Time To Order My "Free" Shipping Supplies

[snoopwiz]

Once again, it's grin and bare it day. Last day to use the coupon. Something we do every three months, sometimes in the hope that they may introduce more of a selection, perhaps cubed boxes? Or something closer to what I/you could actually use. 

I really do not know why so many people complain about the pricing on the shipping supplies store we have to use our coupons for.  Look at how "competitive" their pricing is.  OK, sure, they do provide "free  shipping" but, really...............

https://www.ebay.ca/itm/PRE-SALE-eBay-Branded-Boxes-With-Blue-2-Color-Logo-6-x-4-x-4/372494312342?ha...

https://www.staples.ca/en/Staples-6-x4-x4-Corrugated-Shipping-Box-25-Bundle-PRA0007/product_481786_1...

https://www.uline.ca/Product/Detail/S-4060/Corrugated-Boxes-200-Test/6-x-4-x-4-Corrugated-Boxes

End-O-Year-Rant 

[femmefan1946]

Since we use a coupon to 'buy' those supplies, any price on them is irrelevant.

The Staples boxes cost $7.99 +4.99 shipping+tax.

The eBay boxes require a coupon. No money.

But I am dysnumeric. So I may have missed something.

let me do the math here. Nothing into nothin’. Carry the nothin’…-- Jayne Cobb

[snoopwiz]

Since we use a coupon to 'buy' those supplies, any price on them is irrelevant.

The Staples boxes cost $7.99 +4.99 shipping+tax.

The eBay boxes require a coupon. No money.

But I am dysnumeric. So I may have missed something.

Irrelevant? I would respectfully disagree.  The eBay supplies has and continues to cost me money, directly or indirectly, whichever way you chose to look at it.

The "free" coupon came with (in my case) an increase from $200 a month to $300 a month for my store "rent"    Albeit, they did increase the amount of items one could list in their store significantly but, as it turned out, me (and from what I gather, many many others)  did not request, did not need nor could not use the extra listings. Then. Nor now. Nor in the foreseeable future. 

[femmefan1946]

So you have  an Anchor store at $299.99 and list 4848 items currently of the 10,000 "Free" listings you have available.

Which means your listings are costing you six cents each.

I agree that increasing the number of available "free" listings while raising the price of the store was a sneaky way of raising your listing fees.

Was the Anchor store previously $199.99 monthly for up to 5,000 listings? That would have been about four cents each for your 4848 current lisitings.

Both the 'free' supplies coupon and the 'free' listings are doublespeak. You pay for a package and get certain privileges for that.

Cheaper listings, a choice of shipping supplies, lower selling fees, and the use of Vacation mode are the ones I find useful.

It's like those BOGO (buy one, get one) sales. The second item isn't free, the two items are half price.

Smoke and mirrors.

[j.cher]

I know https://boxgiver.com/ has free shipping supplies. I get free cardboard boxes and bubble wrap from there when I ship my stuff. Hope that helps!

[byto253]

What Staples product are you looking at?  I buy small boxes from them and they are way less expensive than online.   Staples has also been delivering free for several months, with no minimum.

I don't have a store so know nothing about the coupons, but am just chiming in as this does not appear to be a valid comparision.  

[ilikehockeyjerseys]

eBay's philosophy on shipping supples is entirely wrong.

If they want to encourage their sellers to behave in a professional way that competes with Amazon, they should make eBay branded shipping supplies cheap and accessible. Not to mention, the boxes are billboards. Is it ironic that Amazon gets free publicity from eBay every time an eBay seller re-uses an Amazon Prime box for a sale?

The shipping supply coupon is better than nothing, but the supplies are insanely overpriced. I buy my size 0 bubble mailers from Costco's website. They cost me 55 dollars shipped for 250 mailers. The same amount of bubble mailers from eBay would cost 119 dollars. It is like everything is marked up by the value of the coupon. 

In terms of boxes, Staples has free shipping and sells smaller boxes for very cheap. I use a lot of 8 x 6 x 4 boxes. For bundles of 25, Staples sells them for $12. eBay sells them for $42. 

I understand the eBay stuff is "branded", but it makes no sense. It seems like very short term thinking. Make money on the supplies at the expense of marketing the brand in a positive way. (Both through helping sellers big and small have access to professional shipping supplies at a price that gives them incentive to use them, and also through spreading the eBay brand with every package sent)

[reallynicestamps]

ZOMBIE THREAD FROM 2018

The problem with zombie threads is that the information in them may be out of date or incorrect.

[reallynicestamps]

They cost me 55 dollars shipped for 250 mailers. The same amount of bubble mailers from eBay would cost 119 dollars.

Before or after the coupon?

But I agree, the prices given are inflated.

I try to hide the branding on my eBay envelopes, because I don't use tracking and don't want to make it too obvious that there might be something valuable inside.