SOS - why is your shipping so high?

[CL65 Captain]

I was going to purchase new RB rotors from SOS, but noticed that shipping was $70. Checked RB's site and it's $28.

Now this isn't an isolated instance, as I had pads shipped to me from SOS and they were $28.... I since sold them and shipping at the UPS Store (which charges a premium over UPS) was $12.

I was just curious why almost everything I buy from SOS has such bloated shipping charges?

 

[MiamieNeSeX]

I think you should call Chris on the phone and ask him. Why post on here ?

His company , his prices, don't like it purchase from someone else.


Armando

 

[CL65 Captain]

You know Armando, you're right... I will call Chris Monday and if they want to match RB shipping I will order from them.

I just think that it's wrong when companies pad shipping (3x in this case) in order to make the pricing look better.

 

[mystican]

You are not the first to complain about this type of business practice by SOS. Many times, UPS and FEDEX give retroactive discounts to their volume customers. I wouldn't be surprised if this occurs with SOS. I used to have a generous UPS account that allowed me to send "heavy" merchandise overnight for pennies! I usually wait to order a whole bunch of stuff from SOS and then just bite the bullet. There are some companies that charge even more! Charging "extra" for S & H does help the bottom line in many instances. Not much you can do about it.

Would SOS like to comment?

 

[ashman]

Sometimes all you need is perspective, just imagine how much their shipping is to Hawaii

 

[Juice]

I think you should call Chris on the phone and ask him. Why post on here ?

Armando is half right. This shouldn't be posted here. It should be posted in Buyer and Seller Experiences. It is a fair and legitimate question and nobody other than SOS should be answering it.

 

[nsxpowered]

Here is a few reasons why shipping charges might be different. For example when I send out my packages now I actually lose money on shipping. There is a difference between retailers and manufacturers.

For example the side skirts I charge around $50.00 to ship.
FedEx charges me around $43.51.
The box I am using is: $8.00 approx
The packaging materials: $5.00 plus or minus
The person I hire to package a box makes: $16/hr (1 hour to process shipping on average)

If I use UPS the base cost would be $58.00
If I use Freight Company it would be $112.00
==============================================
Of course these costs are just cut into our margins. For a retailer they don't have this kind of cushion and have to go on true cost. A retailer also has much higher cost because they buy inventory which sits there doing nothing, and they provide a very valuable customers support service. Many times SOS would even help out unpotential customers. I feel that the service they provide is the reason why they are respected in this community. They are very professional and upfront; they also know everything about the products they sell.

 

[ScienceofSpeed]

I was going to purchase new RB rotors from SOS, but noticed that shipping was $70. Checked RB's site and it's $28.

Now this isn't an isolated instance, as I had pads shipped to me from SOS and they were $28.... I since sold them and shipping at the UPS Store (which charges a premium over UPS) was $12.

I was just curious why almost everything I buy from SOS has such bloated shipping charges?

Thanks for the question. I think it's fair.

Our website is not "smart" enough to know that when you put multiple items in your shopping cart (for an example, a front brake kit, rear brake kit, and some brake pads) we can ship the items in one box.

So, when you go online and put a bunch of items in your cart, the shipping for each item is added together and presented as your shipping quote.

However, when your order is received on our end, we then refund you back for the difference if we can consolidate multiple items into one or fewer boxes. Note that this only is a limitation of orders online. We always suggest customers placing large orders contact direct so that we can offer you the best service and accurate shipping quotes.

Our website functionality needs to grow with the business. We're looking at a complete revamp to take care of some issues that have always bugged me including the shipping function and very slow keyword searches. However, the website was custom programmed and such an effort is truly a massive endevor.

However, due to your question, I am going to add a note in the check out process indicating that the shipping amount is only a quote based on the website's limited function and that consolidation of items will result in a shipping refund.

I hope this answers your question.

take care,
-- Chris

 

[ScienceofSpeed]

You are not the first to complain about this type of business practice by SOS. Many times, UPS and FEDEX give retroactive discounts to their volume customers. I wouldn't be surprised if this occurs with SOS. I used to have a generous UPS account that allowed me to send "heavy" merchandise overnight for pennies! I usually wait to order a whole bunch of stuff from SOS and then just bite the bullet. There are some companies that charge even more! Charging "extra" for S & H does help the bottom line in many instances. Not much you can do about it.

Would SOS like to comment?

Our UPS Ground discount is less than 1.5%. Shipping is at a loss when you factor in the numerous "fees" we receive from UPS, materials, and employee costs to package.

take care,
-- Chris

 

[GlowNSX]

Chris...you are an extremely fair person and easy to work with. I am a wholesale distributor and process hundreds of orders a day through UPS. I have never seen anything out of line with the shipping prices.

I think you are doing a great job and the fact that you consolodate boxes and refund back the cash shows that yo are concerned with you customers ultimate shipping charges. People tend to forget that there is a box, packing materials, insurance, location and a person that need to ship it all.

I think that if you dont ship on a regular basis that you may not understand all of the costs that go into it. You cant just look at the rate to zone 2 and think that is all.

Mystican : Overnight for pennies? You must not really be shipping as that is simply a complete fabrication of the truth.

and on the final note: with Comptech going down there are only a couple of places to get great quality parts and SOS is one of them. Lets support Chris and SOS so they can keep R&D and quality going.

Jason

 

[Hal_396]

Our UPS Ground discount is less than 1.5%. Shipping is at a loss when you factor in the numerous "fees" we receive from UPS, materials, and employee costs to package.

take care,
-- Chris

Chris has a good point there. If possiable you should switch to Fedex Ground! Generally, the heavier it is and the further it goes the cheaper it gets compared to the UPS. Everyone wins except UPS.

Also someone above mentioned it takes 1 hour @ $16 to process a shipment. I ship stuff all the time and if it took 1 hour to process a shipment I'd be in a new line of work!!!!!!!!

 

[NSXclear]

It took the shipping guy 9 yrs of college and a resident internship to earn his packaging degree. That why deserves $16/hr instead of minimum wage $6.75. :biggrin:

 

[BenDF]

FedEX has a very high damage rate. In fact, we have recently stopped using FedEx. Who cares if the shipping is cheaper, if the product is damaged?

It takes about time for the entire process, which includes processing the order, packaging the product, assembling hardware, and preparing shipping paperwork. Obviously some orders take less time. Some may take more.

Bottom line is we do have to pay someone to do the work. If you find someone to prepare shipments for them fro free, I am sure the shipping costs would go down. :smile:

 

[BenDF]

It took the shipping guy 9 yrs of college and a resident internship to earn his packaging degree. That why deserves $16/hr instead of minimum wage $6.75. :biggrin:

So just because someone is packing orders they must not be very smart?

If I hired minumum wage guys to pack your orders, all of you shipments would go to the wrong place, and likely be damaged from transit.

 

[PhiAlpha44]

Armando, everyone here likes Chris and likes SOS. He's not attacking Chris. He's asking a very valid question, and I think it should absolutly be posted. I'm personally going to be very aware of my shipping charges from now on.

I think you should call Chris on the phone and ask him. Why post on here ?

His company , his prices, don't like it purchase from someone else.


Armando

 

[PhiAlpha44]

and on the final note: with Comptech going down there are only a couple of places to get great quality parts and SOS is one of them. Lets support Chris and SOS so they can keep R&D and quality going.
Jason

AGREED!!! :biggrin:
Will SOS be coming out with a Turbo or SC set up sometime soon?

 

[CL65 Captain]

So just because someone is packing orders they must not be very smart?

If I hired minumum wage guys to pack your orders, all of you shipments would go to the wrong place, and likely be damaged from transit.

Just like the airlines. :biggrin:

 

[MiamieNeSeX]

Armando, everyone here likes Chris and likes SOS. He's not attacking Chris. He's asking a very valid question, and I think it should absolutly be posted. I'm personally going to be very aware of my shipping charges from now on.

Chris's likability was not what was being addressed. Every business owner has the right to charge or not charge what they feel the market will bear. If anyone does not like the prices they should either say something to the business owner or suck it up and pay it. But posting it is a cheap shot, at least in my opinion.


Armando

 

[nsxtasy]

Chris...you are an extremely fair person and easy to work with.
.
.
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Lets support Chris and SOS so they can keep R&D and quality going.

 

[NA2 Type R]

They actually have R & D? J/K

The rule of a free a market has always been - If you don't like the price, go somewhere else. If a vender wants to make couple extra bucks through shipping, that's their right. That practice is all over eBay. Sell the product at cost and make up on shipping charges.

Unfortunately, NSX is very similar to F/P/L cars. Some how when people see “NSX” on front of the parts, they often willing to pay more without research.

At the end of the day, if a Vender want to stay competitive, they should match/beat other vender’s price. That is very much a standard practice in this country. Considering the fact that the vender is competing with the manufacture.

In CL65captan’s case, he did his research and questioned it. Since SOS conduct business on this forum, and the complaint/question conducted on the forum is somewhat legit. In this particular case, probably no "extra" packaging is needed since a vender can just slap a new address label over the existing box and ship it out.

Good luck with your purchase. Make the right decision is the only way you can sleep good at night.

 

[Ski_Banker]

I've had great experiences with SOS, and, frankly, can't remember if shipping was "high" or not.

But, just for argument's sake - it's really not fair to include labor/time in the ultimate cost (boxes, yes) because those costs are also borne by traditional retailers. Who do you think unpacks, hangs up, and displays all the cool stuff at Best Buy and Victoria's Secret? :tongue: So, in other words, the price you "see" (and could compare elsewhere, such as a traditional retailer) should already reflect everything except a box and UPS charges.

My $.02

 

[ffffanman]

The question or statement is fair.
Its a discussion and a way to discuss our experiences and thoughts.
We all can learn from others, I do everyday, many times.
SoS and my three companies can learn and grow from fresh ideas and experiences.
Sometimes we get set in our ways and forget to look around and see whats happening in real life.
In Canada we can say what we want when we want with who we want for as long as we want.
Hang on, My mom just called and said to get to sleep and stop using my computor so long and who is Wonda on my mastercard bills she saw at my house the other day, oh, and she said talk quietly and be polite and not pushy shovey.
I guess I'll be off to sleep now.
Thanks Chris for all you have done for me and the rest of you for the good shipping tips.
Trev

 

[TURBO2GO]

I don't see anything wrong with posting this question. Or any question for that matter. That's what a forum is for. Forums are not owned by vendors or anyone else.

FWIW I have always had good experiences with SOS.

 

[BenDF]

I've had great experiences with SOS, and, frankly, can't remember if shipping was "high" or not.

But, just for argument's sake - it's really not fair to include labor/time in the ultimate cost (boxes, yes) because those costs are also borne by traditional retailers. Who do you think unpacks, hangs up, and displays all the cool stuff at Best Buy and Victoria's Secret? :tongue: So, in other words, the price you "see" (and could compare elsewhere, such as a traditional retailer) should already reflect everything except a box and UPS charges.

My $.02

This is why it's called Shipping and HANDLING.

 

[Ski_Banker]

This is why it's called Shipping and HANDLING.

Thanks for pointing out the obvious.

All the OP and others are asking for is price transparency. Customers expect __ for S&H based on years of experience as consumers. When something shows up as __ + $20, unexpectedly, they get irritated.

And, what I'm saying is that the handling charge is BS for any mail order vendor, but as long as people know what it is upfront, they can make informed decisions.