2022 Shipping Update:
There are 2 main ways that we ship our kendamas to you - no matter where you are in the world. Standard Shipping & DHL Shipping.
When it comes to shipping fees, we've found that at 2 or more kendamas, it costs almost the same to use DHL as it does Standard Shipping for most of the world. (Except that DHL takes about 1/4 of the time!)
When it comes to shipping fees, we've found that at 2 or more kendamas, it costs almost the same to use DHL as it does Standard Shipping for most of the world. (Except that DHL takes about 1/4 of the time!)
In addition to that, DHL has superior customer service and more detailed tracking compared to Standard Shipping, which uses the service of local posts (think USPS).
Because the prices are similar, most of the time we upgrade users who have bought 2 or more kendamas to DHL automatically, whether they have selected the option or not. Keyword: Most.
When do upgrades not happen?
The speed of DHL comes from the wide network of delivery hubs they have around the world. Unfortunately this does not span into certain places, a term DHL calls "remote areas".
If this happens to you, you will see the DHL's price is drastically higher than that of Standard Shipping and unless you selected DHL, we will use a Standard Shipping service. This commonly happens when shipping to the outskirts of Europe, Australia or Japan but almost never happens with the US.
How can I ensure I get DHL shipping?
If you want DHL shipping guaranteed, we suggest selecting the DHL option when checking out. It may cost a little more, but will guarantee we will send your parcel there via DHL. (Also we've made a code called shippingsux to help reduce some of the costs). There goes our bubble tea money I guess.
As always, the team (basically Wen and myself) are here for you guys. So if you are facing some issues with shipping, hit us up at cerealkendama@gmail.com - we'll be sure to address it.
- Cereal Kendama
OLDER UPDATES:
What's good everyone! Due to the support we have received from you guys using DHL as a service, we were able to negotiate friendlier shipping rates. Below is a table of what you can expect to pay roughly (in USD) for shipping. These are estimated rates and can change very slightly due to foreign exchange rates and fuel surcharges.
| Japan/AUS | US | UK | ||||
| OLD | NEW | OLD | NEW | OLD | NEW | |
| 1-2 Damas | $16 | $14 | $24 | $21 | $24 | $21 |
| 3-4 Damas | $21 | $18 | $30 | $25 | $31 | $26 |
| $100 Mystery | $32 | $27 | $43 | $36 | $45 | $37 |
| $200 Mystery | $68 | $57 | $82 | $68 | $85 | $70 |
We could not be more thankful for all the support you show, and look forward to delivering you more awesome damas.
__________________________________________________________
SHIPPING INFO ARCHIVE
Hey guys, Jon from Cereal Kendama here providing you with everything you need to know about our shipping policy. Most of you already know, we hand pack and ship all our kendamas out of our home in Singapore. As such international shipping times can be longer.
We've received a lot of feedback about that and have worked with the local DHL service in our country and are happy to announce that we have successfully integrate their shipping system into our shop.
This means much shorter (up to 2 weeks) transit times at almost no increase in cost! To illustrate how much you will pay for shipping, please refer to the table we've put together below.
*note that DHL rates include fuel surcharge which are subject to change based on oil prices, this isn't 100% accurate but it is a 95% gauge
| Standard | DHL - USA | DHL - UK | |
| 1 Kendama | $10.00 | $22.00 | $23.00 |
| 2 Kendamas | $20.00 | $22.00 | $23.00 |
| 3 Kendamas | $20.00 | $29.00 | $30.00 |
| 4 Kendamas | $30.00 | $29.00 | $30.00 |
| 5 Kendamas | $30.00 | $35.00 | $37.00 |
| US$100 Mystery Box | $40.00 | $42.00 | $44.00 |
| US$200 Mystery Box | $85.71 | $90.00 | $93.00 |
13 May Update
Hey everyone, Jon from Cereal here. In this update - I am sharing with you 2 main things: how long to expect for your parcel to arrive, and our new DHL-beta program.
With parcels starting to be received by our customers and the global situation not changing much since the last time we wrote this article we have come to a few conclusions and taken some actions.
1. Parcels headed to the US seem to be stuck at USPS
Likely due to an influx of overseas orders, it is on USPS to process the parcel once its reached the US. We've seen them take up to 3 weeks to process this and seek your understanding that the tracking may show that it is in the US but not update from there as they have not taken the action.
This is by no means their fault as well as we can imagine the overwhelming amount of imports the US has, and the lack of manpower as they continue to lay off staff.
2. DHL-beta Pilot Program for Larger Orders
To combat this and ensure sustainability in our future supply chain, we are in talks with DHL to offer their shipping service to all our international shipments (which is pretty much all shipments). While there will be some shipping cost increase, we are happy to absorb that as a way of getting your orders to you faster.
The only caveat is that due to their weight calculation system, it would only apply to orders that are 2 kendamas or more. We have not yet implemented the API into our store, but today if you order 2 or more kendamas, we will have them shipped out by DHL which in turn cuts down delivery time by up to 2 weeks.
TLDR: Order 2 or more kendamas, get them much faster at no extra cost
Moving forward, all mystery box kendama orders will ship by DHL if our beta is a success.
14 April Update
Hey everyone, Jon here again.
We are updating this page as our commitment to providing timely updates about your shipments during this Covid-19 situation.
All our kendamas are hand packed and shipped out from Singapore, and as we continue to fight the Covid-19 situation here, be assured that your parcels are going out.
Here are some key points you need to take note:
- Shipments take longer to leave Singapore because of limited flights. Because of this, you will notice that when receiving your tracking, it will be Singapore for some time. Be assured that it is in progress however.
- Shipments will only go out on Wednesday. They have closed the post office closest to my house, and I travel to one further a way to drop parcels away.
- For those who bought Transform 3.0 when they dropped. Wen Chuen and I want to thank you personally for the support. We are sorry that the parcels are taking so long to arrive, as we cannot wait for you to try the CREAL 1.5 shape and Final Bevel. We seek your patience during this time and please feel free to reach out if anything.
If you've made it this far, again we thank you from the bottom of our heart for your support and making our dreams come through. Cereal Kendama has always been about passion made damas and your support during this time is infinitely precious to us.
Lots of love,
Jon
8 April Update
Hey everyone, Jon here. As the situation in Singapore Covid-19 continues to develop, our government has recently implemented a partial closure on all businesses.
This has impacted us in the sense that the nearest post office that we ship your parcels from has closed. As a result, I will now have to travel to a different post office and can only afford the time to make that trip once a week as we are also advised to stay home as much as possible.
This means that parcels will only ship out once a week and will impact how long it takes between placing your order and receiving your kendama.
We're a small company and hand pack, hand ship everything versus using a courier service like DHL of FedEx. During this time, Wen Chuen and I would like to seek your understanding and continued support in spite of the delayed delivery.
Thank you again for always keeping our dream alive. If you'd like to chat with us, please drop an email at cerealkendama@gmail.com or reach out on Facebook!
Jon
We live in strange times, and we're not going to sugar coat the gravity of the situation. All around the world people are facing loss, fear and sadness - but there are also acts of courage every single day.
This situation has affected businesses globally, from travel, hospitality to products and services. While Cereal Kendama continues to operate, we are first of all most thankful for the support you have shown us during this time.
We receive a couple of orders every week, and mail them out a couple of days after they come in. If you've purchased from us before - you'll know that a tracking code will be sent to your email, indicating that your package has been sent out.
In light of this situation however, we need to address that a reduced amount of flights globally has resulted in delays shipping out of Singapore to the rest of the world. Because of this, we seek your understanding that your packages may take a little longer to arrive, but you can rest assured they are going out as soon as the order comes in.
Nevertheless, if you have some queries about your article, please still feel free to contact Wen Chuen or I (Jon) at our shared email - cerealkendama@gmail.com
Thank you again for all your support and stay safe!
Jonathan
Cereal Kendama Co-Founder
