The two Mail Forwarders I have used to ship items from US merchants
Features Breakdown of both mail forwarder providers:
wannitus.co.nz- No set up fee or ongoing membership fee
- Easy & quick set up - join online & once your email address is verified (via a confirmation link) you will get access to your online account & US postal address
- Simple site offering basic account features where orders need to be input manually once order is placed with the US merchant
- One courier service: FedEx Priority
- Services & charges are simply set out & these are added to the shipment charge (which is based on the dimensions & weight of the package delivered via FedEx Priority)
- WannitUS will store shipments for up to 30 days free of charge ($2 per day thereafter)
- Consolidation of orders through a variety of US merchants is available ($7.50US charge)
- Currently can still have orders from Sephora shipped to the WannitUS postal address in the USA
- Packages are automatically insured for up to $100, additional insurance depends on the declared value
- Personal Shopper service available (good to use when a US billing address is also required)
- US debit card: There is also a vertical credit card with reloadable funds available US Unlocked
- Operations/distribution centre is based in Stirling, New Jersey USA & the account number is the suite number provided, there is no US phone number provided with the US postal address
- Ships to most countries/worldwide
myus.com
- There is a set up fee for each of the three membership types offered
(The two premium memberships have ongoing annual or monthly fees)
- Need to pay one off set up fee (i.e. provide payment details) before an account can be created & the US postal address is provided
- The website is complex but easy to navigate around with layers of information available & detailed account features where customers can set up shipping preferences & access digital copies of invoices + scan of merchant invoice. There is no need to input orders placed with US merchants if they provide the invoice with the shipment to the distribution warehouse- Three courier services - DHL, FedEX & USPS with options to choose from for each depending on expense. Plus there is now a fourth option for shipments to Australia
- Services & fees depend on the type of membership & benefits each offer whereas the shipment cost is based on the dimensions & weight of the package sent via the courier service selected
- Storage of parcels (cost & days available) are dependant on membership type
- Consolidation of orders through a variety of US merchants is available (costs are based on membership type)
- Orders through Sephora no longer appear to be accepted to the MyUS postal address
- Insurance of up to $100 declared value is included free ($2 for every $100 over)
- Personal Shopper service available (good to use for merchants that also require a US billing address)
- Operations/distribution centre is based in Sarasota, Florida USA & the account number is the suite number provided + there is a US phone number available
- Additional service discounts are available for the Premium memberships as well as merchant discounts offered from time to time when using MyUS
- Ships to most countries/worldwide
My Experience
I've had great customer service when using the mail forwarder WannitUS - I've found the service very prompt & professional whether I have had queries concerning my shipments or simply wanting more information on their services. I actually feel like my business matters even though I am just a small client who does infrequent shopping online from US merchants. Even though I have always had curtious service from whoever I have dealt with at MyUS I just can't avoid the feeling that WannitUS is more personable & really does feel like the family owned & operated business that it states that it is. I have even asked about shipping for items on behalf of requests I've received on my YouTube channel & WannitUS have tried their best to help.
The stand out service that really got my attention is that they bothered to take out a 1ml perfume sample from a Sephora order that I found out would've cost me a fair amount to receive. I had been previously under the mistaken impression that with MyUS all I had to pay was a mere $1 for each perfume sample & that the hazardous item fee of $10.50 only applied to FULL size items (I even stated so in some of my videos).
However, it wasn't until my issue with the missing sample with WannitUS that I bothered to look back at my invoices with MyUS & realised that they not only charged me $10.50 as a "hazmat fee" but also $1 for each of the perfume samples! They did not take the initiative to remove the samples - of course why should the company do so? It is certainly not expected & it is not part of the otherwise detailed & easy to tailor "shipping preferenes". But I really liked that WannitUS took the responsibility to remove that tiny sample as it certainly saved me money. Of course, it could have also earned my ire as a customer because they did not ask me if this was something that I wanted. Yet it actually earned my appreciation & also taught me how complacent that I had become as a consumer. I had not verified my assumption that I was only being charged for full size items that were classed as hazardous, nor had I fully checked through my invoices with MyUS. I had become, for lack of a better word, "lazy" relying on the shipping preferences that I had selected to cover all bases (it clearly did not). I also did not bother to utilise what I think is a great part of the account on the MyUS site - where we can go back through the history of the orders & see in detail the electronic copies of the shipping notes, merchant invoices & charges (it does not stay indefinitely but certainly long enough to print off all the details).
It does not meant that I cannot see the advantage of the account set up that MyUS offer - it is very detailed & if I was doing high volume business I could see the benefit of having access to all the electronic invoices & an almost automated set up. But quite simply I don't need all the fancy account features that MyUS offer, I've found simple is better in this instance.
I asked WannitUS what happens to items that are removed from packages & they informed me that they try, where appropriate, to donate those items. A much better end for a little sample that I may, or may not, have bothered to use!
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| WannitUS packages are well padded with tissue paper |
I also like the way that WannitUS package the items inside the shipped orders. I really like how each item is wrapped in white tissue paper & carefully arranged in the box. There is also a thank-you letter that always comes included from the Director of Operations in the US, Michael Peacock, which I think is a nice touch.
Ordering Online
MyUS - I have done a total of 6 orders using the MyUS service. When I originally started using this mail forwarder I could place orders on Sephora using my MyUS suite address. Unfortunately, Sephora no longer recognise the MyUS address in Sarasota, Florida as a viable postal address.Other shipments I have done through them for other merchants have been fine & with my shipment preferences set up it can be very streamlined & quick to process deliveries. If the merchant includes a copy of the items with the costs I simply receive a notification that the package is at the MyUS warehouse & once it has been set to ship the payment is automatically taken from my account. However, if the merchant has not included costs of items I need to log into my account & declare a cost for each & every item even for each sample that has been put into the order. Typically I have had to put in $0.01 for each sample otherwise it will not let me submit the details. From there I will receive another email once the values have been accepted & the shipment can be processed.
WannitUS - Thankfully when ordering on Sephora it will still accept my WannitUS postal address in Stirling, New Jersey. Then I simply select my billing address as my one here in Australia & complete my payment using my AU debit card. Once I have received my confirmation of the order I go to my WannitUS account & put in the purchase details manually - type of order, date, number of items & the total cost of the order. So far I have used the WannitUS address for 6 orders, 3 of which I had consolidated into one shipment to Australia.
When the package has been received at the WannitUS warehouse I will get an email advising of this & if there are no further orders to be consolidated with it WanntiUS will email me an invoice of the costs to send the package to Australia plus any fees. Once the payment has been processed the shipment will be sent. I will receive an email from WannitUS with the FedEx details so that I can track my shipment.
Costs
As far as transparency of costs with WannitUS there is a set $8.50 handling/service fee stated clearly on the website as well as $7.50 for the consolidation of packages. Both mail forwarders offer the personal shopper service with WannitUS charging either $8.50 minimum for the personal shopper service (or 8.5% of the total order). I found this service useful recently when I wanted to get two items from Ulta & I could not use my AU payment details. I simply emailed WannitUS & asked if they could order the items online (one of the items was at the time only available online) & they arranged the order to be sent to the WannitUS warehouse. Once received, it was consolidated with my three other orders into one package & the price of the items plus the personal shopper fee was added to my invoice. With MyUS it is more complicated, as it depends on the type of membership & also the shipping preferences that have been selected (the courier, extra packaging, photos etc). With MyUS they charge for additional packing as well as security seals whereas WannitUS offer these free. However, with MyUS these can be selected through the shipping preferences page but with WannitUS it needs to be requested through customer service.
If you want to check out more detail on my experience using MyUS you can check out my video here (although this was filmed before I had used WannitUS). I have also recently done a combined haul from Sephora through WannitUS as well as trying the personal shopper to get two products from Ulta online (see below).
