Bringing products back from the USA

[Amanda]

Hi there
I am lucky enough to be going to the States in August :lol: and am hoping to take a trip to the beauty suppliers, I am wanting to purchase some creative products especially liquid and powder as they are cheaper over there with no vat!
I was wondering if anyone knew the policy for bringing liquid back, would it be allowed in my luggage?
I would appreciate any advice on the subject.
Amanda

 

[naturalnails]

I think this is one for your airline as these are highly flammable chemicals. You dont want to get in any trouble just to save a few pounds LOL

Also - are you Creative trained - if not then you might not be able to buy there.

 

[mui]

Sawasdee ka

They will not let you fly with any products flamable fiona speak good and is danger for aroplane if not in special box .

We have products come from usa and they come on cargo aroplane and in special box .

And you have to make special document for fly the products and i do not know about your country but we pay 40 percent import to customs for import .

Mui from Thailand

 

[diesel1978]

I believ you have to have a haz mat licence to transport flammable liquids from the states, but this would depend on the quantities you were bringing back!!! If it was only a bottle then it may be ok!!! if you look at the customs and excise website that may give you further info!!!

 

[sassy_minx24]

Hi all

Please correct me if I'm wrong, but I remember reading something on this board a while back, which was a similar scenario.

Somebody wanted to bring product back from Australia. I think they were advised that they would need to arrange for it to be shipped back seperately, as many airlines won't allow you to travel with highly flammable products. Alot of airlines won't even allow nail polish remover.


Thanx Sassy x

 

[TracyUK]

Hi i posted on a similar subject a few weeks back...i rang virgin atlantic...couldnt get through for days! so mailed them...their words were' if the product contains resin then no i couldnt bring it back cos it was too flammable'...i mailed them the full product contents and they said they would look into it...i still havent had a reply back! ......also I had a few emails from people on the site saying they had great difficulty (most said it was impossible) buying products in the USA as going over from the UK we dont have the licence required over there to purchase products.

 

[Amanda]

Hi there
thanks for all your replys. think I'll just stick to some powders and polishes etc! Too much hassle . I did go over there a couple of years ago and took my certificates nvq's and others plus i.d. I spoke to the lady in the beauty suppliers and it was no problem, I got loads of beauty/nail products.
again thanks for all your help :lol:
Amanda

 

[geeg]

Not only can you be fined heavily if you get caught bringing flammable goods on a commercial airline BUT there are also cases of prison sentences to boot. Not worth the risk is it?

 

[antnbuckley]

also if anything leaks, you could be liable for the plane to be cleaned. not a nice thing when you think about it.

like geeg says, its alot easier to buy over here


antony

 

[chocolate]

I buy most of my products from the USA. Some customers ask me why are my prices higher than the USA? its because of the postage to bring in Flammable products is soooooooooooooo high. We have to ship in by big wooden crates. Since the Sept 11th disaster its even worse on security. I would not take the risk just to save a few pounds.

 

[TracyUK]

After a trip to the USA I am shocked to find that we are being charged up to THREE times the price in the UK for Creative products!!! Creative also have it covered that suppliers in the USA arent allowed to ship to the UK I understand ...although there is no problem having other brands shipped here (apart from the liquids). I choose Creative for many reasons the main being I love to work with these products but definately dont like the idea of being 'ripped off'!

 

[cuticles]

I think you will find this is mainly the shipping cost that we in the UK can do very little about, it is the same for all items eg, computers, shoes etc.

Please remember that we are dealing with chemicals here that are packed in a particular way and monitored throughout the shipping process.

It's not about Creative ripping anybody off - it's about the cost of the shipping process for all goods!

Cathy

 

[geeg]

After a trip to the USA I am shocked to find that we are being charged up to THREE times the price in the UK for Creative products!!! Creative also have it covered that suppliers in the USA arent allowed to ship to the UK I understand ...although there is no problem having other brands shipped here (apart from the liquids). I choose Creative for many reasons the main being I love to work with these products but definately dont like the idea of being 'ripped off'!

Tracey ...... no one is ripping you off and you will find the same increase if you look into the US prices of other brands and compare against their UK prices.

Cost of shipping, cost of import duty, tax etc is what bumps the price up to the level you pay here in the UK. There is a legitimate formula used to determine price that takes into account all of these factors.

Dont forget that we CHARGE for our nails in the Uk at least 2 and a half times more than US nail technicians for our nail services. They don't pay less for product and then charge OUR UK prices. That is why it is cheap to have your nails odne in the USA.

Your nail products cost you only about 13-15% of what you cahrge for your sevices. Do you consider that you are ripping off (as you put it) your customers? No because you have to add in other charges like your expenses for running your business. So don't use words like 'ripping off' because it is not only unfair but untrue. Please look into other brands and you will see for yourself that this is also the same for them.

 

[Little Angel]

hiya

what geeg says is quite true importing from america cost's a fortune what with the shiping charges, insurance and extra taxes they wop on!! Try ordering something by the time you have added it all on its not much cheaper.
I stock Paul mitchell hair care in my salon and its soooooo cheap in america yet in the uk its really quite pricey, however if i have a client going to america that buys pm off me i am always honest and tell them to get some while they are there!

 

[JackieMc]

You want to try importing stuff from USA to Ireland - the taxes are even higher here! VAT 21% :evil:

But it's just as Gigi said...... it's all down to the shipping costs and taxes etc. I recently bought some lovely gold embossed certificates for my airbrushing courses, from America. There was also a UK based company but the price was double so I went with the USA one. By the time I'd paid for shipping and custom charges it more or less turned out the same as buying it from the UK.

Oh, and I had a heap of nail varnishes sent over to me from Amercia a while ago and the postal service over there refused to send them by airmail as they were classed as flammable, had to come over by sea - delivery took 7 weeks! So you might want to watch how many you bring over in your suitcase.

Jackie
www.LibertyNailDesign.com
Dublin

 

[TracyUK]

Yes obviously I know shipping etc etc counts for much of the increased costs...even with the current exchange rates I expected the prices in the UK to be double not treble... I would be interested to look into the LEGITIMATE formula and how it is followed through.

With reference to my other point are my facts correct in that US companies selling Creative are prevented from shipping direct to the UK?(unlike many other companies)...if the percentage profit is the same in UK as USA then why are we prevented from purchasing via the USA and taking on the shipping, taxes ourselves?! I realise the response i will receive is 'do I realise the costs of shipping flammable products etc' ..my point is this still doesn't change the facts of asking why we are unable to do it?

 

[JackieMc]

I am by no means an expert on this subject, but here's how I see it.

People in the UK (and Ireland) need local distributors. Local distributors are not charities and therefore do need to make a profit on the products they supply - we all need to eat, don't we? I imagine Local distributors have more overheads to cover than a single person just buying products for themselves (staff, warehouse/premises etc.). Not everyone wants to have to wait 6/7 weeks for products that have to be sent by surface mail. I am sure Creative are not the only nail related company that refuse to send products to countries that have their own distributor, I have been refused on a number of occasions by a few companies when I have tried to buy from them rather than a more local company. Here in Ireland, I don't have the selection of distributors that I had when I lived in the UK, and STILL some companies refuse, telling me to order from the UK.

I haven't compared Creative UK prices with USA, but if they are 3 times more expensive, then that is not uncommon, again, especially over here in Ireland. Count yourself lucky, I have to pay more for Creative/EZ Flow/Too Much Fun products here in Dublin than I would normally have to if I ordered from the UK. I know for certain of one Irish nail distributor who has to charge 3 times what they pay in order to make a profit for themselves, and trust me, it isn't a huge profit they make.

I know it's irritating to see the prices of things in America compared to what we pay over this side of the pond, but it just the way things are, we have to live with it - look at the price of piggin' petrol/diesel for example (and that's the ONLY thing we get cheaper than the UK..... 20p a litre cheaper over here!!! :lol: ) - the Americans nearly die of shock when they hire a car over here - revenge is sweet!!! :green:

Jackie
Liberty Nail Design
Dublin

 

[Mrs Geek]

To TracyUK...

We are what is known as the 'sole UK and Ireland' distributor - this means that we have exclusivity for these 2 areas on the globe!! Our other distributors around the globe (and there are many) too have exclusive distributor rights for their country.. if any domestic distributor (USA) could sell outside of their given area and into the rest of the world, why bother to have international distributors at all?? I know for a fact that this is the same for many other nail brands - OPI, NSI, EZFlow etc... if US distributorships were caught selling OPI into the UK, I bet Lena would have a fit!!!!

 

[TracyUK]

Thanks for your replies...business is business eh!...as it is I am yet to find a company to match the education I have received from Creative, the support and the quality and workability of the products so I am prepared as always to pay the higher costs.........always tempting to take up any offers in the Florida sunshine though and it's worth getting paid much less just for those beaches lol

 

[Mrs Geek]

Thanks for your replies...business is business eh!...as it is I am yet to find a company to match the education I have received from Creative, the support and the quality and workability of the products so I am prepared as always to pay the higher costs.........always tempting to take up any offers in the Florida sunshine though and it's worth getting paid much less just for those beaches lol

Damn straight Tracy - I lived in Sarasota for 4 years and LOVED it...I sure miss those blue skies and laid back lazy lifestyle.....ahhhh meeeemmmories....