Back to the fold, tell me what to buy!

[Ryoruki]

I just got an order in from TeaCuppa myself. I got 5 samples. TGY, Dong Ding, Oriental Beauty, cui yu, and Dahong Pao. The package arrived very quickly considering I got the cheapest shipping, around $5. However, the packaging is not great. The tea packaging remind me of a high school drug dealer with the cigarette cellophane that is burned with a lighter to seal it. It was sent in a small padded envelope, so quite a bit of my tea is dust from being crushed along the way.

D: i am horribly affronted by the packaging.

i just received my order, customs went thru it and in their gusto SLICED OPEN several of my packages of tea. this may have been prevented had the tea been sent in a box, instead of an envelope, but i am still horribly saddened by the mis-handling of the package as well.

but who should i contact to complain? DHL? They were the ones who opened the package to examine it. but tea cuppa was the one who packaged it poorly in the first place... 2 of my 5oz packages have been slashed open. My Huang Jin Gui seems to have suffered the most, but the Rou Gui also has a 2-3inch gash in its side D:

[gingkoseto]

D: i am horribly affronted by the packaging.

i just received my order, customs went thru it and in their gusto SLICED OPEN several of my packages of tea. this may have been prevented had the tea been sent in a box, instead of an envelope, but i am still horribly saddened by the mis-handling of the package as well.

but who should i contact to complain? DHL? They were the ones who opened the package to examine it. but tea cuppa was the one who packaged it poorly in the first place... 2 of my 5oz packages have been slashed open. My Huang Jin Gui seems to have suffered the most, but the Rou Gui also has a 2-3inch gash in its side D:

That's terrible! But I heard the custom does that a lot, and there may not be a way to get it back. But I had thought the custom would do it in a more civilized way!

And surely using envelope for international shipping of tea is a bad, bad idea. Once I received my tea (not from teacuppa) in a small cardboard box and the tea leaves were still broken to certain extent.

[Herb_Master]

i just received my order, customs went thru it and in their gusto SLICED OPEN several of my packages of tea. this may have been prevented had the tea been sent in a box, instead of an envelope, but i am still horribly saddened by the mis-handling of the package as well.

but who should i contact to complain? DHL? They were the ones who opened the package to examine it. but tea cuppa was the one who packaged it poorly in the first place... 2 of my 5oz packages have been slashed open. My Huang Jin Gui seems to have suffered the most, but the Rou Gui also has a 2-3inch gash in its side D:

Not good! It will be more than worthwhile informing TeaCuppa - it just may persuade them to enhance their packaging. It will be of benefit to future customers even if you don't supply them with your custome.

It is more likely to be Customs than DHL - so unless DHL left it lying around in some way that allowed damage there is not much point in complaining to them. I doubt if Customs would care a jot about any complaint, but if Teacuppa were to include details writ large on the outside of the package including "Delicate Open carefully" it might stop Customs opening with abandon!

[Ryoruki]

thanks ya'll :3

i've sent in feedback/comments/ support messages to teacuppa, customs, and DHL. I doubt i'll get back anything other than an "oops our bad" but hey, at least it makes me feel better to point out that they've damaged things that they are supposed to be handling with care :<

i am enjoying the tea that made it through though!

[Herb_Master]

thanks ya'll :3

i am enjoying the tea that made it through though!

and hopefully you have it under safe storage now!

[Ryoruki]

yes, it has been repackaged and safely stored after i checked to make sure that no bugs or other nasties had made their way in. i re-bagged all the tea that i got just to be sure that i had not missed a hole in the other bags.

[Herb_Master]

I noted that TeaCuppa seemed to have 2 sales outlets 1 in the USA and 1 in Malaysia. I assumed that as i was in the UK I would get mine from Malaysia and that orders from the States would get them direct from the US outlet.

If customs are opening TeaCuppa packages does this mean it is all coming from China. ?

[Ryoruki]

Yes, this package came from Malaysia, thru Hong Kong, and into Ohio here in the US. I was also surprised by this. I'm not sure if this is because they were out of something that i ordered at their US places, or if they post all their packages from Malaysia. But i found that a bit odd too...

[Bubba_tea]

Man - that's weak... but unfortunately, it's a reality of international business. Once customs has it, they own it and can do anything they please - and Herb Master is right - the don't loose much sleep over the tears of sorrow of the poor recipient.. When shipping large containers overseas, the shipper will often put a 'sample' of every item in the container right by the front so they don't go bashing through the whole container if they're having a grumpy day and hopefully it's something that catches their eye, as a rubber band distracts a kitty cat, and they leave the rest alone.

[gingkoseto]

Man - that's weak... but unfortunately, it's a reality of international business. Once customs has it, they own it and can do anything they please - and Herb Master is right - the don't loose much sleep over the tears of sorrow of the poor recipient.. When shipping large containers overseas, the shipper will often put a 'sample' of every item in the container right by the front so they don't go bashing through the whole container if they're having a grumpy day and hopefully it's something that catches their eye, as a rubber band distracts a kitty cat, and they leave the rest alone.

That's a smart strategy! Many teas I got from China came with a 1-serving sample. I thought they were for me to enjoy. But maybe they were put there for another purpose

[jasonowalker]

Grand Tea (grandtea.com) has 14 different wulongs, from high-mountain to dark roasted. Prices range from $6.70 to $38, so you may find something worthwhile there. I posted reviews of their Qi Lan Wulong and their Shui Xian Traditional (see Wuyi rock/Yancha link on the site).

Jason
walkerteareview.com