Being a leading supplier of glassware and jars, one of the most commonly asked questions that we hear is “Why are shipping costs so high?”. Let’s break down everything that goes into shipping out glassware, to paint a clear and honest picture of all of the costs that go into getting your products to your front door in pristine condition.
Why is it so expensive to ship glass jars?
Glass Jars are Heavy
When it comes to glass items specifically, transportation costs can definitely get a little expensive, compared to other containers. Let’s compare glass jars to plastic jars, so we have a frame of reference. Plastic jars are lightweight when compared to their glass counterparts, just by the nature of the material. Glass is about three times more dense than plastic, so in general, when comparing a glass jar and a plastic jar of the same size, the glass jar will be three times as heavy.
Parcel carriers like UPS or FedEx price their service based on the weight of the package that they’re carrying. The simplest way to put it is that a heavier box means a higher shipping cost. If your box is packed full of beautiful glass jars, you can expect it to weigh quite a bit.
Glass Jars are Fragile
Glass doesn’t bend, flex, or dent. When you apply pressure or shock to a piece of glass, it shatters into a hundred tiny pieces, and there’s just no way to fix it. A plastic container doesn’t carry this risk. A plastic jar may dent and flex, but it’ll never shatter under normal circumstances, and even if you receive a dented plastic container, you can typically knock the dent out of it with a firm enough slap.
Glass doesn’t bend, flex, or dent. When you apply pressure or shock to a piece of glass, it shatters into a hundred tiny pieces, and there’s just no way to fix it. A plastic container doesn’t carry this risk. A plastic jar may dent and flex, but it’ll never shatter under normal circumstances, and even if you receive a dented plastic container, you can typically knock the dent out of it with a firm enough slap.
So, how does this factor into shipping costs? Well, the only thing worse than waiting on long shipping times, is waiting on long shipping times only to receive a box of broken glass. At Jar Store, we take several preventative measures to ensure that your glass jars arrive in the same pristine condition that you see in the photos on our website. We work with a trusted partner, a company with decades of experience and knowledge in the corrugate industry, to have our shipping boxes custom-made. If we were to just toss your glass jars in any old box and send them out to you, there’d be a very high chance that they’d shatter before they ever make it to your doorstep.
Not only do we use custom-made shipping boxes, we also pack those boxes with extra material to ensure that there’s as much protection as possible for your glassware. If you’re using our jars to package and sell your own products, like candles or canned goods, you can also re-use our shipping boxes and packing material! They’re designed specifically for shipping glassware, so feel free to use our boxes and cut out the cost of buying your own.
What Does Jar Store Do to Make Shipping More Affordable?
Overpack for Reassurance
Well, our overpack boxes and packing fill may cost more initially, but it would be much more expensive if our glass jars were shipped to you in an insecure fashion. While you would be reimbursed with new glassware if you were to receive broken jars from Jar Store, we wouldn’t be able to make up for your time that was wasted. Time is money, afterall. We eat the majority of the cost for our shipping boxes and packing fill, but it still contributes to the overall weight of the package, driving up the cost from the parcel carrier.
Warehouse Pickup Options
For those who are local to Columbus, Ohio, we are proud to offer warehouse pickup! If you’re near our warehouse, you shouldn’t have to pay to have your glassware shipped when you’re capable of coming to get it. You are more than welcome to place your order online and stop by our warehouse, and we’re more than happy to hand your order off to you.
Did we answer your questions?
Hopefully, with this article, we were able to clear the air on shipping costs. We don’t want there to be any confusion regarding the cost of shipping on our website, and we want to be as transparent as possible about where that money goes.
If you still have questions about shipping costs, please reach out! Our expert customer service team is ready and available during business hours, feel free to reach out to info@jarstore.com with any questions that you still have.
