The A,B,C’s of Successfully Shipping Products

Shipping is the entire process of moving an item from the manufacturer’s factory to the MavenCore store where the end user collects them. Its a lengthy process with different stages that can see you incur hefty costs or unnecessary delays. However, if you know the best steps to take at each stage, the process will run smoothly and cost-effectively.

Air vs. Water Shipping

There are two practical ways to to ship the items – by air or by sea. The main differences between the two is the cost and the time it takes. For air shipping, you can get the items to the destination faster – usually around 21 days, while sea shipping takes around 45 days. The cost of air shipping is based in weight while sea shipping calculates cost based on size. For most items, sea shipping is the cheaper option. For example when shipping a 25 Kg (55Lbs), the cost of shipping by air would be $375 while shipping it by sea only cost $60. Once you become a MavenCore Dropshipper, you will be using sea shipping to deliver items to our shop.

Forwarding Agents

Sea shipping involves putting items in large shipping containers so you may wonder how one small item such as a lawn mower is sent out immediately you place an order. There are specific companies that consolidate the single items bought by different people and then load them up into the containers. They are referred to as forwarding agents and you will be using them regularly to deliver items to our shop. You will be provided with a warehouse address and contact details of the forwarding agent so that you provide it to the manufacturers and suppliers you buy from.

Shipping Terms

You will need to know different terminology for easier communication with the suppliers and shipping agent. Below we explore a few of these terms that you will encounter.
EXW (Ex works) – most suppliers will attach the term after the price they quote for a specific item. This means the price of the item while its at their warehouse. You have to cater for all the other costs including moving it to the shipping agents warehouse. If someone quotes a price this way, always find out how much they will charge to deliver to the forwarding agent.

CBM (Cubic Meter) – this is the size of the space the item will occupy once packaged. The cubic meters helps you figure out how much shipping will cost from the forwarding agent to the Mavencore shop. Our forwarding agent charges a flat-rate of $600 per CBM which is divisible down to 0.1 CBM. So for example, of your package is 0.2 CBM, you will pay (0.2 x $600) $120. If the package is smaller than 0.1 CBM (Like 0.05cbm), you still need to pay the full 0.1CBM

Shipping Steps

When you buy an item, it goes through different stages to reach the shop. Here we break down the steps and indicate what you pay and who receives the payments at each stage.

Step 1. From Supplier to Forwarding Agent
This is where the logistic process starts. The item leaves the supplier’s facility and is delivered to the forwarding agent’s warehouse. You pay the logistics fee as part of the product cost. Its best to use the Escrow feature on the B2B platform to ensure the money you pay is fully refundable should delivery fail. This stage takes a couple of days to a few weeks depending on the item.

Step 2. From the Forwarding Agent’s Warehouse to Local Agent’s Office
This is the main shipping step where the item leaves the source country (China or otherwise) to the destination country (Kenya). This is where sea or air shipping applies. This step takes a couple of weeks if its air shipment or several weeks when using sea shipping. Payment is based on the Weight (Kg) or Volume (CBM) of the items 
You send this money to MavenCore, for payment to the shipping agent’s local office. That way, MavenCore can guarantee you a refund in case of any shipping challenges.

Step 3. From Local Agent to MavenCore Shop
MavenCore is responsible for this part of the shipping process. We collect the item, take it to our shop for inspection and provide you feedback including a report, photos or videos indicating the condition of the items. No cost involved.