One of the questions we get at our events is; why are your shipping costs seemingly expensive? For the uninitiated who haven’t ordered wine on line the cost can come as a surprise sometimes.
We survey all of our guests and host’s every month to make sure that our company’s innovative free wine tasting events never lose their luster.
The facts are – our clients agree with us.
- 98% were satisfied with the event they attended or hosted
- 98% said the quality of wine they sampled was excellent, good, or very good
- 9/10 would recommend attending a TTV tasting event to someone else
- 95% rated their consultant as excellent or very good on fun and friendly
- 97% said wines represented an average to very good value
- 95% said shipping was faster than expected or as expected
However, regarding shipping expense…..In our most recent May, 2012 survey we asked:
How would you rate the shipping fees of the wine?
- 42% said more expensive than I expected
- 55% said average – what I expected
- 3% said less expensive than I expected
Wine shipments are very heavy
In order to avoid a long blog about shipping expense. Let me break it down. It’s just plain expensive to ship via UPS or FEDEX a box that weighs 35 – 40 pounds, or even a wine bottle that weighs 3 pounds, or a typical purchase of three bottles weighing 10 pounds to a residential address, that requires an adult signature (those are all additional fees charged). Remember to add the fuel surcharges that the carriers have piled on over the last few years. Now compare that with a small party plan purchase of a few pieces of jewelry weighing less than a pound? It’s a very substantial difference. We know our customers can go to the store and buy without shipping expense. But that’s not the point. At a Traveling Vineyard event you get so much more….edutainment, socializing, lots of pairing ideas, amazing wines, and most importantly FUN!
We’ve held our shipping fees to the same rates for almost two years. $8.95 is the starting point and our competitors and other internet retailers start at $15.00.
All in all, pretty fair we think.
Recently attended a tasting. There were about 16 guests. We had fun, enjoyed the conversation and each other’s comments on the wine. At the end as we were making our selections the rep told us it is $9.99 shipping to your host whether you buy one bottle or a case…” I saw many jaws drop. My friend and I out our orders together so at least shipped two bottles for $9.99, but the overall opinion in the room was that it was very high. For all guests individually that would have been about $160 in shipping collected. Ridiculous in my opinion. I don’t even want to know the charge to have it shipped to your own door!
I realize that shipping rates are high. However, it seems that since the wine comes all in one box, and not individual boxes by customer, it would actually be cheaper and easier to give a shipping percentage rather than a flat rate. I think 1 customer ordering 5 bottles of wine understands that her shipping should be more than 1 customer ordering 1 bottle of wine. If I am ordering a $14.99 bottle of wine (plus tax) and paying $8.95 for shipping, I am almost paying double for 1 bottle.
Also, consultant shipping should bundled. I should not have to pay 2 $10.00 shipping fees to get wine and other items that could’ve been shipped in one box. Personal, supply, and tasting set orders should be bundled together. Otherwise, all of my profits are going to shipping. Not only is it not fair, it is a deterrent to becoming a Traveling Vineyard Consultant.
When you breakdown it down compare shipping The Traveling Vineyard is offering value shipping! If I am shipping something United States Post Office - for a package a little bit bigger then a slice of pizza the cost starts at $5.35 today. So when you think about a bottle of wine, fragile, liquid, and a regulated - $8.95 is a steal! =)
I ship presents to family and friends around the country and let me say it’s EXPENSIVE. No matter if you use USPS, UPS or FedEx it costs a bundle. I think our cost of $8.95 is such a bargain. Cheers to TTV! I know you guys are subsidizing a lot of the shipping costs and I want to THANK YOU for that.
I had a similar experience to Maureen. We inquired about a wine we found in restaurant by calling the winery - $65 to ship a case! Most wineries will charge $35 and retailers try to charge less. I did belong to a wine club that was $19.95 per case. I recently bought a heart rate monitor (size of a watch) - $12 to ship. It’s rare to see online shipping rates under $10 nowadays unless there is a deal to reel you in. Instead, Traveling Vineyard’s wines and shipping are fairly priced every time. Cheers to that!
Indeed…very fair! I was looking for a wine that I had the pleasure of trying at a local restaurant. It is not available locally so I was interested in ordering a few bottles to have shipped to my home. The shipping price STARTED at $20 for just one bottle! I was shocked to say the least. I did not buy any. I would much rather pay $8.95 for one or 12 bottles of wine from The Traveling Vineyard or even the $11.95 to have it shipped directly to my home.