Importing unmanifested or even manifested customer return or liquidation loads into Canada can be problematic. Few brokers have experience working with such loads and limited product information.
Via Trading can now refer and recommend you a Canada-based import, transportation & customs clearance specialist who can assist you with your purchases from the USA. ACA takes care of the whole process for you including logistics, document preparation, customs clearance and more.
Please note we are still able to offer regular shipping of case-packed items to Canada with Fedex.
*All payments for logistics, customs clearance and paperwork preparation are to be paid directly to ACA, and should be discussed with ACA in advance of completing the order process with Via Trading. ACA offers this service as a courtesy. Risks can still exist when importing goods into Canada. Neither Via Trading nor ACA can offer any guarantees as to the successful importation of any order. All shipments are subject to customs inspection and all costs associated with the importation of your order will be the purchaser’s responsibility.
Due to the nature of Liquidation Goods & their relative low cost – at times shipping can become prohibitive. There are various methods you can use to reduce the relative cost of shipping:
Much of the initial cost of shipping covers the pick-up, the delivery and the administrative paperwork. These are generally fixed costs and shipping one pallet will always be relatively more expensive than shipping multiple pallets. After that initial charge, the cost for the second or third pallet only goes up marginally. This is especially true when shipping to residential addresses and/or when shipping with a lift-gate since both are relatively fixed flat charges.
Using the Example you can compare side by side the difference in the landed cost (total cost including delivery) of the goods when Purchasing 1 Pallet for $750/pallet as opposed to 3 Pallets. In the example below Buyer could purchase:
Although it can be much more convenient to receive the merchandise directly at your door, it does cost a little bit more and there are options to avoid those additional residential charges. One way to avoid these additional residential/liftgate charges is to go pick up your pallets at a local freight terminal. There is a freight terminal in or near every major city, and you can rent a U-Haul or drive over with a pickup truck to get the merchandise from the terminal to save yourself some money. There are some things to consider to determine if this will be worth it for you:
Often times, the residential surcharge is very reasonable once you factor in the time and out-of-pocket expenses you would incur by picking up the pallet from the terminal yourself.
If you only have space for 1 or 2 pallets but the shipping costs are rather elevated, you can opt to add a couple of case-packed items to your order. Case-packed items are items which when ordered alone, are typically shipped by Courier such as Fedex. Case packs are sold in smaller lots, packed inside small boxes that are relatively low weight and can be consolidated with most pallet orders and shipped at little to no additional charge.
In the Example below Customer initially is purchasing 1 pallet of Water Dispensers initially for a total of $540 on Merchandise + $220.90 shipping (almost 30% of total $ investment goes in shipping). When adding 1 or more case packs (2 in this case) Customers Shipping Cost only increases by $9.91 so now customer spends $975 on Merchandise + $230.90 on Shipping – result being that total $ spend on shipping is reduced to only 20% of total investment).
When purchasing larger loads of merchandise such as full truckloads, it is also a good idea to use up ALL of the space on the truck. In the large majority of cases, shipping rates for full truckloads or containers are FLAT and do not change whether the truck is filled to capacity or half empty. Depending on the type of pallets & trailer/container used 24 to 52 pallets can typically fit on a truck.
If for instance you are purchasing a 20 pallet load, there may still be plenty of space available. The cost of shipping the truck will not change, but adding more merchandise to fill the truck all the way will reduce the percentage of shipping that you pay on the overall load. This, in turn, will reduce your landed cost per pallet or unit and will increase your potential profit. Below are a couple of mathematical examples to illustrate the potential savings
Item | Qty | Price | Ext Price |
---|---|---|---|
WM Pallet | 24 | $350 | $8,400 |
Shipping | $800 | ||
Total | $9,200 | ||
Landed Cost/Pallet | $383.33 | ||
% Paid in Shipping | 8.70% |
Item | Qty | Price | Ext Price |
---|---|---|---|
WM Pallet | 48 | $350 | $16,800 |
Shipping | $800 | ||
Total | $17,600 | ||
Landed Cost/Pallet | $366.67 | ||
% Paid in Shipping | 4.55% | ||
$ Savings per Pallet | $16.67 | ||
% Saving | 4.35% |
Item | Qty | Price | Ext Price |
---|---|---|---|
WM Pallet | 24 | $350 | $8,400 |
Shipping | $800 | ||
Total | $9,200 | ||
% Paid in Shipping | 8.70% |
Item | Qty | Price | Ext Price |
---|---|---|---|
WM Pallet | 24 | $350 | $8,400 |
New Footwear Pallet | 2 | $1,500 | $3,000 |
Shipping | $800 | ||
Total | $12,200 | ||
% Paid in Shipping | 6.56% |
Above examples are also extremely valid if you are eligible for our SoCal shipping specials.
Read more about out our Flat Rate SoCal Shipping Specials.
To obtain a real-time online shipping quote please register or log in to your account. Feel free to call or email us any time should you prefer to obtain a quote by email or phone. Our system will provide you a quote based on the information entered in your “Ship to” address book. Please note you may add an unlimited number of shipping addresses in your account and you can quickly calculate the cost of shipping to your different destinations. If the information is entered inaccurately (wrong address or type of destination), the returned quote may not be accurate and we may contact you to adjust your address and/or revise the shipping quote. Please make sure that you accurately note whether your ship-to address is commercial* or residential** and whether you need a lift-gate or not.
In order to obtain an online quote, simply add items to your cart and click the “checkout” button to obtain the quote. This will not submit your order to us – it will simply take you to the confirmation page where you can revise your order, cancel it or submit it. If the system displays “call for quote,” you can still submit your order to us and we will contact you shortly with a shipping quote. Please note that our online quoting system currently only provides quotes for the following:
Feel free to chat live with a support agent or contact us by email or phone, or email us to request a customized quote.
Generally, pallet deliveries to a residence will require a lift-gate to lower the pallet(s) to the ground. Commercial locations, if not equipped with a loading dock or a forklift will also require a lift-gate. LTL carriers charge extra for residential deliveries. They will usually levy a flat fee of between $25-$75. Carriers also charge extra for trucks with lift-gates, typically a flat fee of around $25-$75.
*Commercial Delivery: business location, storage unit, warehouse, store.
** Residential Delivery: house, apartment complex, residence of any kind.
Generally speaking, the cost to ship one pallet ranges from $90 – $200 and varies according to the weight and contents of the pallet. Shipping subsequent pallets is considerably cheaper, especially if shipping to a residence (for example it might cost $200 to ship 1 pallet, but only $275 to ship 2 pallets, and $310 to ship 3 pallets). Visit our resource pages for more information on shipping pallets. Truckload shipping is calculated based on mileage and usually ranges between $1.00/mile to $2.00/mile with a minimum charge of $350. Visit our truckload shipping page for more information. Case-packed items shipped out with USPS generally cost approximately $25-$50 per box depending on the weight of the items being shipped.
Please Note: all shipping quotes sent out by email or over the phone are only quotes, and are to be confirmed once order is placed. All shipping quotes are provided with minimal insurance. If you would like to purchase additional insurance, please let your account manager know before the order is finalized.
ZONE A – Within 50 Miles
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Anaheim Asuza Bell Burbank Castaic Chino Hills Corona Costa Mesa Fountain Valley Glendora Huntington Beach |
Inglewood Irvine Laguna Niguel Lake Forest Long Beach Los Angeles Mission Viejo Montclair North Hills Ontario Pasadena |
Pomona Rancho Cucamonga Rancho Palos Verdes San Dimas Santa Ana Santa Clarita Santa Monica Simi Valley Thousand Oaks |
ZONE B – 50-100 Miles
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Adelanto Applevalley Cherry Valley El Rio Escondido Fallbrook Fillmore Fontana Helendale Hesperia |
Lakeland Lake Elsinore Lancaster Mira Monte Moreno Valley Murrieta Ojai Oxnard Palmdale Perris Redlands Riverside |
Rosamond San Bernardino San Jacinto San Marcos Santa Paula Sun City Temecula Ventura Victorville Yucaipa |
ZONE C – 100-150 Miles
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Alpine Arvin Bakersfield Banning Barstow Bear Valley Springs Big Bear City Bonita Boron Buellton Buttonwillow Cactus City California City Carpinteria China Lake Acres Chula Vista Coachella Del Mar Desert Springs El Cajon |
Encinitas Escondido Fordcity Goleta Hemet Hinkley Imperial Beach Indio Joshua Tree Lakeside La Mesa Lamont Landers La Quinta Lenwood Maricopa McFarland Mojave Newberry Springs Oceanside |
Oildale Otay Mesa Palm Desert Palm Springs Poway Ramona Ridgecrest Rosedale San Diego Santa Barbara Santa Ynes Shafter Solvang Taft Tehachapi Thousand Palms Twenty Nine Palms Vista Weldon Wofford Heights |