Well.ca and Canada Post.

The last two orders I have made with Well.ca I had shipped to Goose Bay. This saves me the $30:00 minimum mailing charges for orders under $300:00.

Fortunately, I then get the package up to Nain free of charge. I do not want to continue doing this; I find it unfair to the good folks in GB what with putting them out picking the order up from the post office and then arranging to get it up to me.

I don’t mind paying for the shipping, but I still am of the opinion that Can Post is unreasonable with shipping rates into rural remote communities.

I have done cost comparisons before, here is the latest.

The two recent orders from Well.ca were of comparable $ value, around the 156 $ mark.. Both were comparable in size and weight to be shipped. The following was taken from the Can Post web site.

The most recent shipping dimensions were: 27.09x36.8x15.2 cm weight 3.33 KG.

Shipped from:  N1E 6Y9 to A0P 1C0.

Base cost $13:44

Fuel surcharge $00:97

Tax $1.87

For total of: $16.28.

Seeing as Well.ca ships for free to everywhere other that rural and remote locations Well.ca absorbs this shipping cost.

If I had asked to send the package direct to my address I would have had to pay the $30:00 minimum ship charges.

According to Can Post the cost for the package from N1E 6Y9 to A0P 1L0 would have been:

Base cost $30:61

Fuel surcharge $2:22

Tax $4:27

For total cost of $37:10.

So according to those figures Well.ca still absorbs $7:27 shipping costs to Nain.

Now if I wanted to get the package shipped to Goose Bay with shipping paid by Well.ca, picked up at post office and re mailed to me [A0P 1C0 to A0P 1L0] the cost would be:

Base cost $19:27

Fuel surcharge $1:40

Tax $2:69

For total cost of $23:36.

I am still saving 6 $ and change doing it this way.

The orders are expedited quite fast and get to Goose Bay ground transport, hence the low fuel surcharge.

There has to be some way round these high air freight charges.

There are entities in place that could lower the cost of living within Nunatsiavut if there was a will.

In the absence of those entities taking an interest several local ladies have banned together to make a bulk order from Well.ca. These women have babies and young children. With the absence of many drug store items and the lack of verity many people shop on line for these things.

So by making an order over 300$ these ladies will save more on shipping as Well.ca charges just $20:00 for orders over $300:00. 

Perhaps this is the way forward, people forming local consumer buying co ops, or clubs, call it what you will.

I have had discussions on this in the past but nothing eventuates, always other distractions or no one wants to take the lead.