Fuming

[Chalet School Fan]

I rarely buy from C&C or Hochanda as the suppliers send their products more quickly when I buy directly from them.
Janet Clare and Daisy Chain Designs normally dispatch within a day and p&p is cheaper.
Tonic and Crafters Companion both tend to be very slow. I ordered 3m material to make children's Janet Clare aprons. To get free postage (I'm s silver level member) I added a spool of thread. Yesterday ( over a week later) I got an email saying the money for the material was being refunded and a parcel arrived via courier with a spool of thread. With the cost of dispatch it would have made more sense to cancel the while order!

[Deefersmum]

I have avoided (knowingly) buying from China for years because of their appalling human and animal rights record.

Same here, but Sizzix dies are made in China so there's not much I can do.

Since the present situation began, I've been making ultra sure I don't buy anything made there unless I absolutely have to. Sites like Ebay are a minefield because sellers claim to be in this country, but are obviously not when it comes to delivery times.

[PinkPig]

Adding to the delays is Hermes who email you to tell you they have your parcel then in the tracking say your parcel has been delayed and no reason given- this keeps happening.

[Chalet School Fan]

Being a crafter and avoiding buying anything from China is almost impossible. Not only are most craft supplies manufactured there, but many books are also printed there.
I don't agree with Chinese politics and policies, but I also teach children from China who come here for their education, either as boarders or living with family members. Hopefully that growing generation, which has greater contact with the west, will begin to bring about change as well from within their country. Teaching a GCSE module about equality and human rights on-line this term has been fun as I've had to find ways to circumvent Chinese censorship to get material to the girls, but my students there have written me good essay answers on the subject!!
So different from my teenage years in the 1970s, when Chinese students in my college at university were forbidden to speak to western students. If they did their families at home would be punished.

[pyjama princess]

Is it a bit of a mythical warehouse then ?

I think they must have a warehouse as some of the items are branded as Create and Craft.

I rarely buy from C&C or Hochanda as the suppliers send their products more quickly when I buy directly from them.
Janet Clare and Daisy Chain Designs normally dispatch within a day and p&p is cheaper.
Tonic and Crafters Companion both tend to be very slow. I ordered 3m material to make children's Janet Clare aprons. To get free postage (I'm s silver level member) I added a spool of thread. Yesterday ( over a week later) I got an email saying the money for the material was being refunded and a parcel arrived via courier with a spool of thread. With the cost of dispatch it would have made more sense to cancel the while order!

Tonic are local to me here in Wales, about a mile away. But their post goes down to the Cardiff sorting office and then has to travel back to Bridgend to me. At one time Cardiff SO was renowned for being dreadful but I don't know if things have improved. I found their delivery quite quick recently. At the start of the pandemic they had huge problems with orders and despatch. A lot of their staff worked from home and with sickness/self isolation there were very few staff in the warehouse. Wales also have stricter lockdown rules. They got so far behind with orders that they recruited warehouse staff but they were only allowed to complete orders for any new releases. The permanent staff had to deal with the other general orders as their warehouse system is quite complicated and the new staff couldn't find the stock.

[RozMinis]

I have bought goodies directly from Rowandene, posted either the same day, or the following day, received the next. I was so impressed that I sent them an email to say so. received a very nice email back thanking me for saying thank you. Left a nice warm fuzzy feeling all round. Soooo will definitely be buying directly from them again. The postage works out cheaper too, could have bought everything on their website for the same postage - don't tempt me! :)

Roz

[Lioness]

Adding to the delays is Hermes who email you to tell you they have your parcel then in the tracking say your parcel has been delayed and no reason given- this keeps happening.

If the delay lasts more than 3 or 4 days it usually means that they cannot find the item.
I had that recently on a parcel from QVC. Then the replacement parcel also was 'delayed', fortunately that one arrived

[PinkPig]

It’s happened twice this week - one parcel arrived today but the other according to the tracker arrived at my local depot at 15:06. Will be interested to see if it is held back a day again. ( I have not confessed my latest buys I’m afraid, I’m trying to pretend I have not been buying much).

[Mitzi]

As posted on the Fess Up thread, Hermes have lost a parcel of mine, and the items are unavailable now. Annoying.

[PinkPig]

Three emails so far today-2 dated at 09:38 . One says delivery between 3 and 5, the other between 2 and 6. The third one says it has had to be rescheduled and will now be between 2 and 4.