Why this aversion to international buyers?
 

I have again been denied a purchase with the excuse "I don't sell to international buyers" and now I want to understand why this aversion exists. My hope is that by understanding the "why" I can educate at least a few so that they in the future feel comfortable selling across borders.

Payment - as long as you receive the money up front, what's the problem? This part is probably "scarier" for the buyer than the seller.

Shipping - You need to fill out one extra form - the customs form. It is not very hard and the person behind the counter will most likely be kind enough to help you if needed.

Risk - This is assumed and shared by both parties. Never use a service where you can't track/insure the shipment. The more expensive an item, the more sophisticated a shipping method should you be using (this goes for national and international shipments). And to be honest the risk of losing something just because it is sent internationally is not necessarily greater than shipping domestically.

Nationalism - Sometimes you read "I hope this car stays in this country". Why is that? Does the seller hope to be able to buy it back some day? Or does the seller hope to keep seeing it driving down the street when going to work in the morning? Or is it simply because the seller is not comfortable with foreigners? I sincerely hope it is not the latter, because my friend, unless you live in Germany (or in the odd case Austria) you should probably find yourself another car manufacturer as your hobby.

Anything I missed?SmileWavy

/Johan

I prefer to ship FedEx ground (have an account with them), and that isn't an option with international buyers. FedEx International is expensive and buyers typically don't want to pay it, especially if it is something large. Instead they'll suggest USPS. Not worth my time or energy to hassle with the post office. Extra forms, standing in line, hit-or-miss tracking. Nationalism doesn't have anything to do with it. Extra paperwork and extra time/hassle does.

I've also had broker/duty/etc charges come out of nowhere when I've shipped or had things shipped to me international. When I ship CONUS, I pay once and that is it.

It all depends on the seller, is he willing to go through some extra hassle or not.
If it is a sale between Pelicans, I have no problems doing a little extra paperwork.

There's also the Nigerian scammer angle too. Lots of international emails are scams, it makes people paranoid.

Shipping has been an issue for me as well. I expend significant effort with an international seller only to have them balk at the high shipping cost. Seems like that should be assumed.

International shipping
 

Other than the extra cost and having to fill out the customs form, no big deal. I have sent my fuse panels all over the world including countries such as Australia, Germany, England, Canada, etc. The customer picks up the tab for the extra shipping costs and I make certain that the parts are packed extra carefully. In this case, Paypal is definitely the way to go.

Yeah, some people are just stupid and lazy. They make decisions based on the wrong information, because they are too lazy to actually learn anything about the subject at hand. These are the same morons that pack things poorly, use whatever box they can get for free, etc.

Shipping internationally isn't hard and companies like Ebay make it even easier, if you want to take advantage of everything they offer. Shipping companies, the USPS, etc. also have free accounts that you can set up to streamline the paperwork you have to complete.

Some people are just worthless.

JR

I can sort of agree with your "Nationalism" point. I like seeing old 911s on the road. The fewer cars here and that are leaving the states means the less I'll see out and about. Older 911s, particularly long hoods are already being tucked away in garages, coveted by collectors rather than being used for the purpose for which they were originally sold (back in 1973, etc).

With time that would happen anyway but it seems to have accelerated with the current market frenzy.

This exactly. Its just the hassle factor.

From eBay:

"If your item is located in the US and you're shipping to an eligible country, you may be able to use our Global Shipping Program. With the Global Shipping Program, you ship the item to a US shipping center, and international shipping experts manage the international shipping and customs process for you."

Easy enough?

There are other options.

JR

I wanted to order some retro lounge shirts off line. The company (based out of the USA) would not ship to Canada claiming issues with customs???? A quick internet search brings me to another US company. There only response to my shipping question was...international shipping is this much (not much for two shirts) and if they get tagged at customs you will be responsible for any extra taxes or duties. Awesome customer service and I will be shopping there again!!!!http://forums.pelicanparts.com/uploa...1391265279.jpg
http://forums.pelicanparts.com/uploa...1391265315.jpg

I have this one!

http://forums.pelicanparts.com/uploa...1391265315.jpg

Cool shirts! Care to post a source?

I've shipped used Porsche parts all over the world and I think most people think payment scam, shipping hassle, lack of control, too much packing care, etc. adding it up and deciding its not worth it. The reality is it is not bad and the educated buyer expects there to be extra cost.

[QUOTE=mreid;7886947]Cool shirts! Care to post a source?


A Daddy-O's- bowling shirts, rockabilly, swing, retro shirts, lounge clothing and 50's clothes and dresses.
Very good on line customer service

Us 'Mericans don't trust no furriner with our cars, especially with Sweden being so close to Nigeria..We're afraid of your funny money.;)

Because I lived in so many latitudes, I would not do it because is unpredictable. I'm a enthusiast so my resources are limited. No volume, special discount, frequent customer privileges, special plane, container. Nothing. Nada.

Risky shipping happenings:

1. Just lost while in transit.
2. Damaged while in transit
3. Lost by the non efficient local custom.
4. Lost by local mail system
5. Items being dissected by local custom to search for illegal substances. I had a set of cosworth pistons cut in half. Im serious about this one.


So really…… to try to help somebody somewhere in world…… Something happens and I have to go through the aggravation of the endless emails, phone calls, and refunds.
Not worth my time.

No thank you……

And yes this happens today in 2014. Not in colonial time, columbus time, crusades , wild west, clippers, mayflowers and sunken ships by U-boats.

Nothing to do with nationalism... I have bought watches from Australia, Philippines, Hong Kong (some of the coolest watches can be had from Hong Kong) and just found a site on ebay of a guy in Israel that sells antique watches.

I have also been scammed on the Internet by people in Calif. when shopping for a car.

I ran into this a few times.... "I'm not comfortable shipping to Canada". It was a $100 item to be thrown in the mail????? I don't understand where the issue was. On the other hand, I have had a problem exporting when a customs broker was required. It was a large item going LTL freight. The buyer played stupid (couldn't understand English when it was convenient) and I did all of the customs broker work and got stiffed for $120. Maybe he will read this :)

I've shipped a few hundred things to overseas countries in the last five years. Canada, Mexico, all over Europe, Asia, Australia, etc.

Not one thing failed to arrive.
Not one thing was damaged.
Not one complaint from any of the buyers.

Maybe I'm just lucky. Or maybe I give a **** "enough" to pack things properly, label things properly, fill out the customs forms properly, etc.

It's not hard. I'm not lazy.

JR

I blame it on the Nigerians. Too many scams...

The fact that eBay now rapes you with fees, the last thing I'm going to do is use another one of their "services". I'll stick with selling mostly CONUS and shipping via fedex.

A few years ago I sold a steering wheel and adapter from my 914 to a fellow in Canada. UPS had all the forms on their website and I did them all. The hassle came from US customs, not sure why, and they wanted to know if I had the "import" paperwork on the wheel since it was made in Italy? I noted it was made in 1970 give or take a year and I was probably the 5th or 6th owner and had no idea since it was probably originally purchased from a car accessory shop anyways. The lady said "well okay I guess it is okay" and approved the shipping. I have no idea why OUR customs should give a damn but I decided to not ever ship out of the county again.

Don't feel bad as we get that all the time when buying a gun, parts or ammo and wanting it shipped to CA. Some dealers will not even ship muzzle loaders to you or will want to use a FFL even though not needed!

I consider it too much hassle to list things on eBay and ship them domestically. That's why I have two storage spaces full of very sellable stuff, (including Porsche parts), that sits month after month. There is basically zero chance of my offering it internationally on eBay and spending one additional minute hassling with customs forms or other nonsense. The last time I did ship something internationally from eBay, there was not an affordable tracking option and the guy claimed that he never received it. I had to refund his $$ and kiss the item goodbye. I was using USPS.

Could I have researched it better and prepared for the international buyer better? I suppose, but I won't spend the time.

As for selling Porsches back to Europe and nationalism, I could make a counter argument. Not that it matters except to individual opinion, but we, (the U.S./California), bought most of the Porsches when they were first sold. 25% of the 911 cars sold in the world were sold in southern California. Not the entire state, just the southern part. Another large percent were sold in Northern California. This is data from the air-cooled era, not sure about now.

There would be no Porsche company without people where I live buying them when they were new and expensive. And yes, I'd like to see them stay here rather than leave forever and be taken out of the market forever to U.S. buyers just because of a cruel disparity in currencies for the last 10+ years. I don't care if someone in Europe who is benefitting from this likes my viewpoint or not. If and when I sell a collectible Porsche in the future, there will be a huge surcharge for foreign buyers or their weasels, (I mean flippers/hunters), in the U.S. Probably enough to ensure that the car stays with a U.S. owner for at least its next stewardship.

I'm about to broker a collection of early Porsches for the widow of a collector, they will be surcharged heavily for flippers.

I've had good luck with international buyers except for a few occasions. One was a 356 owner in the Caribbean Islands. He has a big rep on the registry. We negotiated for awhile and we came to an agreement.

He sent a PayPal and then wanted to wank some more. I cancelled the deal and sent him back his money. He screamed bloody murder on the registry website. I got a 50/50 support. Told them all to bite my crank. The item was a set of five lug, Mahle gas burners. I no longer do business with anyone on that list.

On graphics, I always recommend using a local supplier. When they insist I tell them that shipping and insurance may be costly. If they agree....I will work with them. It's a matter of trust.

Itz cus ya'll talk funny :p

Johan,

I used to sell model airplane drawings. Half my customers were outside of the USA. They paid via PayPal or check. When the check cleared I sent the package. Typically they were valued at $30-$50. Not too expensive, but a non-trivial amount of money to risk.

Never had a problem shipping packages or round mailing tubes. Europe, Australia & NZ, Asia, & Africa. Yes, I filled out the customs forms; no big deal. Shipping was more expensive, but I sent a lot via parcel post. It would take ~4-5 weeks to get there. But everyone got their package.

On the flip side, I deal with Gabriele David (Ebay - alfa1750) in Italy for Zenith TIN parts, and he sends stuff to me with no issues.

I'm sure for most, the perceived hassles is what they are dealing with. Payment, shipping, customs, risk. It is unfortunate. Can't speak to nationalism. Parts are not political; it is just not in their nature...

;)

Not shipping to the US? I find that attitude also displayed a lot on European E-Bay site offerings.

I just went through this
A Pcar guy wanted my part, He offered a lot less..so to get it out of here i said yes.
THEN
he said he would send most the money and to cover the shipping he would send the rest....
OK
first real red flag
next he said the money would be here by such and such date, he had made arrangements for the box to go out that day. (B4 the payment got here) an other red flag
Again I told him nothing gets shipped with out full payment.
His money got here 10 days late...and in the course of action i had relistd the part.
He saw that and got all huffy.......
But I never opened the envlope, I had just sent it back.
i dont want to deal with the hassle.
He said i was a big and awful problem to him. The worst he had to ever deal with
As far as i can tell....some people are too hard to please
He never got the cash here in a timely manor
Wanted stuff sent B4 cash arrived.
I am just saying NO from now on.
If i cant use something simple like UPS
i am done

Is this from private sellers or retail?

If retail, I can tell you that easily 1 in 4 orders we get online are fraudulent and using stolen credit-cards or hacked paypal accounts. Seriously at LEAST 1 in 4. So for any significant order particularly from certain countries we insist on a wire transfer the first time.

The good news is, for the most part, the criminals are not very sophisticated and our fraud detection system catches them....

Johan, I may have missed it, but what did you want to buy but were denied?

I ship about $50K+ of 911 parts every year, much of this overseas. If you use USPS, you not only get the best price, it is CAKE using the web site to create waybills. Never had a problem.

Though USPS wouldn't take this crate to Thailand. :)

http://forums.pelicanparts.com/uploa...1391301917.jpg

http://forums.pelicanparts.com/uploa...1391301926.jpg

http://forums.pelicanparts.com/uploa...1391301936.jpg

I'm sure it is not isolated to the american market, that is also why I didn't mention any countries or nationalities in my original post. I prefer to look at it as a general issue. SmileWavy

Hi Shaun

How are things?

In general it is small stuff, which makes it extra annoying. That being said most often it is not an issue and the transaction goes off without a hitch. :)

And I fully agree - in my experience USPS is the way to go. I tend to ship a bunch of stuff "From: ME, To: I" when we visit family in the US and USPS is by far the best option. Pallets etc need to go as cargo though (LCL sea freight or airfreight, which is a lot cheaper than you'd think)

So when the USPS clerk saw your box he/she pulled out the measuring tape stating: "Sir, this has a total measurement over 108" ;)

/Johan

Did you have to pay import duties?

I'll be sure to speak nice and sloooooow to you, ok? ;)

International? Hell, people don't even want to ship to Hawaii!

Your old tv show is taking a dump without you. I wouldn't doubt if it gets canceled next season.

Doing well thanks, starting on my next car this week, so if you ever need anything, please just let me know.

They gave you problems on the crossmember?

Did you sell your RarelyL8 headers?

http://forums.pelicanparts.com/uploa...1391349669.jpg

Do you have an electrical speedo in KM/H?

Everything went smooth with the crossmember. Thanks again!

Still have the headers. Want them? :)

/Johan

All gauges are sold, sorry, but I will see what I can do.

I do want the headers but won't be able to until March, so if they are gone, my loss.

good to hear on the crossmember!