Priced Out Of Sheet Film Format by Shipping Fee!

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I use 2 1/4' x 3 1/4' sheet film, usually EFKE which I buy from Freestyle at 100 sheets (4 x boxes) at a time.

I recently went to buy more from them and was totally horrified at their postage cost policy for international postage (I'm in Australia).

They actually add on the cost of what the local local US postage would be to whatever overseas posting method you select and call it a packing and handling charge. In other words they are double dipping on the postage charges in what is nothing more than a blatant rip-off. I have this clearly stated in an e-mail from Freestyle.

As a result of this policy I can no longer afford to buy from them and this leaves me with the need to re-think my use of this format.

Yes, there is FP4 and HP5 available in this format but only in a limited production/special order capacity. The cost of this film is over 2 1/2 times the cost of the EFKE.

I'm in a dilema no matter which way I turn.

I fully realise the cost of overseas poatage is rising every year - I have many eBay purchases to verify this - however for a company to charge postage in this way is very very wrong.

ARCHIVIST
 
I recently looked into shipping an 8x10 camera to Australia from the US, and the price was indeed horrifying. UPS was off the charts at $650, with USPS much lower but still at $330 before insurance. Something must be amiss.
 
Guys, haven't bought any thing from Freestyle for a couple of years now so don't know how this would work. But when I buy hiking gear from big US based companies like Rei and Backcountry Gear, I have it sent to a forwarding company in the States who send it onto Oz. Often if my order is over a specific price level eg. $50 the shipping cost within the States is free so I only have to pay the forwarding company whose charges are generally reasonable and competitive. Might be worth a try.
 
Agree with you about Freestyle's charges for postage - ridiculous, and also the reason I stopped buying from them either for personal purchases or for the last several group buys I organised. I've sent about $2k worth of orders to B&H instead over the last several years.
 
I found prices at macodirect in Germany to be competitive. Be sure to enter your location (if outside EU) on the site so you get the vat exclusive prices.
 
You could try a service such as http://www.myus.com/? They receive items locally in the US and then forward them to any address globally.You also have the option of consolidating multiple packages from different retailers and shipping them at once. I personally haven't used them, but some colleagues do quite regularly and find it quite economical.
 
I've found the postage to Australia high also - sometimes obscene. When it's been ridiculous, I've emailed Freestyle direct and sometimes they can work something out. Their commerce / postage system isn't that sophisticated, and there are times it just gets it wrong ;-) They are great to deal with and it's worth a try anyway.
 
My brother lives in Australia (I will soon too), and he uses http://www.shipito.com/ to get stuff sent over to Oz from the U.S.

Another vote also for German companies, I find them often quite competitive (for the UK at least), as the Euro has also weakened.
 
Below is a 'copy and paste' from the last e-mail I received from Freestyle after complaining about the high postage costs.

Peter​

The "local postage" is a shipping/handling fee charged on all orders. International shipping is charged on all order outside of the continental USA.​

Thank you.​

Marv Keller
Manager,
Customer Service & Consumer Direct Sales

In every instance when I got to the payment section of the checkout the local US postage charge was equal to their shipping and handling charge. In my particular case the amount was an extra $13 on top of the FedEx $41. A lessor order was US8.90 local postage and, surprise surprise, that just happened to be the amount they wanted as a shipping and handling charge.


A clear rip-off.


Cheers
Peter

PS Sorry about the font issues.
​
 
While I can understand being annoyed by the charge... on 100 sheets of film, we are really talking about $0.13 a sheet though. Is it simply you being mad at something you don't think you should have to pay or were you already at your threshold price-wise and the $0.13 per sheet truly makes it not an economical solution for you anymore?
 
Maybe it would be more cost effective for you to come to Los Angeles for a holiday, visit Freestyle in person, and handcarry your film back home.
 
I find their shipping to be insanely overpriced and I'm a domestic customer. An order for $108 worth of 35mm film (say 7 rolls of Provia 400x in 35m @ $15.49 each) is $14, UPS ground, which takes over a week to make it to NY.

Thankfully, B&H is nearby and I can order 7 rolls @ $13.65 each (or $95 total) plus $5.15 UPS ground shipping, $9 cheaper. Plus, since B&H ships from a few miles from my apartment, I'm getting it on a next-day basis anyhow.

If I wanted to compare faster shipping prices, it would be $35 at free-style for 3-day shipping (which I assume is USPS Priority Mail) while B&H would charge $6.20. (Freestyle would take 3 days to cross the country while B&H's order would still arrive next-day for me.)

I'm sorry that Freestyle is charging way too much for shipping, I know it hurts more for international customers, but their domestic customers aren't seeing any deals either.
 
Brian Puccio said:
I find their shipping to be insanely overpriced and I'm a domestic customer. An order for $108 worth of 35mm film (say 7 rolls of Provia 400x in 35m @ $15.49 each) is $14, UPS ground, which takes over a week to make it to NY.

Thankfully, B&H is nearby and I can order 7 rolls @ $13.65 each (or $95 total) plus $5.15 UPS ground shipping, $9 cheaper. Plus, since B&H ships from a few miles from my apartment, I'm getting it on a next-day basis anyhow.

If I wanted to compare faster shipping prices, it would be $35 at free-style for 3-day shipping (which I assume is USPS Priority Mail) while B&H would charge $6.20. (Freestyle would take 3 days to cross the country while B&H's order would still arrive next-day for me.)

I'm sorry that Freestyle is charging way too much for shipping, I know it hurts more for international customers, but their domestic customers aren't seeing any deals either.
Click to expand...

Residents of Philly and environs take note - If you ship via UPS from B&H, it also gets here in one day. And that has been the case when I order in the afternoon. Can't do better than that.

To the OP, I think that is horrible, and I hope you can work it out. I wanted to order some of the new Silvermax + developer from Germany, and the shipping cost nearly doubled the price of the order - so I can indeed put myself in your shoes. (In my case, I am sure the heavy bottle of fluid had something to do with it...)

Randy
 
Indeed, shipping can be a brute. The bottom line is are you getting a product a) you can't get locally, or, b) a product you can get but is much cheaper on Freestyle? You have to think about what the product would cost you locally. I'm betting a lot more than Freestyle + shipping, if you can get it locally.

I can get 35mm b&w any number of places locally, but even with shipping Freestyle is still less than 1/2 the cost (for their own label). The bigger your order the less shipping stings.
 
Freestyle is too expensive for small quantities due to shipping. I end up buying a lot of film from eBay or vanbar in Victoria as it turns out cheaper. Otherwise you can consider a parcel forwarding service.
 
I have been using this format for over 20 years and now I think it may be time to start using roll film backs.

At just over $1 per sheet 8 exp on 120 roll is not all that much more (by Aussie prices).

I will miss the ability of being able to treat an image on an individual basis with regards processing.

So, off to eBay to find a bargain - I wonder how much the postage will be?

Cheers
Peter
 
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