Do I need a scale for my apparel company's shipping process?

Payments + Shipping & Fulfilment
1

I’m confused I’ve read some of information provided. Here’s my dilemma, I’m a small apparel company I print my own products, I don’t have a scale to weight my merchandise, do I need that in order to add your shipping process to my website?

2

Hi @cihope777 ,

Product weights would only be required if you plan to offer live rates from a shipping carrier to your customers on the checkout page. Otherwise, you would just set up a flat rate that customers pay at checkout. This doesn’t require weights or package dimensions.

However, at some point your shipments do need to be weighed since carriers base their rates on dimensional weight (a combination of actual weight and actual package dimensions). If you are printing labels from whichever carrier you use to ship, you’ll need to have weights at that point. Alternatively, if you’re dropping off at the carrier location, I assume they would weigh it on site.

Best regards,

Ron

3

Okay, thank you for responding. One last question, is there an average flat
rate within the states.or is that up to us?

4

Hi @cihope777 ,

When setting up flat rates in Shopify, it’s up to you to determine the rate based on your actual shipping costs when you fulfill the order. It might make sense to pad the flat rate to cover most of you actual shipping costs, or it might make sense to offer a lower flat rate which may cost you more on actual shipping costs but help you get more conversions at checkout.

Best regards,

Ron

5

Okay,

One last question not sure if I asked but can I use the other mailing
companies using flat rate? Fed ex or UPS?

6

Hi @cihope777 ,

You can fulfill your orders using any carrier or service you choose. If you’re using either carrier’s flat rate services, you can set up a custom flat rate in your Shipping and delivery settings that simulates the flat rate you pay for when you ship the order out.

You can also connect your FedEx or UPS account directly to Shopify if you have one. You can learn more here.

And, Shopify lets you access their discounted UPS rates if your shop is US-based, though I am not sure if the flat rate service is offered through Shopify’s direct integration. You can explore that by going to your Shipping and delivery settings, then clicking on ‘Manage rates’. Add a rate to a zone, then choose 'Use carrier or app to calculate rates.", or by contacting Shopify support directly.

Best regards,
Ron