Shipping Magazines

mtcards

I recently purchased a collection of 3000 magazines and am working on purchasing another 1200 Sports Illustrated. My question is for those who sell magazines, how much do you charge for shipping and how do you ship the items...thanks

lawnmowerman

<< <i>I recently purchased a collection of 3000 magazines and am working on purchasing another 1200 Sports Illustrated. My question is for those who sell magazines, how much do you charge for shipping and how do you ship the items...thanks >>



If I'm remembering this correctly, they can't go media mail because of the ads. I think fedex would be the best option looking at the costs.

flcardtrader

I have sold a number of magazines via Ebay - usually onesie/twosie though.

1 Magazine goes 1st Class for $3-$4 to the buyer
2+ Magazines go Priority for $6-$8 to the buyer by Priority Weight
10's of Magazines go Large Flat Rate box.

I couldn't give you a good method for 3000 or 1200 though as that is a lot of weight.

I suspect the third party UPS/FEDEX would be the way to go.

lawnmowerman is right, USPS frowns upon the ads and would not condone media rate for shipping magazines.

raiderguy10

They should be able to go first class as most would be under 13 oz.

The ones I've shipped I've put in a page protector and sandwiched between two pieces of cardboard. Then I put them in 10x13 brown clasp envelopes. If that's the case - depending on the size of the magazine - $3.50 would more than cover all shipping costs.

bigdogparty

Are you trying to get shipping info on your purchase or if you resell them??? If you are reselling them a few at a time, the methods listed by others work fine. If you are working with the seller to get them to you as cheap as possible, that's different and options could vary. UPS and Fed Ex are great for anything under 200 lb but 3000 magazines is enough to ship by an LTL carrier since it is probably 1-2 pallets. Both UPS and Fed Ex offer this service too but cost will vary and you should contact them for freight quotes

mtcards

No, the purchase is local, so I would only have to drive over and get them. I am looking at the cost for selling them individually. The first lot is about 3000 older Playboy magazines from 1956-1987. The older ones I would sell individually and the newer ones, would sell by the year set of 12. Definitely the flat rate boxes for the year sets, but was looking at the cost to ship and best way to ship individual magazines.

raiderguy10

3,000 older playboys would indicate there are multiples of each. Be sure to inspect the magazines to make sure there aren't pages sticking together....would be pretty hard to move those I suspect

flcardtrader

I have sold Playboys via mail as well.

Unlike the SI's, which typically weigh between 5 oz and 12 oz, Playboys are a tad heavier and will most likely exceed the first class max weight = 13 oz.

At that point, your options are Parcel and Priority with Priority being the best deal as it will usually cost 25-50 cents more and be delivered within a 3 day interval compared to 5-7.

Good luck piecing that collection out to individual sellers - that sounds like a fun project where you should be able to make some good coin.

Flcardtrader
http://home.comcast.net/~flcardtrader/

mtcards

Yes, they have been a temp controlled environment and are individually packaged in clear plastic foldover pouches. I paid 30 cents each. So the potential for profit is there and yes, they do feel pretty heavy...probably that centerfold. Have checked boxes randomly and have found that the mags all appear to have been collected with great care over the years. Honestly, if they had cost more, it probably still would have been a good price, just not enough for me to mess with


Thanks for the input guys

cardbender

I've sold magazines online. Good advice above.

You can buy larger padded mailers in bulk for like 40-45 cents each.
You still would need to sandwich cardboard on both sides to fully protect
the magazine in transit. The SI's should cost roughly $3 to ship plus your mailer cost.
The Playboys would be heavier, and some might get into 13 oz. or Priority level.

I usually charge $4.50 for shipping one mag., and $1.50 for the second. The second mag. will
usually bump it up to Priority level which will cost you at least $5, so charging $6 for two will cover your costs.

You can go Priority flat rate in a box for multiple magazine sales.

Most sellers of magazines on ebay don't have a clue on how to correctly ship them
to prevent damage from occurring during mailing. USPS will try to fold any larger mailer in half
with publications inside unless you put cardboard in the mailer to prevent that.

I collect vintage magazines and as a buyer there nothing worse then hunting down an old publication in decent shape, only to
have it get folded in half during transit, or dropped and corner dinged because of poor packaging.

Sounds like a nice buy MTcards. Good luck with the sales!