Has anyone had any experience using Skippy Post?

[myfriendlu]

Hi,

I need to send a parcel to the UK, it weighes a bit over 1kg, but is quite small (10cmx5cmx5cm). If I use Australia Post using either a Pack and Track or Registered Post International satchel, it's going to be $63.55, which not really viable, considering the value of what I'm sending.

I've tried a few of the online shipping calculators, Pack'n'Send, FedEx, TNT, etc and they are even more expensive, and in some cases way more expensive. The cheapest I've found is Skippy Post, which I haven't heard of before, they are about 40% cheaper than Australia Post. The idea is that once you create an account with them, calculate and pay for the item you want to send, you print out the shipping label which is prepaid and lodge it through a normal Australia Post office.

All sounds great, except there isn't much info about Skippy Post on the internet, or reviews (good or bad) from people that have used the service.

Has anyone on here used them before?

http://www.skippypost.com.au

[bibliozbooksearchwizard]

Skippy Post has been in business for almost a decade.  It isn't the quickest option for overseas shipping but you can get tracking on your parcels for only a few dollars and usually it is at least 30-40% cheaper than other options. You can also get loss/damage warranty for a small extra fee too. The parcels are handled by major postal services such as Singapore Post or  New Zealand Post and delivered within the country of destination by whatever the main post service is for that country.

Skippy Post is featured as an  are an eBay partner   http://postage.ebay.com.au/Postage_Centre

and got a great review in CHOICE magazine not so long ago for the best international postal service

https://www.choice.com.au/shopping/shopping-for-services/services/articles/best-international-postal...

Give them a go! Our business have been using them for years and sent hundreds of parcels over that time. Someone needs to give us Aussies a cheaper postal option to compete with the imports. 

[cherry*135]

How much did you work it out that Skippy Post would cost? Including tracking.

They charge a $9 shipment fee, and more parcels you send at the same time the better the discount.

12-24 Business days to the UK

It is a smart solution for shipping goods from Australia, especially for books and related items.

.

[imastawka]

Pssst,  am  OP was last November.

Think they may have posted it by now

[stevend21]

SkippyPost may be a cheaper option than say Australia Post or some other providers for smaller packages to overseas locations but it does come at a cost ... slow speed. 

Good points ...

Online service

Lower cost option even with additional services included (warranty, tracking)

Relatively good online help service

Poor points ...

Slower service due to mail pooling approach.  (They pool mail items before sending off.)

Even slower service over peak periods such as Christmas and New Year. 

Need to send to the mail centres first before despatching to overseas.  Requires extra packaging and labelling and still going to Australia Post.

Need to have super accurate scales because they will charge for every gram that may or may not be overweight.

Tracking is mainly through third party providers

If you are super eBay seller sending items overseas then SkippyPost may be useful but for one to few small items then the amount of processing and follow up with your customers enquriing "where is the package" or "tracking number is not working" may not be worth the few dollars saved.

In summary, SkippyPost may have a good concept to reduce postage costs for all but it does come at a time cost to you.  It needs improvement.

[lyndal1838]

I see you are new to the boards so just a tip.....read the dates on the posts before answering.

You have just given information on a 2 year old thread and most members are well aware of Skippy Post anyway.

[thesoulyearns]

I haven't used SkippyPost but have heard good things from a fairly decent-size Store holder who uses them often for overseas deliveries.

[kaged]

It's good to get updates, I have just looked for reviews on skippy post  and this popped up, so am glad of the comments on here. 🙂

[tanita-919]

I've found that skippy post seems to have scales that are over generous for them. I paid for a set of accurate scales (I tested them with a block of chocolate) and skippy post always charges me an extra $1 even when I add an extra 50g on to the weight of my parcel. Unfortunately, the postage and courier services in Australia are expensive and don't have enough competition to offer a better service and price. 😞

[lyndal1838]

While Australia Post may not have any direct competition to make a difference to their prices and service, the same cannot be said of couriers.   There are so many courier companies competing for a slice of the pie that you have to accept that maybe they cannot offer the good service the customer wants if they cut their prices too far.

They all need to cover their costs and make a profit to be viable.