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Shipping to Canada can be costly for small business owners who need to fulfil customer orders, and eCommerce sellers who want to broaden their scope. 

Even individuals sending packages to family and friends will find shipping costs high due to the numerous factors that need to be paid, such as shipping and handling, custom charges and additional fees that people did not account for. These can be especially challenging for businesses owing to profit margins getting hurt.

The good news is that there are ways to save on shipping costs while still keeping the turnaround time as well as the service level constant. Using cheap delivery service providers, bulk packs, smart boxes and even including fulfilment centres that are located in Canada help in reducing shipping costs. 

This article aims at helping in cost containment. These methods will help streamline shipping processes so they have less hassle irrespective of whether it is one time shipment or multiple shipments. 

Why is Shipping to Canada so Expensive?

 For those that have struggled with understanding why shipping to Canada is so expensive, below is the short breakdown. 

1. Customs duties and taxes: Canada charges tariffs, GST, PST, and HST customarily depending on your product type and value thereby impacting the overall import costs.
2. High Freight Costs: Carriers charges are based on the weight of the package speed at which it has to be shipped and also the size of the package is considered.
3. Customs Brokerage Fees: customs brokerage fees are charged in Canada when there is customs broker who supervises the import of the products for sale using the Canada Border service Agency (CBSA). Brokerage fees essentially include paper work, duties, taxes and all governmental procedures involving in clearing the import.
4. Last Mile Delivery Charges: refers to the charges incurred in transportation of the good from a distribution centre to the customers home or business centre, this is the costliest part of the shipping process, especially if the shipment is for the rural area.
5. Shipping Problems: Larger Packages Cost More, No Matter How Small Your Product Is. Therefore, ensure to keep the package as small as possible. Use small boxes.

The good news is that costs can be diminished. Here’s how. Follow the approach below to Slash Shipping Fees to Canada by 50%: - 

Ways to cut shipping costs to Canada to almost half

Stop Spending on Unnecessarily Large Boxes

Carriers not only charge for weight but also the packages dimensions. That means with oversized boxes, your costs are inflated. 

• Use more cost efficient and smaller packaging. - Mailers are much cheaper and easier compared to boxes. 
• Don’t include excessive fillers. Only add what is necessary, with carriers, less is more. 
• Try flat rate boxes. These come with a fixed shipping cost irrespective of weight. These simple strategies can improve your shipping expenses by 20-30 percent. 

Bulk Shipments Consolidate Orders

Sending out multiple shipments in a single week? With bulk shipping, you save more than you expect. Bundle multiple shipments by consolidating them into one thereby reducing the overall costs to almost half.

Follow what smart businesses do

Forwarding freights, combines one or more shipments into one container to minimize costs. Your international shipping woes are lessened as a Canadian 3PL warehouse takes care of all your shipping and storage needs. Bringing together different orders into a single shipment is referred to as Palletized Shipping, and it reduces and distributes the costs incurred in shipping. The greater the load you lift, the lesser it costs. 

Store your products in Canada 

The fulfilment centre in Canada allows you to cut down on paying excessive international customs fees alongside providing you with the benefits of: 

• Paying less or no customs fees for each order placed. 
• Shipping to customers situated in Canada becomes cheaper and faster.  
• Economical last-mile delivery. 

Some top Canadian fulfilment centres are as below: - 

• Amazon FBA Canada
• Ship Bob
• eShipper
• Ship Station. 

Free Trade Agreements and Canadian Borders

If your geographical position is the USA or Mexico, then chances of incurring customs duties are little to none. In light of CUSMA (previously NAFTA), select items can be imported without incurring a duty fee. However, you must: 

• Correctly identify your products for appropriate classification under Harmonized System (HS) code. 
• Issue a Certificate of Origin to demonstrate eligibility for the qualified product.

Work with regional carriers rather than FedEx and UPS

Work with Regional Carriers Rather Than FedEx & UPS These franchises, such as FedEx, UPS, and DHL, are dependable.

However, there are cheaper alternatives. For smaller businesses, these regional Canadian carriers are ideal. Some examples include: Canada Post: They universally affordable and widely used. Purolator – Ideal for express shipping within Canada.

Can par Express & ICS Courier – Affordable options. 

PRO TIP: To get the best deals combine the use of local carriers and global ones. 

Automate Customs Clearance (And Pay No Hidden Fees)

Customs are considered a big economic drain. Know that automated customs tools like Zonos or Easy ship allows you to take care of these problems and fill out the necessary paperwork before time.

Look for Explanation Make sure the description and the value attached to them is correct to eliminate any chances of unnecessary reclassification expenses. Customs brokers are useful for companies that tend to ship products in bulk. 

They give you more affordable suitable options and work on their own. These automated forms can cut back the expenditure for every shipment imported by hundreds. 

 Compare Shipping Price Before Shipping

Check every shipping price for every item shipped. Not looking for the cheapest deal obtainable is a missed opportunity. Try these multi-carrier shipping platforms as below these deliver the cheapest form of shipment in no time

• Quikship
• Ship Station 
• Shippo
• Easyship 

Give customers the options of free shipping

Giving customers the option of free shipping is always a crowd pleaser, but it doesn’t mean you have to take the brunt of the expense yourself. Rather, try: Having a minimum spend restriction for free shipping (“Spend above $50 to qualify for free shipping”).  So that there is no ambiguity, flat-rate shipping makes it so.  Subscription-based shipping where only loyal customers pay.  Customers are more likely willing to purchase extra goods so that they can qualify for free shipping, allowing you to profit and cover the expense. 

Spend Less Money on Return Processes Through Efficient Policies 

Especially with international shipping, returns certainly do a number on your profit targets. To mitigate expenses: Ensure that product synopsis do not lead to unwarranted returns. Allow local returns in Canada via fulfilment centres. Use discounted shipping rates for labelled returns. Returns is not something that is ever going to be eliminated entirely, but sure can be made less costly. 

To Avoid Unwelcome Charges for Customers,

Use DDP Shipping Ever had a customer not pay the customs charge on delivery? That’s what Delivery Duty Paid (DDP) shipping is for. This means that you, the seller is now DDP, meaning that all duties and taxes for the item are paid beforehand. This means that customers do not have to worry about surprise costs that can leave them abandoning their carts.  Delivery speeds up as custom charges have already been dealt with. No hidden fees returning positive feedback!  DHL, FedEx and UPS offer DDP options. Inquire with your carrier.  

How Quick Ship Helps Businesses Slash Shipping Costs

Quick Ship-as a key solution: Helping businessesreduce costs, simplify logistics, and expand globally.

• Quick Ship’s Cross-Border Solutions:  -Provides affordable, efficient shipping from India to Canada.
• Offers end-to-end fulfilment with warehouse storage in Canada.
• Customs & Compliance Management: Handles all customs paperwork to prevent delays and extra fees.
• DDP Shipping options to eliminate surprise charges for customers.
• Multi-Carrier Shipping for Best Rates: Access to discounted rates with major global and regional carriers.
• Technology-Driven Shipping: - Real-time tracking & AI-powered logistics to optimize costs and delivery speed.

Conclusion:

Intelligent Shipping Correlates to Increased Revenue - Reducing your shipping expenses to Canada by half is not a fantasy, in fact, it is achievable. A couple of clever strategies can get you there, such as, utilizing upgraded box design, shipping in bulk, stocking products in Canada, and automating the customs clearance process. All these measures can help you, without compromising on the standard or speed, save thousands.  

Smart logistics means lower costs and higher profitability—partnering with experts like Quick Ship can make all the difference. The more intelligent the shipping methods, the lower the expenditures, and the higher the revenue.

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