Turn around time

[modesty_blaise]

Pixie,

the turn-around time at the lab right now is about 2 months; at the moment most people are getting their early Carnaval Noir orders, placed in the first couple of days of June

[MicheleZ]

I feel like everything's passing me by! I should have waited the three days to get the PayPal account set up instead of ordering through CCnow... oh well, it's a dead goose already. I'm hoping it doesn't take the full 45 days to get out of the lab, but I can wait. I have Spooky and The Star at home to sniff like mad with some more swapped goodies on the way.

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

 

You don't get the order any quicker with Paypal - you just get charged immediately - CCnow and Paypal take the same amount of time to ship out - currently around 2 months.

[Miss Lynx]

I'm getting a little worried about my Carnival Noir order. I received a shipping notice on Oct 9, saying that the order had been shipped out on Oct 5. Now, I am in Canada, so I expect things to take longer to get here, but it's going on 4 weeks now. Not since it was ordered (that was two months earlier), but since it was supposed to have been shipped!

 

I sent an e-mail to the lab a few days ago asking about it, and wondering how long I should wait before I start getting seriously worried that it's been lost in the mail, but haven't heard back yet (then again, it may be that they don't check e-mail on the weekend; I think it was Friday that I sent it).

 

Anyway, I'm just wondering if anyone else has ever had an order take this long to get to them, or an order not show up at all. What happens if it just doesn't come? At what point does it get written off as lost, and what happens then?

[Macha]

Give them more time ot respond. One, because Halloween is a pretty major holiday for the Lab and no one was likely working, and two, because as far as I know, they still don't have easy e-mail access...that's supposed to be put in this week. So they may not have even received your e-mail yet.

 

FYI, I've had a package be shipped and just never arrive twice now. Once I managed to locate it through pure chance in at a post office nowhere near where the post office said it was scanned, and the second the time the Lab re-shipped it. They're very good about that once they've determined a package is lost in the mail.

[aedes]

I'm getting a little worried about my Carnival Noir order. I received a shipping notice on Oct 9, saying that the order had been shipped out on Oct 5. Now, I am in Canada, so I expect things to take longer to get here, but it's going on 4 weeks now. Not since it was ordered (that was two months earlier), but since it was supposed to have been shipped!

 

Make sure the shipping notification was a Click-N-Ship and not from CCNow. I got a "shipping" notification from CCNow for my first order and got very worried when it didn't show up a few weeks later. But, from what I could ascertain from my emails with the lab, it's essentially just a "We got your order!" notification. Real shipping doesn't come until the Click-N-Ship. So if that's the case, you'll probably be okay. But, yeah, if you wait for a few days for an email response they should be able to straighten it out for you.

[Miss Lynx]

Make sure the shipping notification was a Click-N-Ship and not from CCNow. I got a "shipping" notification from CCNow for my first order and got very worried when it didn't show up a few weeks later. But, from what I could ascertain from my emails with the lab, it's essentially just a "We got your order!" notification. Real shipping doesn't come until the Click-N-Ship. So if that's the case, you'll probably be okay. But, yeah, if you wait for a few days for an email response they should be able to straighten it out for you.

I don't use CCNow -- I don't think they support Canadian orders. I order with PayPal, so the shipping notice was directly from the Lab.

 

I'm not panicking yet, just getting mildly nervous.

[aedes]

I don't use CCNow -- I don't think they support Canadian orders. I order with PayPal, so the shipping notice was directly from the Lab.

 

I'm not panicking yet, just getting mildly nervous.

 

Ah, right, I see now.

Yeah, the lab will hopefully be able to set things right.

[Morrighana]

The big thing here is that you are in Canada.

 

Sadly, Customs can slow orders BIG TIME, and the Lab has no control over that. I've had orders take an additional month on top of the usual week-to-two-weeks that it takes to get here, and when they finally do show up, they've been taxed. It has only happened twice to me in the time I've been ordering from BPAL (almost 2 years now), but it does happen.

 

So, don't give up hope *just* yet!!! If it doesn't come fairly soon, though, the Lab is very good about reshipping like Macha and aedes said, so you will get your goodies eventually.

[Miss Lynx]

OK, I'll wait another week or two before deciding it was lost... So I guess about six weeks from shipping date is the maximum time it might reasonably take? That's partly what I was trying to get a sense of... How long I should wait.

 

My previous two Lab orders, and most of my swaps, have only taken a week or two, so that's why I was worried. Hmmm, maybe I was just lucky before! Though I did once have a swap I sent to someone in the US take three and a half weeks. But I haven't had anything take this long before.

[Rhowan]

I am starting to get a little miffed because I place my very 1st (and only) order back on Sept. 23rd. It has now been 6weeks (42days) - and no word from the lab. I did email the lab when I got the notice from CCNOW stating my order had been shipped. They finally responded that the CCNOW message was automated and inccorect. (that was Oct. 17th)

 

I feel that I ordered in good faith, knowing that I would recieve my order in the 21-45 days. It's my fault for thinking that it would probably be a lower number of days since I was sure they were giving themselves leeway in their estimations. Had I actually been told I would have to wait ALL 45 days or more Iwould have given a second thought to ordering.

 

The lab says it guarantees Christmas deliveries if orders are put in by Nov. 15th - my question (and the reason I am hesitating making another order) is this:

If I can't get a 5ml of Samhain and an imp of Jack in 6 weeks or more, how can I have faith that I am even going to get my Yule order on time?! While I am only miffed about my personal order right now, I would be super pissed to order for Christmas presents and not have them arrive.

 

Now, don't get me wrong! I love BPAL, the forum and all of the people. Maybe I am overreacting? Can anyone give me some words of wisdom? Am I overreacting? Please help!

 

Oh ya, emailed the lab yesterday asking what my order status is but it takes a long time for them to get back to you.

Edited November 5, 2005 by Rhowan

[Morrighana]

The problem, Rhowan, is unfortunately that you misread the website. The estimated timeframe is 21-45 business days until your order is shipped...you are only on day 30.

 

Also, re: it taking a long time for the labbies to get back to you...they still don't have internet at the Lab because of their forced move. They're doing customer service from home on their own time, so yes, it is taking longer than usual. Be patient, though: they'll get back to you as soon as they can!

[ipb]

it says 21-45 BUSINESS days, not 21-45 CALENDAR days. there is a significant difference.

 

21-45 calendar days is 3-6.5 weeks.

21-45 business days is 4.2-9 weeks.

 

there's still three weeks left on their disclaimed shipping times, and it looks like they're almost to the blood moon orders. i'd guess another week, two on the outside, before yours hits the queue -- there was no doubt a bit of a slow down in shipping with the whole one week's notice to move loc stuff.

[LunaDragonGirl]

Now, don't get me wrong! I love BPAL, the forum and all of the people. Maybe I am overreacting? Can anyone give me some words of wisdom? Am I overreacting? Please help!

 

Oh ya, emailed the lab yesterday asking what my order status is but it takes a long time for them to get back to you.

Rhowan,

 

You might know this already, but a great way to keep track of where the lab is with regards to shipping orders is the "ClickNShip" thread over *here*. People are usually nice enough to post the date they ordered, and when they recieved the "ClickNShip" email from the post office, indicating that their order is on its merry way. Looks like the busy labrats are just starting in on shipping the orders placed during the first week of September.

 

Hope this helps!

[Rhowan]

Is the 21-45 business days unusual? Did I just happen to place my very first order at a busy and/or crappy time? Oh! Ya! Thanks for sending the click n ship link, I had seen it before but didn't know what it was for.....

Edited November 5, 2005 by Rhowan

[Sara]

Is the 21-45 business days unusual? Did I just happen to place my very first order at a busy and/or crappy time?

 

Nope. The majority of my orders have taken right around two months (eight regular weeks, give or take, which puts them between 40-45 business days) to arrive from time of ordering. Alas, I've not made a new order in quite some time (Honey Moon being the last), so I can't tell you if they've sped things up since then. Honestly I don't know how in the heck they're going to get Nov. 15th orders out by Christmas, maybe Santa Claus is helping out?

[Miss Lynx]

I'm guessing they're hiring some extra people to help cope with the Christmas rush...

[ipb]

the seasonal help plus their now-larger space should help a ton in speeding up order fulfillment - after all, it wasn't THAT long ago we were down to what, 5-6 weeks!

[Rhowan]

quick update - I got a super fast response from the lab today saying that they think by the end of next week my order should be shipped - Wow that was a quick response! Thanks!

[shelldoo]

rhowan, i think waiting for the first order is the worst, once you have a few under your belt it really doesn't seem too bad, i now place orders every 2 weeks or so, just so i don't have "long waits" believe me though it is worth the wait.

[Raven in the Violets]

Hello,

 

I have a question regarding CCNow and the recent Yule scents I ordered. I'm very concerned because I ordered a bunch of the Yule scents on October 24. However, it is now November 10, and they have not deducted the money from debit account. It says order received, but also "awaiting shipment." I made another huge order (around $300) and it also took over two weeks to deduct and be sent to the lab. Are other people getting this type of thing, or is it just me? Is this a typical time frame? It seems smaller orders in the past were processed and sent to the lab in much quicker time. This is becoming a budgeting nightmare.

 

Another thing I'm worried about is what if my order is sent after the fifteenth-does this mean I can't get my sents before the holidays even though I placed my order well before that?

 

I've emailed the lab but thought I'd ask here to see if I'm just panicking.

 

 

I apologize in advance if I am panicking...

[Undine]

Raven, I believe that when you use CCNow, although you place the order on a certain date, the order is not "harvested" (that is, the money is not deducted) until a date much closer to shipment. Others here may be able to elaborate more. I think the Lab is trying to get away from CCNow eventually, but at the moment are stuck with it. I suppose this is one advantage to using Paypal, which as far as I know, works normally.

 

Also, if you read above, the lead times are quite long, 21-45 business days, which translates to about 6-8 weeks. You can get an idea of how lead times are running by watching the Click-N-Ship thread in this area of the forum, where people report when they placed an order and when the CnS (Click-N-Ship; the notice that their order is shipping) was received. International orders generally take a few weeks longer, I think.

 

As I recall, the Yule LEs notice said that shipment of scents by the holidays could not be guaranteed if the order was not placed by Nov. 15. So, I would take them at their word and presume that no, you won't get them by the holidays if you placed the order after the 15th. The swaps/sale forums here are a great way to feed the habit while you wait, but of course the Yule LEs won't be showing up until right around the holidays, unfortunately.

 

Such are the difficulties of being a small business--BPAL scents are high-quality, hand-blended, relatively inexpensive, and lovely, but shipping is a wait, no question. They're working on the shipping times as best they can, from what we hear.

 

So, long story short, I wouldn't panic about the orders you placed--they are probably fine. But you might not get the later ones by when you are hoping to.

Edited November 10, 2005 by Undine

[SevenSins]

From my work in e-commerce, it's my understanding there are three dates that mean something. Date your order is placed is the date you actually went onto a website and ordered. That order may sit in a queue - electronically or otherwise, until such time as it's ready to be filled.

 

The second date is the date processed. In this case it seems that the date "harvested" (the date the lab actually goes into the software queue and pulls the order for processing) is that date.

 

The third date is your shipping date. At that point, your product is packed and ready to go, and it's sent out for shipping.

 

The date your payment is taken can either be the date harvested or the date shipped. If the lab was using a real merchant account and processing the credit cards/debit cards themselves, they would be legally bound to process payment when your order is in stock. Once payment is processed, they would have a certain amount of time to ship.

 

With PayPal, your payment is processed right away because the lab is not controlling the transaction, PayPal is. They are a money transfer company, not a merchant account. They have a merchant account which allows them to process your credit or debit cards, and they have EFT set up which allows them the ability to take money from your bank account. But the way PayPal works, you give PayPal money. Then you can use the money you've given PayPal to buy things or pay for things either online or using a debit card offline. That's what pre-funding an account is by the way. You tell PayPal to take money out of your bank account and then let it sit as a balance in your PayPal account. When you purchase through PayPal, the money always comes off your PayPal balance first - if you have a PP balance, they will not charge your card or your bank. So with PayPal, you are always going to make your payment to the lab on your order date.

 

I believe with CCNow, the payment is made on the processing date - or when the lab harvests the order. CCNow is a third party processer. It's not a merchant account in that the lab processes the credit or debit cards, it's similar to PayPal in that they collect the money from you, take out their fees, then the lab gets what's left. The difference being that you cannot have a balance with CCNow. Because they aren't a merchant account gateway, they can hold your order in a queue for the lab and the lab can pick up the order when they are ready to process it. So CCNow doesn't charge your card until the order is picked up by the lab. Their system does automatic status updates based on the activity between them and the lab - so they are a misleading indicator of when things are or are not ready to be shipped. So your payment to the lab through CCNow is the harvest date.

 

It's also my understanding (and I could be wrong - this is just experience/educated guess here) is that the lab harvests orders in order to determine what their immediate needs are (weeks?) in terms of blending and stock and what not. So there is still a wait time between harvest and shipment while they get all the goodies together to go out. It's not like they have hundreds and hundreds of bottles made up ahead of time just in case someone orders something. My guess would be things are done in batches, and there may be some stock laying around. But some batches are probably only blended based on demand.

 

So the short answer is yes, that is normal and I always know when my order is in the lab's processing queue by the date the charge from CCNow hits my account. Generally about 2 to 3 weeks after that I start watching the CnSs here, depending how things are going.

 

And I am sure that's all clear as mud now, right?

[valentina]

SevenSins, I just wanted to say thank you for an excellent description of the CCNow process.

 

 

valentina

[SevenSins]

Thank you Valentina.

 

Raven - I don't know that that is the case. The date you placed your order is your order date. Not the date they harvested the order from CCNow.

 

Now I don't work for the lab, and I certainly don't have any inside information AT ALL, but my guess (and only a guess based on the wording on the site) is that come November 15, they will harvest all the orders placed (and not yet harvested) and that will be the cut off for orders they will attempt to deliver before the holidays.

 

Look at it this way. They are using Christmas (Dec 25) as their holiday date for simplicity's sake. If they use November 15 as a cutoff, then all orders placed by November 15 can be harvested on Nov 15 and that gives them 5 weeks to get the orders filled and delivered.

 

As long as you place your order before that cutoff date, you should be fine. I woudn't fret too much, 5 weeks is a long time for turnaround from harvest (in my experience) and they will most likely have a few extra folks helping out in the lab during this busy time.

 

Now - place the order ON November 15 or after? Well, then it's a crapshoot.

 

But I wouldn't worry about it if you placed your order already. I am sure they have it figured out.

 

(and again - this is all guess on my part - but I do have quite a bit of both retail and e-commerce experience so it's a semi-educated guess).

[Undine]

Yes, SevenSins is saying what I was trying to say. Sorry, I spoke in the past tense and that might have given you an incorrect impression. So far I think you have a lot of leeway. It's only if you order after (or maybe on as she says) Nov 15 that I think your order wouldn't come when you want it.

 

The Yule scents are already available, and they were made available on October 15th... so you had/have a month to decide what you want and place the order ... I am not sure what you mean by saying that you wouldn't get your order even if you placed it on the day available?? Unless you are not in the US?

 

Based on my reading of what they say, anyway.

 

As far as we know, there is no difference in when orders are fulfilled if they are Paypal vs. CCNow--it shouldn't affect your place in the queue. Rather it seems to just have to do with what is mixed up and in stock, and what isn't. That could mean that simpler orders generally might go out a little more quickly ... but who knows.

 

As noted above in this thread, CCNow takes a much bigger cut of the lab's profits than does Paypal, so some forumites like to use Paypal just so the lab gets more money and the middleman less.

 

Reading the forums can help with a lot of your questions, too. Some are answered in this thread, some elsewhere. Check out the bottom left of this page you're reading--there will be a search box that says "Enter Keywords" and a button that says "Search Topic." That allows you to search within this particular thread so you don't have to read each of the 5 pages--you can search on Paypal for instance. Each thread has one of these and subparts of the forum (like this BPAL FAQs area) have them too.

 

There is also a forum search button at the very top right of the page. It allows you to search the whole forum, or parts of it, for topics you're interested in ... so you can search Paypal and CCNow, for instance. You can also limit the search to just titles so that you only come up with threads that are specifically on your topic of concern, instead of every thread where the words "paypal" and "ccnow" are used.

 

Hope that helps!