Online shopping may be oh so fun. Free worldwide delivery makes it even better. But what do you do when you live in a country where customs charge almost 1/3 of the total price of the items you've shopped? Are you suppose to just "suck it in" and pay up? Heck no! One does not use hard earned money and just let it go to waste; nor would we want to painstakingly go through page after page looking for the greatest deals, only to end up using the money we saved to pay for customs fee. I went through customs nightmare twice in my life. Once was when I had a Php 6,000 (USD 150) worth of items shipped and customs wanted to charge me Php 2,300 (USD 56). Second time, I had a Php 990 (USD 24) shirt shipped and customs wanted to charge me Php 830 (USD 20). What??? Luckily I had an Uncle who had connections so he was able to talk to the customs officer and lower the prices to a reasonable amount. It was such a nightmare and if you'll ask me if I want to go through it again, I'd tell you never ever. What to do? Johnny Air Cargo to the rescue! I first read about Johnny Air a few years back from Chuvaness. She's a lifesaver! Here's a step-by-step process on how to order from Johnny Air Cargo:
1. Shop online.
2. On the checkout page, do not enter your own contact details, instead, fill in one of Johnny Air's addresses that can be found on their webpage. In my case, I went for the New York branch so I filled in "69-04 Roosevelt Ave. Woodside, NY 11377". Under name, fill in the name of the corresponding contact person on that branch, followed by your name (Analyn Diego/Your Name).
3. Inform the Johnny Air branch (in my case, New York) to expect your package by emailing them. Let them know all the necessary information like item(s), shipper, tracking number and also provide them your contact details here in the Philippines (name, contact number and the Johnny Air branch where you would like to pick up your package).
4. Wait. In my case, it took about 2.5 weeks. Waiting time depends on when your package arrives from the shipper to Johnny Air's US branch. Mine took a bit longer, but I had a friend who got her package within the week. Johnny Air will text you the moment your package arrives at the local branch. They will also include details like amount to be paid and the store hours. Johnny Air's rates are charged either by weight or dimensions of the package, whichever is bigger.
5. Pick up your package. Can you guess how much I paid for all 5 items? Php 1,098 (USD 27). Not bad huh? No corrupt customs to deal with, no package suddenly getting lost, and no waiting/wondering why it takes so long for your package to get to you. Simple as that.
So next time you think of shopping online, why not try out Johnny Air's services? I was amazed. I think you will be too.
Miss M, thank you so much for this post. Now, I know that it is really expensive to ship items from other countries if it will pass through the Bureau of Customs. By the way, I also want to recommend this: orientfreight.com.
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