I do some selling on ebay. Recently someone from Norway purchased one of my items. When I saw you were in Norway I thought it may be worth mentioning this... Norway is one of the countries listed in the ebay international shipping program. Ebay pays all the shipping once the item leaves the U.S. Ebay sellers often pay for shipping so it was worthwhile for me to list my item internationally. I only paid to ship to the nearest U.S. port, and eBay covered everything else, even did the export papers, duties, etc. As a seller I didn't need to do anything differently, just ship to the address in Norway -- done, no extra paperwork or shipping costs. I often find ebay prices for my soap stuff is a little more expensive than other US suppliers, but it may be very cost effective for you??? Worth a look.
Thank you for taking the time to pop in to let me know, that was kind of you
tbeck3579, thank you!
Yes I have seen that option a lot, I would have loved to do this! But unfortunately I have never been able to take advantage of it, because when it comes to the end price when everything is added up, I would end up paying $80-90 for two 500ml. bottles of fragrance oils, including the shipping/customs deal. That was just one example, but a very common one I run across everytime I search. But this is probably also because this system isn`t a charity that ebay does, they have to make some money on the process, understandably so.
In Norway we have to pay a customs fee of products that ads up to $40, That doesn`t sound like not so bad of a deal? Well, that sum is including
shipping, handlingfees and insurance. How much can someone really get for that sum when the shipping alone end up becoming 70% of the total you can buy before been hit by a $30-50 customs fee? The rules are strict.
Living on a very tight budget because of unfortunate healthissues, I have learned that the only thing I can do is save up a couple of months, and when I have enough for product and shipping I can order 1
small bottle of something, and start saving up until next time. Since I am not selling I don`t get money in that I could have used on getting supplies etc. But it doesn`t take any joy away from me when making soap, it is very fulfilling and I learn a ton every time I make a batch! And I can get coconutoil, olive oil and lard here, so that is what I mostly use. Soap is soap, even without fancy oils, lol