Help request for Aussies

[jonsie]

Could any of you Aussies please send me some UV Stabilizer? I'll gladly pay you whatever you want.

I think it is time for me to order it from the US but it will take weeks to get here. Could someone please post some to me from within Oz, so I can make colored candles for the first time in months?

[bart70]

Could any of you Aussies please send me some UV Stabilizer? I'll gladly pay you whatever you want.

I think it is time for me to order it from the US but it will take weeks to get here. Could someone please post some to me from within Oz, so I can make colored candles for the first time in months?

Would love to help you but have none either......Maybe we need to source a good quantity from the US and distribute it amongst ourselves so we have a supply in the future?

Bart

[KoalaGirl]

Hi Susan, I could spare a little, would a couple of desertspoons full help?

[nadiap]

Worth noting is that Gala's website prices as Ex-GST so you will need to factor that it. Orders over $400 are shipped free to your nearest capital city, then attracts contracted freight costs from their to your location.

Bart

I've purchased from Gala a few times now. If you don't purchase $400 worth of glassware, the delivery cost is $25 - which isn't bad when you compare it to either of the other 2 companies.

This week I received delivery over 132 jars and a few other bits and pieces and delivery cost was the standard $25. One item of 36 jars was out of stock - they gave me an estimated delivery time - was annoyed as they didn't let me know at time of order - but after a phone call found it isn't too far away - and that as it was *their* problem, I will not be charged any extra for delivery costs.... can't ask better than that.

[nadiap]

I don't use any additives, but do have some of the Universal additive here (approx 350gr), but I don't believe it's the one you're after though - sorry !

[jonsie]

Thank you Bart and thank you KoalaGirl. I know it is scarce here in Oz so I think I'm going to bite the bullet and order a pound from the U.S. and have it FedEx'ed over. It sucks big time. Keep in mind that it is here in Perth, and has been for weeks, but hasn't been decanted yet despite me calling twice a week about it. Do you think I am frustrated?

KoalaGirl, I'm going to wait a couple of hours until the supplier in the U.S. is open for business to talk with them, and once I know, I'll send you a message. I really appreciate your offer. If and when my supply arrives and the other suppliers here don't have it yet, I'll gladly send you some.

[jonsie]

I don't use any additives, but do have some of the Universal additive here (approx 350gr), but I don't believe it's the one you're after though - sorry !

Thank you Nadiap! You are right, I have plenty of UA and I appreciate the offer

[bart70]

Keep in mind that it is here in Perth, and has been for weeks, but hasn't been decanted yet despite me calling twice a week about it. Do you think I am frustrated?

Does not surprise me.....Unfortunately it has most likely been unloaded but offered to others in preference to you, or packaged into smaller amounts and released slowly so that people will not buy a large amount (there are more $$ in selling smaller quantities).

If there is any cost effectiveness for you in getting an extra pound I am happy to pay you for it and share the shipping and the cost to send it on to me. If it will cause you dramas I am happy to wait - Will leave it up to you.

Cheers,

Bart

[jonsie]

Thanks Bart. I've ordered 2 pounds from Cajun Candles and hopefully they are getting it into the mail before the end of their business day. Cajun Candles was priced lower than BCNs but the description sounded the same so I'm expecting it to be the same product (knock on wood). After breaking down the costs per gram, it comes out to just about the same cost per gram from ACS, even with the astronomical global express postage.

I can't help but imagine that ACS is reading this and will ring me in the morning to say my stabilizer is ready.

[bart70]

No worries....Happy to take a pound if you can spare it. Give me a yell when it arrives.

Cheers,

Bart

[jonsie]

Y'all might be interested to see how this turns out. I almost ordered the UV Inhibitor from BCN last week and I was getting the same quote as Richard... $85 to ship 1 lb to Oz, a total of $125. I hunted around and saw that Cajun Candles was selling 1 lb and 2 lb tubs of UV-I for $15 and $27, but their shipping quotes were vague. I couldn't input my shipping info on their website since it was Australia, so no luck with that. I ended up calling them and working most of it all out using both the phone and email.

The ladies at Cajun Candles were extremely helpful and accomodating, and got my package in the mail that day. I paid $91.45 in USPS postage for Global Express Guaranteed (for the 2 lb tub), with a delivery date of this Friday. So now it is in the hands of the postal carriers to deliver as promised. But at this stage, I am thrilled that Cajun Candles went above and beyond to minimize the box size to minimize the postage, and get it out that same day.

Anyway, this how I can justify paying $91.45 in postage to send $27 in goods to Oz:

[1 lb = 453.6 g, 2 lb = 907.2 g]

Cajun Candles:

Postage: $91.45

UV-I: $27.00 for 907.2 g

Total: $118.45

Cost per gram: $118.45 / 907.2 g = $0.13/g

Ye Local Candle Supplier in Oz

Postage: $0, but I drive to pick it up

UV-I: $12.50 for 100 g

Total: $12.50

Cost per gram: $12.50 / 100 g = $0.125/g

It didn't take me long to decide if I wanted to pay an extra 0.005 cent per gram.

And keep in mind I paid the highest postage to get it here the fastest. Cajun Candles offers other flat rate boxes that generally take 2 - 3 weeks to arrive, but are a lot cheaper.

Now to wait to see how soon it gets here or if Customs seizes it as a suspected controlled substance, etc. And if the other suppliers haven't made their stock available and y'all need some, I'll gladly post it to you. This is enough to make 1600 lbs of candle wax, and that'll take me years to use up. Bart, if you are still interested, you are welcome to the first pound

[bart70]

Definitely interested!!

Our local suppliers think it is too hard for us to get supplies from overseas. One supplier scoffed at me when I suggested that I would source one particular product from O/S if they were unable to reliably supply. I think the words where "..you don't have a clue how to run your business...." was what they muttered

As you have shown, even when paying for express shipping from the other side of the globe and ordering a small quanitiy, the price is comparable and (Customs permitting) you will not have to wait weeks or make several phone calls to chase it. If buying in larger quantities and shipping normally it would be cheaper than the local supplier.

Great work.....Drop me a line when it is in and I will sort out payment and on-forwarding.

Cheers,

Bart

[RichardLOZ]

Hey Jonsie

Will definitely be interested in hearing how the Cajun UV goes for you as pricing on it is very very good.

As is typical both of our wonderful suppliers are out of glass again. I was lucky enough to snag 3 boxes of apothecary jars out of Sydney, which gives me about 200 to play with right now, so hopefully that will hold me until one or the other gets more in.

Have you other Aussies noticed that NCS has actually dropped the price of many of their oils, most likely due to our high $, however ACS is still charging the same price as always. Given that I have ordered 1 lb out of Sydney of French vanilla to try against the Perth oil as it is so much cheaper.

If either of you have used both the FV from here I would be keen to know what if any difference there was in the wicking in Soy. I am hoping it is going to be the same, but feel more testing coming on when I get back home.

Currently in Hong Kong and keen to get back home as we have a bunch of markets and parties in the first part of next month as well as our wholesale accounts to look after before we go on holiday for 2 weeks.

[Tribalvixen]

Yep I noticed that they dropped their oil prices most are around the $25 for 500mls if only I could use that much oil..wish we could get 250 ml bottles here. I know you all need the big ones but this little hobbiest cant use it all that fast. Its a pity that NCS are always oos on glass as I think they have better quality and are packaged better.

[RichardLOZ]

Tribal

You should look into purchasing the 8 oz bottles from one of the US suppliers. Way more choice, and even with the shipping added generally still works out to be so much cheaper.

[bart70]

NCS glassware is far superior in quality, and it comes packaged appropriately ( and they offer insurance in case of breakages which ACs won't) . ACS is just way too expensive by the time you factor in the breakages. They are less than helpful in assisting with broken items - I am guessing because they get so much breakage that if they did they would go broke replacing it all! The packaging they use is just not satisfactory for freighting by road freight, might be suitable for pallet packaging but not general road freight. They could learn some valuable lessons from the NCS packaging.

Also, for those on the east coast - If you have not evaluated your freight costs lately between ACS & NCS you may be pleasantly surprised. Previously the difference in freight between NCS & ACS was marginal for me, we recently re-evaluated and found NCS is now much cheaper and also has insurance. When looking at 'whole of cost' per item it makes quite a difference. We cross checked some of our orders and had over $100 difference in freight by using NCS. I was previously critical of NCS for their odd freight pricing but they have clearly made some efforts to correct it.

Now both just need to work on having the stock!

Bart

'

[curlycoat2]

Richard if you decide to do larger amounts of the Fragrance oils I would be interested depending on the actual oil. There are a few other soapers here that I am sure would band with chandlers to get the FOs here. I ship FOs for soap from the States and have run into the Candlescience issue of international shipping. I usually get a friend to ship them to me now. I know some of the other suppliers are now offering International Shipping that were not previously and are also using Flat Rate Boxes as well, we can only hope that CS changes this policy.

With regard to the NCS shipping I had taken out insurance and two small eos broke in transit, they were replaced without question and shipped out the next day. I had no issue with the customer service at all.

jo

jo

[bart70]

With regard to the NCS shipping I had taken out insurance and two small eos broke in transit, they were replaced without question and shipped out the next day. I had no issue with the customer service at all.

jo

Glad to hear of an experience with broken glassware from NCS - To date all of mine from NCS has arrived safely and extremely well packaged. It is encouraging to hear that when things do go wrong they will look after you.

Cannot say the same for the ACS glassware though....and their refund policy is not worth the time or effort. I cannot replace the glassware with what was refunded, and I still have to pay the re-freight (despite the freight company admitting it was their fault and being prepared to credit ACS). Just not worth the risks, particularly as we are considering purchases in large quantities.

Am seriously thinking about bringing in some FO from the US also. I believe (but cannot confirm) that the Candlescience policy may be due to arrangement between them and NCS as NCS carry many of their FO's in Australia. Still plenty to choose from though.

Bart

[jonsie]

I would think that CS and any other holdouts would want to ship internationally considering the weak US $. Crazy that they haven't started offering it yet.

My sister-in-law is interested in forwarding packages for friends in Australia. I believe that in time she could develop herself into someone who specializes in candle and soap supplies. She is a stay-at-home mom and used to run her own eBay and pet supply business, so she is very organized about packaging and shipping. She could set herself up to receive a single shipment from a place like CS, and split the items into separate flat rate boxes to Aus. Of course, she would need very detailed instructions to go by, etc. At this point she is charging $10 per package forwarded, but if her service grows, her fees may become more itemized. There are plenty of other package forwarding services, but I think all of us (including her) could benefit if she can specialize in handling FOs, splitting shipments, etc.

[curlycoat2]

Bart I too would think there is some "protection" for NCS from the CS people in the States. Its a good idea in theory but, in practise NCS don't stock all the CS oils here in Oz, and I would have thought that CS would have been able to sell those particular oils to us and point us to NCS for any that are sold there. It would be a win win for CS in my mind as Jonsie rightly points out a sale is a sale and the US$ is weak at the moment.

Jonsie that would be a good idea for your sister in law, but, the shipping with another $10.00 added makes the Large Flat Rate box over 60.00 ($64.95) USD and that just sounds plain scary to me, plus the shipping is a double up ie shipping from the supplier to your SIL and then again to OZ and the $10.00 handling fee on top. I assume we would be paying for the bottles and their shipping to your SIL for the decanting of the FO as well as the above? Packing costs ie tape and padding etc would also be our cost I imagine. There is a lot to consider for your SIL if she was to do large volumes of FOs from CS for example, its why I like co ops where the hostess has done all this before. They have space to hold the FOs whilst they are decanting and all the pumps and equipment required to do the decanting quickly and easily.

Also your SIL would need to adhere to the Flashpoint issue as well or the penalty for $10.00 fee is just not worth it. How would she handle breakages?? its a lot to consider and once payment occurs all that needs to be thought of. Good idea though for a stay at home mum if it can be done and of course, suppliers all start somewhere.

jo

[jonsie]

Jonsie that would be a good idea for your sister in law, but, the shipping with another $10.00 added makes the Large Flat Rate box over 60.00 ($64.95) USD and that just sounds plain scary to me, plus the shipping is a double up ie shipping from the supplier to your SIL and then again to OZ and the $10.00 handling fee on top. I assume we would be paying for the bottles and their shipping to your SIL for the decanting of the FO as well as the above? Packing costs ie tape and padding etc would also be our cost I imagine. There is a lot to consider for your SIL if she was to do large volumes of FOs from CS for example, its why I like co ops where the hostess has done all this before. They have space to hold the FOs whilst they are decanting and all the pumps and equipment required to do the decanting quickly and easily.

Also your SIL would need to adhere to the Flashpoint issue as well or the penalty for $10.00 fee is just not worth it. How would she handle breakages?? its a lot to consider and once payment occurs all that needs to be thought of. Good idea though for a stay at home mum if it can be done and of course, suppliers all start somewhere.

jo

You bring up some good points, Jo, and definitely worth considering. My suggestion that my SIL could handle FOs would not include decanting them; instead she would just be moving whole bottles into shipping boxes. If she needs to provide extra packaging for the FO, then she could itemize for her time down the road. When I suggested she could specialize in forwarding packages for candle and soap people, that was the extent of what I meant, packaging it for international shipping and accounting for flashpoint. She could also help with splitting a single shipment of items among multiple recipients.

I thought I'd run a rough calculation of shipping FO bottles but I can't remember how many bottles will fit in a large flat rate box. Is it 9 or 13? Since I couldn't remember, I used 13.

A quick calculation comparing shipping 13 bottles of Black Cherry FO from CS to my SIL then to a receiver in Aus:

14.99 * 9 = $134.91

Shipping to my SIL: 12.41

Package forwarder repacks: 10.00

Postage to Aus: 58.50

Total: 134.91 + 12.41 + 10.00 + 58.50 = 215.82

215.82 / 9 = 23.98 US per bottle delivered to your door

With a local vendor:

23.51 * 9 = 211.59

Shipping (to Perth): 18.16

Total: 211.59 + 18.16 = 229.75

229.75 / 9 = 25.53 Aus per bottle delivered to your door

If it's 13 bottles, it is a better value.

Still, not a considerable savings for that example, especially factoring in the 2-3 week delivery time. But if time isn't your concern, and you want more of a selection, this might be an option for some.

Edited August 20, 2011 by jonsie

[curlycoat2]

I mentioned decanting because if I purchased 5lbs of an FO from a supplier I would be expecting the FOs to be in one container not separate????? If they were separate then decanting would not be an issue, but I have purchased 8lbs from a supplier and the FO arrived in one jug and a couple of pound bottles. Same with when I have ordered monoi oils, one of the jugs and a couple of pound bottles.

There are advantages to buying a larger size of the one FO because the supplier doesn't have to do the decanting.

If the shipment was for 13 different scents then that would be much easier for your SiL I would think

jo

[nadiap]

Hey guys,

sorry to butt in with an off topic to what you are discussing (though I have some comments on those as well) but this is extremely important if you buy goods from either ACS or NCS or NG using either your CC or a debit card.

I belong to a chandler group of 37 ladies on Facebook and in the last week 8 of them have had their cards skimmed or compromised - all cards were stopped by their respective banks. So this is more or less a heads up to keep an eye on your cards for any unknown transactions - they start off small $5 and then they move in for amounts in the 100s and one lady had an attempt at $17,000.... if you need any more details just PM me. Don't want to say too much on the board for obvious reasons.

[Tribalvixen]

I also believe that the reason CS dont ship here is because NCS has an "agreement" with them and if they have one with NCS then there are probs other suppliers in other countries that have an "agreement" too. Wow that was a huge sentence. I would love to get my hands on some fo from places like peaks that dont ship int.....Is it really that much harder to ship int? Surely would be worth it. NG dont seem to have a problem along with others that I havnt tried yet.

Lol Susan I just made some Black Cherry candles...Geez it stinks also mixed it with some very vanilla (gag)cos I cant stand that and have half a bottle to try use up. They both smell slightly better mixed together...who knows how it will smell when I burn it.

The last order I got from ACS the boxes were that badly damaged I took photos before I even opened it. I think that I will just get the couple of FOs that I like from them and a few other things I get..besides it took over a week to get to me here in Toowoomba last time....I just dont want to wait that long NCS has it to me within 2 days..I miss being in NSW lol.

Tammy

Thats terrible Nadia I hope they catch the thieves. Thanks for the warning I will keep an eye on account. Time to start using visa prepayed I think

Edited August 20, 2011 by Tribalvixen

[nadiap]

If anyone is interested this is the breakdown of what fits into the boxes that NG ship out:

medium $45ish large $58ish

We can fit 8 of our 16 ounce bottles in a medium flat rate box.

We can fit 13 of our 16 ounce bottles in a large flat rate box.

We can fit 30 of our 4 ounce bottles in a medium flat rate box

We can fit 49 of our 4 ounce bottles in a large flat rate box

We can fit 13 of our 8 ounce bottles in a medium flat rate box

We can fit 33 of our 8 ounce bottles in a large flat rate box

We can approximately fit 90 of the 1 ounce bottles in a medium flat rate box

We can approximately fit 150 of the 1 ounce bottles in a large flat rate box

In the group I belong to - we do group orders to NG and it saves us all on postage costs as we split the costs between us. I also do orders on my own and even with freight costs, I'm still saving money. I do also onsell the fragrances on one of my FB pages

I believe I contacted CS ages ago and they told me to contact NCS insead - as they do not ship out of US.

Another company that will ship to AU is http://saveonscents.com/ Not sure if anyone here has tried them - but they have some lovely sounding FOs as well.