7 ways to get free shipping supplies
Posted
Jun 05 2008, 07:55 AM
by
Karen Datko
This post comes from Xin Lu at partner blog Wise Bread.
Once upon a time I sold a lot of stuff on eBay and Amazon, and I always needed envelopes, boxes and padding. The cost of these shipping supplies can really add up when you mail more than 1,000 things per year, so I looked into how to cut down my shipping costs.
Here are some of the ways you can get supplies for free and lower your business overhead.
Used packaging. When I receive an online order, it always comes in a box. Those boxes can be flattened and used later for your own packages. I usually keep a couple of boxes around for future use. Bubble Wrap-lined envelopes are also great and can be reused.
Newspapers. After you finish reading that weekly circular or newspaper, you could use it to stuff your packages for mailing. It is more environmentally friendly than Bubble Wrap or foam peanuts and can often provide adequate protection for your contents.
Junk mail. If you have a reasonably good shredder, junk mail can be processed into filler for a package. As long as the recipient can't piece together your personal information, junk mail is a great substitute for foam peanuts.
Dumpsters/recycling bins. Perfectly good boxes are often available in Dumpsters and recycling bins. They are usually cleaner in the recycling bin, so I suggest looking there first.
Local stores. Recently in downtown San Mateo, Calif., I saw several shops closing down, and one of them had a lot of boxes to get rid of. If you ask around, you can also get shipping supplies from stores that are not closing down, because businesses tend to receive many packages a day and have no need for the packaging material.
U.S. Postal Service. The Postal Service offers free shipping boxes and envelopes for its priority mail and global priority mail services. You can order the packaging online or go to the post office. The catch here is that you must use the boxes for priority mail.
Friends and family. You can ask your friends and family to save packing materials for you if you do not have enough yourself. You should make an effort to pick the things up, though.
This list is by no means comprehensive, and I am sure you can find other ways of obtaining free mailing supplies. With so much online ordering and shipping of goods around the world, I think we all need to reuse and recycle our packing materials.
Other articles of interest at Wise Bread:
"6 horrible financial products you should avoid"
"Sensible ways to raise cash for a wedding"
"New ideas for old neckties"
