web store just isn't capable of interpreting so many factors. The main issue is size and shape of the items purchased.

I ship every international package via USPS Priority Flat-rate. It's about 1/4 of the price of UPS or Fedex on just about every quote I do. There are 3 flat-rate box sizes to work with:

Envelope: This is a 9.5"x12.5" cardboard envelope that costs $13.45. Weight limit is 4 pounds. In it I can fit 3 or 4 A5-size journals, a couple of paper tablets, or several bottles of ink.

Medium Box: There are two versions; 13.625"x11.875"x3.375" or 11"x8.5"x5.5". Weight limit is 20 pounds. In it I can fit a lot, like 10 A4 size notebooks, or a couple of dozen bottles of ink. This box size is the assumed shipping method on GouletPens.com.

Large Box: 12" x 12" x 5 1/2", weight limit 20 pounds. I can fit a bunch of stuff, even more than the medium box (duh)!

There's no simple way for me to automate the most efficient packaging solution for international packages through GouletPens.com, so for a while I didn't have it as an option. I would simply take orders via email and work everything through Paypal. But I've changed that now. I wanted to make it easier to purchase internationally. The only thing is, all of the packaging issues are still there!

Here's and example:

Package A: 12 bottles of J. Herbin ink in a USPS flat rate envelope ships anywhere in the world for $13.45 (plus the cost of the ink!).

Package B: 1 bottle of J. Herbin and 1 No. 19 Rhodia dotpad, it won't fit in an envelope so it has to go in a box for $43.45 (plus the item cost).

Even though Package A with the 12 inks are much more expensive, because I can pack them efficiently, the shipping cost is about 1/4 of the price of the much cheaper package B.

So here's what I've done: if you purchase internationally through GouletPens.com, it's going to assume the medium box shipping price. If I can fit it in an envelope (or two, which is still cheaper than a box), I will, and I'll only charge you what it actually costs to ship. This way, you can check out at your leisure, use a credit card or paypal, and get your package faster (since it's much easier for me to process orders placed through my website). It's a win for everyone!