This year, we've learned a lot about international shipping, and I wanted to take a moment to share some of that information with you.

First, why don’t we offer international shipping on our main website? The answer is simple: we can’t. Our site is hosted by Squarespace, and unfortunately, they don’t provide the ability to accurately calculate international shipping costs. They only allow a fixed shipping rate per country, which isn’t practical. Because of this, we direct all of our international customers to our sister site on Etsy.

Etsy does allow international shipping, but it’s not without its own issues. The main problem is that Etsy only lets us input the dimensions and weight of a single size per listing. Most of our products are available in multiple sizes, and the cost of shipping a 16-inch sign is significantly less than shipping a 28-inch sign across borders.

To handle this, we include detailed shipping information in each product description. If the shipping charge isn’t enough to cover the actual cost, we contact the customer with the correct shipping rates.

Over the past year, we’ve found that USPS International is often the cheapest option for shipping overseas. However, the issue with USPS is that once the package crosses the border, it’s handed off to another carrier. There are many carriers worldwide, and some don’t offer tracking. Packages may even be transferred between multiple carriers. For example, we shipped an order to Norway on 11/28/20, and it didn’t arrive until the first week of January—a common issue with international shipping.

We now offer additional shipping options, including FedEx, DHL, and UPS Worldwide. While these carriers are more expensive, they offer door-to-door service with full tracking, and delivery usually occurs within a week.

Duties and taxes are another important topic. Some countries don’t charge import fees, while others do. For example, we ship frequently to Canada, and the fees there can be almost as high as the price of the item. Major carriers also charge a brokerage fee of around $30, along with various other fees and taxes.

There is a way to bypass brokerage fees, and we provide information on this process after a purchase is made. When shipping internationally, we notify the buyer once the package has shipped and include a shipping manifest, along with a gift receipt if the item was bought as a gift. This gives the customer the option to avoid paying brokerage fees. If you’re importing into the UK, we provide additional details specific to that process.

I hope this information is helpful and informative. Thanks for taking the time to read!