Hello again, reader
In this post, I just want to give a brief and honest overview of my shipping prices, and explain some of the options.
I’ll start with Japan:
1) standard shipping - this is the cheapest option and is the cheapest. The positive point is the price, it’s rather affordable, however, the con is that it’s not insured. This means if the print is damaged or lost during shipment, I won’t be able to replace it or provide a refund. (reasons explained below)
2) Insured: this one is a little more pricey, but if you really care about the piece you are ordering I strongly recommend it. The negative point is that it’s more expensive, but only by about 3usd. The positive point is that is that all shipments are insured up to 50,000jpy. This means if the shipment is lost or damaged, it can be replaced or refunded.
Now on to abroad (Outside Japan):
A quick note first. these shipping prices are the lowest possible prices, for the time being. These may go up if JP Post refuses to let me classify my prints as a “small package” rather than a “letter”… the red tape here is weird sometimes, if I even write a “thank you” note, it will count as a “letter” and the shipping will double… that being said, I’m going to try to slip one in there, because it seems like a decent thing to do.
Unfortunately, I only provide standard shipping abroad, and the main reason is price. If I were to offer insured shipping, it would be an additional 1400-2200jpy, which I think is a little unreasonable, especially since my prices are low for a reason. In my future, I may make this available in select areas, if there is a high demand for it. However, at this point, I’ve already had to make so many shipment settings my head is spinning. The biggest drawback of this standard shipping is the same as above, as soon as the print leaves my hands, there’s not much I can do, in terms of ensuring its safe delivery. Unfortunately, this also means I won’t be able to provide refunds or replacements for anything lost of damaged in the mail, and I’ll explain why below.
Packing:
For each and every print, I will take every precaution to ensure prints arrive safely. Each one will be in a sturdy package to prevent bending, covered in protective paper and plastic to prevent scratches and water damage, and my A3 prints will have an extra piece of cardboard in the sturdy envelop to prevent further bending (my A4 and smaller prints shouldn’t require this cardboard - but I may add some, if I can get my hands on more). My larger prints will be shipped in a cardboard tube/box and wrapped in paper. Unfortunately I’m unable to find plastic big enough to put these prints in, but perhaps I can cover it in a garbage bag or something… or would that send the wrong message? . All of this is to say I’ve taken every possible precaution within my budget to keep my shipments protected and if something arrives damaged, someone tried really hard to damage it.
Refunds and replacements:
Being as honest as possible, the reason I can’t provide refunds on my low price shipping is because I’m not a multi-million dollar company that has money to throw around. I’m just one guy, a small “artist”, working out of his house. Unfortunately, I don’t have the resources to replace any uninsured prints, as a second print would put me in the red. You can read all about how much I’m making, in general, for each print in this post here. Again, as I mentioned above, I might make insured shipping available in select locations, but the prices are quite high.
Thank you for reading. I hope this didn’t come across as too direct, but I believe in being open and honest about my options and prices. As I’ve said many times, I’m just a small time photographer trying to start a business, of sorts, so a lot of this is still a work in progress and will hopefully become easier over time. I appreciate your understanding and your willingness to take a chance on a small artist.