Today, I am free. Are you curious as to why I say I am free? Well, I will tell you. I am free because I closed my eBay store. I have been contemplating closing the store for quite some time now and today I actually did it. I'm saddened by this thought and excited as well. The reasons I closed my store, Lone Star Vintage Clothing on eBay are as follows:
1. I had an international customer in Denmark open up a dispute stating they never received their package. I shipped the package via USPS on July 7, 2008 and have proof of shipment. I gave this guy free shipping. The receipt shows where the package was shipped to, customs number, cost of shipment, date of shipment, which post office the item was mailed from-everything. This customer opened up the disput without even contacting me first. I was so upset, that I elevated this dipute to a claim. I understand mail can get delayed,especially international transactions. I called Paypal to explain my side and offer my receipt as proof of shipment. They basically said that even though I have the receipt, it has to be trackable. Well if any of you reading this sell on eBay or your own site, you know that in order to ship anything overseas with tracking is going to cost a small fortune. Especially when you are selling anything that weighs over a pound. So I am basically at the mercy of this customer who could very well be lying and trying to get his $118 back. He probably knows that I cannot track the package and he can file a claim/dispute as he's already done. He can wait a bit and say he still has not received the package and then proceed with a chargeback. I hope he's honest and I am going to trust that he is honest because it is out of my hands at this point. There is really nothing that I can do except wait and see what the outcome is. I also called eBay and they said to call Paypal, which I explained that I had already done prior to calling them. eBay actually sided with me however, they are not the company that placed a hold on my funds. I mean gosh, I thought I was doing everything I was supposed to be doing. I even asked Paypal what was the point in keeping my shipping receipts for international shipments if they are not going to honor those receipts as proof of shipment. Argh! So, I am really frustrated today. I was also giving free international shipping for the first three items to my international buyers. This guy has basically ruined that offer and now I will be forced to have my international customers not only pay for their shipping, but the item or items will have to be shipped either via FedEx or UPS so that the item can be tracked. I guess we all live and learn. Sorry to my international customers. I hope you understand!
2. eBay's never ending laundry list of changes.
3. eBay's crazy, ridiculous fees!
I will still run auctions and have five going right now. You can see them here: http://search.ebay.com/_W0QQsassZlone_star_vintage_clothing .
I just feel free and want everyone to know why! I just hope I can generage enough business through my own site. I have so much great vintage clothing and accessories to sell.
During the next few weeks, I am going to be taking my current stock that was listed on eBay, and reintroducing the items with new photos and descriptions. I will also be taking many of the items and adding them to my sale page here: http://www.lonestarvintageclothing.com/userimages/procart33.htm .
Check my items out on a weekly basis because I will be offering some great vintage at amazing prices!
No comments:
Post a Comment