iHerb.com- slow delivery

I'm a big fan and supporter of iHerb.com and I frequently order lots of supplements from them.

Most of the time, I would opt for delivery via Global Priority Mail by DHL as I personally find this to be the most economical way of shipping your online purchases to Malaysia. It typically takes between 3 to 4 weeks for my orders to arrive.

However, my latest online purchase took almost 5.5 weeks to arrive. I panicked after 4 weeks and emailed iHerb.com but they didn't respond. Well, I guess since tracking is not available for delivery via Global Priority Mail by DHL, there's nothing much the guys at iHerb.com could do and hence the silence. When my products arrived after 5.5 weeks of wait, I decided to update iHerb.com by sending them an email and they responded almost immediately. Like me, I'm sure they are relieved their customer has finally received the ordered products.

I'm sure this slow delivery is only a one off incident as I've not encountered this problem previously. My guess is that our Malaysian postmen must have been hard at work! *LOL* Don't worry, you are forgiven! *Guffaw*

If you would like to give iHerb.com a try and order something from them, please provide my referral code QUW344 when you make your online order. You will receive an instant USD10.00 off your first purchase of USD40.00 and above or USD5.00 off orders below USD40.00.

iHerb.com- delivery via DHL

I've been ordering lots of stuff from iHerb.com (so far over 10 times) and if my orders are >4lbs, I would split them up into <4lbs each. 

Why the magical weight of 4lbs? 

Well, for orders <4lbs, I'm able to use Global Priority Mail by DHL and the delivery charge is only USD4 flat per package. This is the most economical way of shipping your online purchases to Malaysia. The down side is that delivery can take up to 3 weeks long. For non-urgent stuff and if you are willing to wait, it's not really a down side and 3 weeks is no biggie so long as your package arrives.

For orders >4lbs, you'll need to split your orders into <4lbs each to be eligible for Global Priority Mail by DHL. Otherwise, you'll have to use DHL Express or UPS, which delivery charges correspond with the total weight of your package.

Just last week, I ordered a few things for my family from iHerb.com and the total weight was slightly over 7lbs...7.1lbs to be exact. I wanted to break my online purchases into 2 <4lbs packages and pay a total of USD8 flat for both packages but being a curious cat, I decided to check how much I would have to pay to have them delivered via DHL Express.

"Wah, only USD11.27?!?! Excellent!!!"

I was pleasantly surprised that it wasn't much. USD11.27 for shipping and handling charges for delivery via DHL Express. With a small difference of only USD3.27 (or approximately RM10.50), I could receive my online purchases within a week and not the usual 3 weeks. Why didn't I try this earlier? It's a such no-brainer. 

Immediately after I'd confirmed my orders, I was sent an email by iHerb.com with a DHL Express tracking number. I was thoroughly impressed when I clicked on the tracking number as it actually showed me every step/process that my package went through before arriving at my intended destination. There was even a record showing "delivery attempted, recipient not home". That was very professional of them. I was thoroughly impressed. My package arrived after 8 days of making the online purchases.

Surely there's a twist to this nice and dandy story. Well, yes :-)

I'd to pay an additional RM46.20 to DHL for the delivery. WTF?!?! RM10.50 + RM46.20 = RM56.70. If I'd split my orders into 2, I would have only paid approximately RM25.60 (USD8) for delivery charges. That's more than double! Sigh... 

So, let that be a lesson to me. From now on, it'll just be orders <4lbs per package. Global Priority Mail by DHL is afterall the most economical way of shipping your online purchases to Malaysia. No point reinventing the wheel. Why fix if it ain't broken?

If you would like to give iHerb.com a try and order something from them, please provide my referral code QUW344 when you make your online order. You will receive an instant USD10.00 off your first purchase of USD40.00 and above or USD5.00 off orders below USD40.00.

iHerb.com

I was busy working when I received a message on Whatsapp from Wifey...

"Check out iHerb.com!"

"Huh? What's this all about? What herbs do they sell? Are you suggesting I take some herbs? Safe or not?"

Wifey later explained that it's a website based out of USA that sells amongst others health supplements, foodstuff, supplies for babies and kids etc.

"I read it's cheaper than buying the same stuff from our local stores."

"Real or not? What if our order doesn't reach us? Let me do some research and check out the site."

The landing page of iHerb.com was minimalist. All items sold are listed clearly and without any frills. Since I've just bought whey protein from EGOnutritions.com and I needed to stock up on creatine and BCAA, I clicked on these 2 items.

"Cool! These are brands that we cannot find here in Malaysia! So many to choose from! Wow!"

I spent some time reading the product descriptions (especially the expiration date, can't be ordering if the expiration date is just around the corner, right?) and compared various products etc. I even took out my trusty Excel sheet to calculate the unit cost of each item after conversion from USD into RM (it required some minor tweaking to accommodate currency conversion).

"Price is very affordable, even after including shipping charges! Hmm...very tempting!"

Could my online purchase go MIA?

I was worried my online purchase might go MIA and with that I would lose some money in the process. Also, I was worried about having to pay additional customs import taxes when the products arrive in Malaysia.

"If you seriously want to give it a shot, perhaps you can consider ordering something cheap. That way, you can test whether you end up having to pay customs import taxes when it arrives."

"Yeah, I guess so..."

iHerb.com offers 3 shipping methods to Malaysia:-
1. DHL- Charges based on total weight of products shipped. 6-day average delivery time with possible extra delays/expenses due to customs. Offers tracking information.
2. UPS- Charges based on total weight of products shipped. 6-day average delivery time with possible extra delays/expenses due to customs. Offers tracking information.
3. International Airmail- Free delivery for orders over USD40.00. 1-4 weeks delivery time. Average delivery time to Malaysia based on feedback from existing customers is 9 days. No tracking information.

Accordingly to iHerb.com, international airmail deliveries are reliable and are a favourite shipping method for iHerb.com's customers in Europe and Asia Pacific. Also, chances are high that there will not be any additional customs import taxes. In the event of customs import taxes being charged upon arrival of the products ordered, the purchaser shall bear the same.

I selected the following products at iHerb.com:-
1. Optimum Nutrition, BCAA Caps, Mega-Size, 1000mg, 400 Capsules- USD24.62
2. Universal Nutrition, Creatine, 1000g- USD26.61

Total damage (including international airmail charges of USD4.00) is USD55.23, which is approximately RM172.72 (USD1:RM3.1272).

"This is not a lot of money. I don't mind giving it a shot..."

I took in a deep breath, then exhaled...and then I proceeded with my online purchase. My fingers were tightly crossed...

This time around, I made sure I double checked my orders and delivery details to avoid my previous fiasco! :-P

I waited and waited and waited...and my products arrived after about 2.5 weeks of making the online order. Here's the kicker...I didn't have to pay any customs import tax! :-)

Property of Mr Flabby Less
My ordered products arrived with 2 free gifts

Like me, if you would like to give iHerb.com a try and order something from them, please provide my referral code QUW344 when you make your online order. You will receive an instant USD10.00 off your first purchase of USD40.00 and above or USD5.00 off orders below USD40.00. I didn't get to enjoy any discount in my first purchase as I didn't have any referral codes as reference. Please don't make the same mistake ya...

I know I'm SO going to make more online purchasers from iHerb.com!

Online shopping is so easy and convenient!

EGOnutritions.com

I'm in the market to replenish my supplements, especially protein (down to my last week's servings) and the best way to research is via the internet.

"Hmm...lets see whether there are any good deals in the market..."

If you have read my earlier posts, you'll notice I'm a VIP member of GNC. So why not buy from GNC since I've certain privileges (usually in the form of discount)? Nah, change is always good. Who knows, I might just get better deals than what I'm currently enjoying at GNC. No harm getting a bang for our buck! :-)

Having been a VIP member of GNC for many years (since 2004 if my memory serves me well), I know the prices of protein supplements sold there. So that becomes my benchmark for comparison.

I would typically go for whey protein. As a tip, divide the cost of the bottle/packet of protein by its weight and compare the price per pound. In addition, you'll also need to compare the number of servings and protein content for each serving. No point buying cheap whey protein (low price per pound) when you need to double up the serving for the same amount of protein, right? We need to shop intelligently.

I remember seeing the EGOnutritions.com outlet in Subang Parade the other day when I went there for my cardio workout so I decided to check out their website.

Briefly, EGOnutritions.com is Malaysia's first and largest online sports nutrition company that distributes a wide range of sports nutrition products, bodybuilding/gym attire and fitness accessories. Do check out their cool website at EGOnutritions.com.

I was pleasantly surprised to find out they have over 40 brands to choose from. In addition, since they offer free shipping for orders above RM250 within Peninsular Malaysia, I can easily shop online! Plus, all orders sent by courier is guaranteed a free sample or gift!

"WOOHOO! Time to shop!"

I immediately zoomed in on their range of whey protein.

"Wahlau eh, so many to choose from!" I was impressed to say the least...so spoilt for choice!

Once I've done my calculations (in an Excel sheet of course...I'm afterall in corporate finance so this should come at no surprise, right?), I compared all available whey protein products and selected the most affordable and value for money option...the Mutant Whey (hopefully I don't turn into one after consuming it! *chuckle*).

At RM176 for 5lbs, the Mutant Whey is the most value for money whey protein at RM35.20 per pound! Notwithstanding the affordability, this whey protein is pretty good. Each packet contains 63 servings (or RM2.80 per serving) and each serving contains 22g of protein. In addition, this product contains numerous amino acids so it has the right mix of essential nutrients for muscle building/maintenance. It goes without saying this was my whey protein of choice and I ordered 3 packets!

A representative of EGOnutritions.com called me 2 days after I've made the online purchase. She wanted confirmation on the products ordered and delivery address/time. She also explained that after receiving my confirmation, they'll proceed to ship my order from their warehouse and the same will reach me the next day.

Yes, indeed the products arrived the following day...but there was a twist!

A Mandarin-speaking lady called me on my mobile, "Hello, is this Mr Flabby Less?"

"Yes, speaking."

"Did you order supplements from EGOnutritions.com?"

"Yes, I did. Have you delivered my order to my house?" I assumed it was from EGOnutritions.com and they had difficulty locating my house.

"Err...actually your order was delivered to my house..."

I almost fainted! "Huh? My delivery address is 23, Jalan ABC, SJ wor..."

"Yes, this is Jalan ABC, SJ...but my house number is 30."

"I'm so sorry! I think I must have provided the number of my own home located elsewhere and the street address of my parents' home! 23, Jalan ABC, SJ is my parents' home address...Aiyo, paiseh only!" I was so embarrassed to say the least!

"That's ok. Can you come pick it up this morning? I'm home at the moment?"

"Sure. I'll arrange. Thanks for informing me and I apologise for the mix-up."

I immediately called my parents' home and got Mummio to help.

Mummio said, "House 30 is right opposite our house la!" We had a good laugh! *ROFL*

Here's another good laugh! *ROFL*

After the call, I quickly logged into my EGOnutritions.com account and checked on the delivery address. Yup, I made a booboo on the delivery address. I can't believe it! I immediately changed the delivery address from #30 to #23 so that there won't be any booboo in future.

All in all, my order arrived after 3 days of making the online purchase. It was an interesting experience *ROFL* and I'm pretty sure I'll be ordering more supplements from EGOnutritions.com.

MENTAL NOTE: PLEASE REMEMBER TO CHECK AND DOUBLE CHECK THE DELIVERY ADDRESS!!! :-P