The shipping saga continues
almost 7 years ago
– Sun, Jun 04, 2017 at 10:18:57 PM
Dearest backers,
It's june, and some of you are wondering where your knives are.
The knives have unfortunately been patiently sitting in a warehouse, waiting to be picked up for fulfillment.
Over the past months, we've been trying to partner up with fulfillment centers that would ship out our knives to you, and become future partners for other Chatwin products. But being a small company selling smaller volumes, those shipping partners keep dropping out, due to lack of interest in working with a boutique store. That's the sad part.
The good part is that our next step, partly due to frustration and lack of communication and empty promises to ship our goods from those potential partners, is that we'll most likely have all your knives shipped to our office, box, label and ship them ourselves. It seems the fastest way to get the knives to you, especially after having you wait for longer than expected.
That's the current update, and I truly hope that the next update I'll post will be the exciting news that your knives have left the building and are making their way to your kitchen.
I apologize for the delay, and am doing all I can to move forward and get your knives shipped. Thanks for your patience.
PS: if any of you have successfully shipped a small project globally, and were satisfied with a fulfillment partner with less than 500 units in the first shipment to backers, I'd love to hear from you.
Thank you so much.
We love you all, and want you to be happy.
Summery regards,
Philippe Schlesser
Shipping, part 3
almost 7 years ago
– Sun, May 14, 2017 at 01:19:41 AM
Dear Backers,
Shipping is well on its way, but has been slowed down due to several reasons:
- Packaging: We decided to cling wrap each individual box with a plastic film to protect the knives and box from moisture while in transit. That took a bit of extra time and cost before splitting loads, but it was a wise decision. Some knives are travelling a long way, and I'd hate them to not arrive in pristine condition.
- We've been trying to find the best shipping locations from which to send your knives from. Since backers are from all over the world, it's a matter of efficiently splitting the shipments without adding cost. We're close. Taxes have to be determined, and ideally we're aiming at reducing any import taxes to various countries. Some countries are easier to deal with than others, so we're doing our best to streamline the whole importing process without adding cost.
- Surveys locked down later than expected, some backers credit cards were rejected, and so it simply took time to deal with these matters. Most of it is solved.
- On the nice note: I became the proud father of a little girl a few weeks ago, and sleepless nights follow. It's awesome, exhausting and we're very happy. That's why I'm writing this at 1am.
Conclusion: Thanks again for your patience. I'm doing my best to move things along, and everything at this point is a 'first time' and far from being a routine. Your knives will arrive soon, and you'll get another update once the knives are individually packaged and get labelled with your address on it. After that, you'll get your tracking number emailed. I really can't wait for you to get your knives, and I'm pretty sure you're thinking the same right now. So a big thank you for your patience.
I wish you a great weekend!
Philippe Schlesser
Survey wrapping up
about 7 years ago
– Thu, Apr 20, 2017 at 02:39:02 PM
Dear Backers,
At the time of writing, 92% of you have filled out and submitted the BackerKit survey. That's awesome!
If you are a backer, and haven't received a survey from us to ask you about your shipping address, please check your spam mail folder or see if it potentially bounced. Either way, if you haven't submitted your shipping address in the survey, you can use the link below, and use your Kickstarter login email address to submit it. Please do it soon, as the survey locks down on monday.
http://crucial.backerkit.com
Some of you have been messaging me on a shipping update. For me personally, shipping is a whole new skillset to be acquired, and I'll try breaking down the basics for you in a few words below. I'm still learning, and find that getting the right partners is all about building a trust based relationship. Shipping has many partners and elements involved that need to synchronize, which can be challenging at times. But it's all moving, even if slower than anticipated, and I'd like to reach out to you and thank you for your patience.
Here are the very basics, if you're interested: Shipping is split into various components using various partners.
1) The first shipment is from the manufacturer to a freight company (factory to port/harbour). A freight forwarder does that. Here, export documents and destination details are taken care of.
2) Then, the freight is put on a plane/ship/ train (in our case a container ship) and shipped to another harbour/port by a cargo company.
3) The freight is picked up by a third party, who then drops it off at a sorting / storage facility ( and a bunch of import documentation stuff happens here). This is, in our case, also the fulfillment company. They split the freight into individual boxes, label and package them and then sends them to the backers. Once that goes out, you get a tracking number. We're not there, yet, though.
Currently, the freight is on a harbour waiting to be picked up. I have submitted the order, and now it's a bit of a waiting game. I'll post updates when I have news.
The surveys are filled out to 92% as of date, so we need those last backers to submit their addresses so we can move on. If those last backers don't submit, we can still move on, and collect their data later - it won't impact those who already submitted their shipping address.
Reminder emails are sent out periodically, so it shouldn't take much longer before we collected all backers mailing addresses. On monday, April 24th, we'll lock down the survey. This means that you no longer will be able to change your shipping address through the survey link - this would be something BackerKit's support team takes care of. Just get in touch with me, and I'll take care of it.
If you still want to add another set of knives to your existing order or have freinds or family who want to order one, you can also still do that at bit.ly/crucial_hop and still at Kickstarter pricing.
That's it for now!
Thank you so much and all the best,
Philippe Schlesser
It's Survey time with additional Pre-Orders available!
about 7 years ago
– Sun, Apr 02, 2017 at 11:40:30 PM
Dear Backers, and non-Backers
The BackerKit surveys have just been sent to campaign Backers, so you can update your shipping address. Many backers asked that they'd like to order an additional knife set, so we added the possibility for add-ons. You can now add as many knives to your existing order as you'd like, with Kickstarter campaign pricing.
After the campaign ended, we also got a lot of order requests of potential backers that missed the campaign. For those of you who'd still like to order a set, or have friends who missed the campaign but would love to get a knife set, now's the time. Pre-order a set here: http://crucial.backerkit.com
You can also log in to this link to update your survey, if needed.
The CRUCIAL knives are on their way to a fulfillment center, and will ship out soon. I'll send out a shipping update once I have any good news to share.
If you have any issues or questions with the survey, please message me.
Thanks again!
Philippe Schlesser
Shipping, part 2
about 7 years ago
– Fri, Mar 24, 2017 at 09:17:12 PM
Dearest Backers,
March is here, and we're slowly entering its last week. It's been a busy few weeks mapping out shipping. Our first logistics partner didn't work out as planned, and we were lucky enough to connect with a more reliable partner to plan forwarding our shipment from the manufacturer to the fulfillment center. Shipping has a pretty complex inner life, and we're figuring things out, finding trustworthy partners and building a solid network we can use in the future.
But, it's still march. The surveys are ready, and have been submitted to BackerKit for review. You'll receive the surveys in your email inbox in the next days to confirm your addresses through BackerKit. It only takes a few clicks to confirm your shipping address, and if you've moved in the meantime, you can easily change your address.
BONUS: Some backers asked me if they could add one more set to their order after the campaign ended. I'm happy to answer your request with a YES! You can!
I've added the possibility on the survey to get additional knives at Kickstarter campaign pricing. You may want to check if any of your friends missed the campaign and wanted a set, or if you think it may be a good gift for a friend, someone's wedding gift this summer or just an extra set as a backup gift for a future foodie friend. In the survey, you'll be able to get that extra set or as many as you like. So ask your friends if they missed out.
I'm really thankful for your patience, and I'm working hard to connect the dots of shipping and getting those lovely knives to you as quickly as I can. You're awesome, and I thank you for being part of this journey.
All the best,
Philippe Schlesser
