Need Advice on UK FBA and Packaging for Murder Mystery Games and Escape Rooms
I'm reaching out to the community for some guidance as I'm a newbie UK Amazon seller venturing into the world of FBA. While I've had experience selling on other platforms, I'm a bit lost when it comes to Amazon's FBA system, especially concerning packaging. I've tried contacting Amazon's customer service via chat, but unfortunately, the assistance I received was not as clear as I had hoped.
Let me give you a brief overview of my products: I specialise in cold case murder mystery games and envelope escape rooms. Currently, these products are packaged in three different ways:
1- Sealed A4 Envelope: Paperwork and photos are enclosed inside a sealed A4 envelope.
2- A3 Presentation Folder: Paperwork and photos are placed inside an A3 presentation folder (which becomes A4 when folded for packing) and sealed with stickers to prevent opening.
3- A5 Envelopes: Documents and items like mini pencils and keys are placed inside A5 envelopes.
All these packaging options include identification stickers on the outside.
Now, my main concern is how to send these products to Amazon FBA. I'm unsure if Amazon handles the packaging by placing them into carded envelopes before sending them to customers, and if so, whether this service is included in the fees. Alternatively, should I individually package them in carded envelopes before sending them to the FBA site? When I asked Amazon chat, I received conflicting information. Initially, I was told to send them as they are currently packaged, but when I enquired about how they would be sent to customers, the response was vague "I cannot say how we would send to customers". Later, they advised me to put the items into carded envelopes before sending them to FBA.
I'm feeling quite confused, and any help or advice from seasoned sellers who have experience with similar products would be immensely appreciated. How do you handle packaging for FBA? What has worked best for you in terms of ensuring safe delivery to customers?
Thank you in advance for your help!
2 replies
Seller_ZJhFeE3tNKzfh
I would always say to package them as if you were posting them to avoid damage yourselves. You genuinely don’t know how Amazon will send out your products. They may add an outer envelope, they may not, and they could be added to a box with other products on the same order. I would personally say card backed rigid envelopes are the way to go.
Seller_d8YGbIjNqwFxn
Items do get damaged. I used to sell a lot of cards via FBA and I never sent them in board back/carded envelopes and some did get damaged.
However the amount of damages were fairly small though and if I had decided to send them in carded envelopes it would cost me more than the few damages that I had.
Remember that rigid envelopes can be anywhere between 5p and 14p each. They are also heavy at about 20-50 grams each so this will increase the weight of your shipment and may mean you need more boxes if you are sending a lot in.
You may need to think about outweighing the risk of the item becoming damaged and the additional cost of protecting them in rigid envelopes.
