Vault

Max value reached

Adding this item would put you over your total vault limit of $250. please review your cart to stay under the limit.

Best Forwarding Postal Service for Sephora

31 posts, 14 members
tannygirl
3392 posts
Hi everyone,
    I just discovered Sephora this month, well I didn't just discover it but I have been browsing and lusting and I have a cart loaded with a birthday gift since it was my birthday this month and a lot of limited edition goodies. Whoopie. I have been slowly adding to my cart and so the list been growing and I figured I probably should pay soon like before the end of the month. :-)
    I did register with Youshop at the beginning of this month but reading over the comments here it doesn't look to hopeful if I used that shipping company for Sephora. Plus my order is rather large and I really don't like the idea of having to wait for weeks to be refunded if I do get refunded. I have mastercard so I'm hoping the site will accept that. But I just would like my first Sephora order to be hassle free and fun.
    Any suggestions on what shipping company to use that has reasonable rates and that is reliable? Especially something that you have used to order from Sephora recently and haven't had problems with. Thanks so much. :-)
Rezee
1964 posts
I've never used them but don't ship it to have  personal shopping service? Where someone goes and buys it in store for you, it wouldn't be cheap though. 
chikoboo
3402 posts
Yep the only way to guarantee Sephora order is by using shipit personal shopper service.  You send them a list of the things you want and top up your account with the cost of that shop.  They then shop for you and then send to you at an additional fee.  Sephora is cracking down on youshop and even though I have had months of successful ordering for the past year it has failed the last 3 times for me, so new accounts will be spotted quickly. 
tannygirl
3392 posts
Awww bummer I really wanted to get my birthday gift. Why Sephora? Why we're good customers? Have you used them successfully with Sephora Chikoboo? ShipIT seems to be geared to businesses that one instead of just regular customers.
AmandaJane
1147 posts
Why are they so reluctant to ship to NZ? 
chikoboo
3402 posts
My bad it is this site shipito 

They just don't send to addresses with mulitiple receiptants and that is what Youshop is a massive warehouse of individual PO boxes essentially but Sephora sees it as for example 1,000 people at 123 ABC Street.  Ulta is the same as is some of the brands HQ sites like Too Faced.   

No I haven't used the site shipito I have heard some have used it successfully but to be honest there is something I don't like about it, plus you don't get Sephora points they would so it kind of sucks.
Macs
5351 posts
Thats a good question amanda. I hope you get your order done smoothly tannygirl. I've always wanted to do an order but it seems so complicated for me.
sam_clarkson
205 posts
oh no chikoboo!!

i really want the KVD holiday eyeshadow palette. 
I wonder why sephora won't ship to NZ anyway?

hope eveyone is successful in their endevours to shop from sephora
tannygirl
3392 posts
I tried Shipito but either something went horribly wrong or something crazy but my order from Sephora totalled at 128 USD and then they added on a shipping blanket charge of over 60 USD to ship. And added taxes, bank fees commissions on taxes and orders and the total came to about 236 USD! That's almost as much as my order from Sephora. And there's still a repacking fee that I would need to pay to get the parcel smaller. I thanked the representative who had helped me online but told them that I probably would need to look at other forwarding companies.
Julieal
915 posts
Have you checked out ebay -sometimes you cdan get products that way ?
kirstyj
1732 posts
I have used YouShop with Sephora quite a few times. I just consider the chance of cancellation part of the process. Your bank will leave the hold on the funds for 7 days at the most (although this varies for each bank of course). I don't mind but I can see how that could be an issue.

Also you mention that you have quite a large order. Be aware of the GST rules with importing. I've been burned before and it isn't nice to get another bill when you know your order has made it to the country! You can check out the rules and how much you will be charged etc here.

Another option that I regularly take is ordering from Nordstrom if you can. They stock quite a few different brands including MAC, Chanel, Charlotte Tilbury etc. Quite a few of the products can't be shipped directly to NZ (and there shipping to NZ is extortionate anyway). So I still use YouShop with my Nordstrom orders and haven't had any problems.
Rezee
1964 posts
That price is insane! Do you know anyone in Australia?  The sephora there could have what you want? Or try amazon? 
Thebeautycontext
1768 posts
Wow, that price is absoloutley ridiculous! I have tried ordering off Sephora 3 times and they have all failed. Wish I had some more advice to offer but I dont :( Wish I had family or something in the US to help me out 
tannygirl
3392 posts
I have asked some people I knew in the US if I could ship my order to them and they could please mail it to the Youshop warehouse for me and I would be happy to put some perfumes samples in there for them to grab and pay postage from the their place to the warehouse but no response. :-( I don't think I'll have much luck with those I know in Oz either. But seriously after I got quoted the price from Shipito I did look up flights to Sydney to see if it would be better to fly over and visit Sephora.
Jesse
745 posts
I used Youshop last month with no hassles. $30 nzd shipping to ship my realcheeky party blush palette and some masks but they had put it in a big box. I'm planning another order next month for my birthday. Yeah keep in mind customs charges if your order ends up being big!
Koni
444 posts
Aww sorry to hear about your dilemma.  I initially wanted the perks too but then I realised it was more important for me to be able to access the products I couldn't get here or products that were just a fraction of what we're paying here.

I use Shipito and admittedly it can be pricey which is why I consolidate my orders over a few months then ship it in one go.  I get it shipped (tracked) Thursday and arrives on Monday without fail.  The exchange rate hasn't been too kind so haven't looked at buying for awhile.

Hopefully you've had a response from your friends in the US by now :-)
tannygirl
3392 posts
Well the Hallulejah chorus came on this morning when a friend offered to be my forwarding address for Sephora. So now I just need to find the best priced forwarding company for her to mail my packages to. Yes I can get my birthday gift from Sephora! :-D So what's the best forwarding company for her to mail my packages to within the US?
kirstyj
1732 posts
Yay! Glad you finally got that sorted Tannygirl!
I've only ever used YouShop and I've been pretty happy with them ... not quite sure even what the others are called.
SooziesWorld
2999 posts
Tannygirl would your friend be prepared to send it directly to you? I'm thinking that would be the cheapest way of sending it? You could send them the money for it via PayPal too I think? (You're giving me ideas now too lol)
Thebeautycontext
1768 posts
Awesome Tannygirl, so happy that you sorted out a solution. The only forwarding service I have tried is youshop, but even that can get pricey pretty quickly. 
tannygirl
3392 posts
Koni did you have to pay import tax on your big order?
juliet_rose
6 posts
I recently had a couple of orders from Sephora rejected and they replied to my customer service email to say that they see the youshop addresses as "illegitimate" and it was a "management decision" which would not be changed. We don't have an import tax treaty with the US which is why they wont ship to us. 

I also shop on nordstrom. I think the import charges begin if the order is over $225NZ but they can still accumulate chargers over several packages over a period of time. 
chikoboo
3402 posts
The problem with import tax too is it is random.  You could order over the threshold for months and then the next month you get pinged, or you could have your very first order if it is over the threshold pinged.  Some lucky people get away with $400 or more and don't get selected but for me the charge isn't worth the risk so I always keep under the $225 threshold (NZ)
tannygirl
3392 posts
Then I guess the question is is it cheaper to pay for one shipment and tax or would it be cheaper to ship it in two lots? Do they include the price paid for shipping service in the tax or just the value of the goods?
Jesse
745 posts
It just includes the value of the goods themselves
Rezee
1964 posts
Postage does need to be factored in as well. Unfortunately! 
tannygirl
3392 posts
So last night I finally got my friend's phone number. I found out you can't place an order without a phone number so I finally managed to get ahold of her and get the phone number. Placed the order yay finally!  And got the confirmation email. Then this morning I get an email saying my order has been cancelled.

"For your own security and protection, we have cancelled your order # because we were unable to confirm your payment information."

 I thought they accepted Mastercards and I had enough money in the account. So I was disappointed to find they didn't accept my order. I emailed them and I hope they get back.
kirstyj
1732 posts
Interesting that it was cancelled because of the credit card being nz not the address. I usually use my Visa and have only had an issue once.
tannygirl
3392 posts
It is a debit Mastercard and they said something about not liking debit cards. My card before was a Visa debit. Has anyone had an issue with debit cards on the site. Do I need to look into a different card just for Sephora orders?
shazatron101
5112 posts
I think an option (if your friend was willing) would be to give your friend the list of things you want, transfer the money to her account and get her to buy it and send it to you. I'll just wait and see if it ever comes to NZ I think cos by the sounds its far too much hassle. 
tannygirl
3392 posts
Sephora is coming to NZ? (jumps up and down) When? when?

WELCOME TO NZ'S BIGGEST BEAUTY GUIDE!

READ AND WRITE REVIEWS ON YOUR FAVOURITE (or not so favourite!) PRODUCTS!

Sign up to receive our newsletter and stay up to date with all of the latest happenings here at Beauty Review!

You'll be the first to know about Trial Teams, Vault restocks and Giveaways.

We promise never to spam you - only to share the best in NZ beauty!

CLICK HERE TO JOIN THE MAILING LIST!