ROYAL MAIL announce MASSIVE price increases . . .
Royal Mail are applying a massive price increase from 30th April. However, what few people realise is that these increases actually hit business customers from 2nd April !?!?!
Everyone is moaning about 1st class stamps increasing to 60p but, beleive us, that's nothing compared to what is happening to small packets . . . a small packet (ie too large for Large Letter) weighing up to 100g currently costs £1.33 to post but is increasing to £2.20 . . . that's a 65% increase !!!
We ship hundreds of these lighter, small packets every day . . . icing colourings, glitters, cutters, tartan ribbon etc. So, for millions of eBay customers buying small, light items every day this means a substantial increase in price.
Air Mail prices are also increasing dramatically.
So over the next couple of weeks we will be revising all our 2,000+ eBay listings to prepare for these changes. In the short term this may make some of our prices appear less competitive because our prices include P&P, sp need to increase to refelct these new higher postage prices, but when everyone else has revised their postage costs by the end of April we hope you'll see that we are still among the most competitive sellers in the cake decorating / craft category.
We will continually monitor and review prices after the change has taken oplace to ensure we continue to offer our eBay customers the best possible prices - just please bear with us for the first few weeks.
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Welcome to cake-stuff.com and tartan-ribbon.com
We normally have 2,000+ items listed for sale and we work very hard to ensure our customers receive their orders in perfect condition and at unbeatable prices.
Rather than clutter each item page with too much information we've put it all here. We're honest people and experienced eBay sellers - we want you to have a great buying experience but also need you to be aware of the Conditions of Sale and eBay rules which cover our transaction.
We don't expect you to read this word-for-word but if there's anything you want to check, please scroll down through the bullet points.
When you place an order you are accepting these Conditions of Sale. We want you to be 100% happy with the service we provide so if you don't accept these conditions then please don't order from us.
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FREE P&P offer . . .
We've recenty introduced a "FREE UK P&P" policy for most lighter items.
95% of eBay customers 1, 2 or 3 items at a time so, for these customers, offering FREE P&P makes excellent sense . . . it means customers can proceed to pay without having to wait for an invoice with combined P&P and it offers excellent value.
However there is one potential "catch" . . . not deliberate, but something we are aware of. Customers who place larger, multiple-item orders may find the total price with the new free (in-built) P&P may be higher than before, when P&P was calculated separately.
We would suggest larger orders are best suited for our main site www.cake-stuff.com where we can offer excellent combined shipping rates (and even free shipping) for larger, heavier orders. eBay is more targeted towards customers requiring a small number of items at a time.
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Shipping / delivery options
a range of delivery options is available so please choose the one that best suits your timescale . . . please don't opt for 2nd class post because it's free and then ask us to "send urgently for a cake I'm making for this weekend". We can only ship using the postage service you've chosen and paid for.
We advertise a 1 working day handling time on most items (some special order or customized items show longer handling times). This 1 day needed to physically print out and pack orders. Please remember to include it in your delivery calculations. Our mail is collected around 2.30pm daily, so overall we advertise that "we will ship orders within 48 hours of payment clearing".
Please remember what Royal Mail quote about postal delivery times. The following is taken from www.royalmail.com . . .
for UK Customers:
These timescales are taken from point of posting, which will be within 48 working hours of you paying . . .
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Standard Parcels - for customers in Northern Ireland, on Scottish islands, the Isle of Man, Channel islands, Isle of Wight, other UK offshore islands or with a BFPO address, we use Royal Mail Standard Parcels for heavier orders. Average delivery is 4-5 working days but it can be slow so allow at least 7 days.
for non - UK Customers:
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International Signed For is a Royal Mail service which is slightly faster than standard Air Mail and has the added protection of on-line tracking. This allows you to trace the parcel through www.royalmail.com. The level of service / tracking varies from country to country.
Faster shipping charges:
Please note that our P&P charges for 1st class, Special Delivery and 24hr Carrier options include a small premium for "jumping the queue" and having your order dealt with ahead of others. It's a very small amount added into the P&P (often no more than 25p) for this faster service, which by ordering you're confirming is acceptable. Thanks.
Shipping days:
APC Carriers and Royal Mail collect hundreds of parcels from us around 2.30pm on weekdays. We do not ship at weekends. Example: place your order at 9pm on a Thursday night and the order is printed out and treated as a "Friday order". If humanly possible, it will be packed for collection at 2.30pm but it could be the Monday before it is collected. This handling time is still 1 working day for despatch within 48 hours - exactly as advertised.
Combined P&P:
we are happy to offer combined P&P wherever possible but this is not an automated service, unless the items all have FREE P&P. You must wait for our PayPal invoice before paying as PayPal cannot calculate combined P&P automatically - these are normally sent by our eBay Management Software within 24 hours. If you decide to go ahead and pay before we've sent the invoice we cannot refund you later for any perceived overpayment.
Most smaller items are now offered with FREE P&P (UK only) to allow you to proceed to checkout without having to wait for an invoice.
Communication:
We're a small, family-run company and we answer as many emails and phone calls as we physically can, no matter how long the hours this means . . . don't be too surprised if you receive an email reply at 1.30am!!!
Even so, we cannot answer every single enquiry right away - it's simply not possible. We do our best but don't get mad if we're not able to tell you how much it will cost to send a cake tin to Mongolia. Chances are the answer you're looking for can already be found here or in the item listing.
We can't offer advice on cake decorating, we can't offer quotes, discounts or special deals - we don't repkly to emails asking these things . . . our prices are already the best on eBay - it's that simple.
Our office can be contacted on +44 (0)1555 890111 - we're not a shop and we can't always answer the phone while trying to pack and ship hundreds of orders. The best times to phone are before midday and after 4.00pm. You can also through the eBay Message Service .
"Where's my order?":
The most commonly asked question on eBay. Firstly - check the timescales above and for the shipping service you chose. If you think the order is overdue the first thing to do is phone your local Royal Mail Delivery Office.
Remember the parcel will probably not fit through a letterbox, so if you're not at home the Postie should leave a card to advise you of an attempted delivery. Experience shows they often "forget" so it's always a good idea to phone your local Royal Mail Delivery Office to check if a parcel is lying there for you. Please believe us . . . we send hundreds of parcels every week and this happens several times a week. Over 90% of all reported non-deliveries turn up safe and sound at the local Delivery Office . . . Delivery Office - not Sorting Office.
If they don't have it and the timescale suggests it should have arrived (or if your order was being shipped by courier) please don't hesitate to contact us.
Edible items:
BEST BEFORE DATE: as new stocks arrive every week the Best Before dates get longer and longer so please be assured the Best Before date won't normally be any sooner than 2-3 months from date of purchase. If a longer BBE date is essential, please contact us before buying.
SHADES / COLOURS: there's no real way of showing true shades of icing colourings, glitters, sugarpaste etc on eBay because because the colours in the photo may look totally different on someone else's PC monitor.
FOOD SAFETY: we are a specialist sugarcraft supplies company . . . we guarantee everything we sell is brand new, in original packaging where applicable and that everything is stored and handled in professional, hygienic conditions at all times. We would never send you an edible item which had been returned by another customer so, as a result, we cannot accept the return of ANY edible item (even if unopened) unless it is faulty or we sent the wrong item
Returns:
EDIBLE ITEMS: for the food safety / hygiene reasons outlined above, we cannot accept the return of any edible item - even if unopened. Edible items are exempt from eBay Returns Policy unless, of course, we have supplied an incorrect item.
NON-EDIBLE ITEMS: we can accept the return of most non-edible items except those designed to come into contact with food, such as cakeboards. All returns must be arranged in advance. If you return an item without first arranging with us, this is done at your own risk and expense.
Distance Selling Regulations provide that if you change your mind about an item, we will refund in full upon safe receipt of the unopened / unused item in the condition it was supplied. Where the error is ours, we are always happy to replace the item and refund your return postage costs.
Non-delivery:
Every once in a while good ol' Royal Mail lose an item - in fact over 16 million items every year, so it's hardly unheard of. If your order doesn't arrive and you've checked with the local Royal Mail Delivery Office as outlined above, we are happy to claim against Royal Mail on your behalf and organise either a replacement or refund as you prefer.
Please note that Royal Mail do not consider an item late or lost until 15 working days after the expected delivery date. They will not entertain a claim for non-delivery inside this timescale so we cannot normally replace or refund until this period has ended.
Contact us if the item hasn't arrived after 10 days from when you paid - let us know the item hasn't arrived so that we can both try to trace it. If neither of us can trace it with Royal Mail we're happy to arrange a full refund for you.
Please observe this 10 day period - the logic of it is this: you pay on day 1, we advertise to ship within 48 hours so will have shipped your order no later than day 3, 2nd class takes 3-5 working days, so (including a weekend) could arrive any time up to day 10. Although not unheard of, it's unlikely an item will arrive after day 10 so we're more than happy to help out at this point.
Feedback:
Our feedback is not perfect but it is honest and reflects a level of customer satisfaction any High Street name would kill for! We work hard to improve all aspects of our sevice but can only help solve problems if we know about them . . .
PLEASE DO NOT LEAVE FEEDBACK BEFORE SPEAKING TO US ABOUT ANY PROBLEM.
This ensures that no-one is tempted to use feedback as a bargaining tool. We don't respond to threats and we won't be bullied, but we are more than happy to help put right anything you feel has gone wrong - so speak to us.
Our eBay management software automatically returns all feedback received. This means that we know the order has arrived safely and that the customer is happy. In a sense we can "tick of" that order by leaving feedback in return. If you don't leave us feedback, there is always a slight doubt over whether it arrived safely and/or if everything was OK.
DETAILED FEEDBACK: eBay's new feedback system asks you to leave detailed "5 star" feedback, known as Detailed Seller Ratings (DSRs). It's optional, but we'd very much appreciate the opportunity to exchange 5 star feedback
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COMMUNICATION: most of this is automated - did you get the email thanking you for your order and, later, advising when item was shipped? Did the delivery note summarise information and provide direct contact numbers and email for us?
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DESPATCH TIME: please remember despatch time - not delivery time. Delivery time is entirely down to the shipping option chosen by the customer, whereas depsatch time is down to us. We ship within 48 hours - please check the ink stamp on your delivery note - this is stamped by the person who picked your order and shows the date.
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P&P CHARGES: this includes postage costs, all packaging and handling. Some orders require little packaging - others require lots. Please also remember that if you didn't wait on an invoice then the combined P&P rate may not have been applied. If you have any doubts about our P&P charge can we suggest you take the package to your local Post Office and ask them how much it would be to post back to us - that will prove the posting costs beyond any shadow of doubt . . . especially with new increased Royal Mail prices coming into force in April 2012.
Please score us fairly - we're honest sellers and we're here if you have any concerns you want to speak to us about. Thanks! :o)
The "Golden Rule":
eBay is a fantastic place and the overwhelming majority of all transactions go smoothly and result in delighted customers - just look at our feedback. But in the real world things will always go wrong every once in a while - when that happens all we can do is act honestly and professionally to minimise the impact of these rare problems. In every case the Golden Rule is communication . . . speak to us and we'll do what we possibly can to help.
It's all about fairness, honesty and old fashioned decency - treating others the way you want to be treated yourself. Sound fair? :o)
tel. 01555 890111
or +44 1555 890111 (from outside UK)
email info@cake-stuff.com | 
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