Today, you'll learn how we ensure that the temperature-sensitive chocolate arrives safely, how much the total packaging/transport costs are, and why we only pass on two euros of the additional costs to you...
Last year, we already faced the problem of shipping high-quality chocolate in the summer without risking the quality of the chocolate suffering from the heat, as chocolate is very sensitive to temperature.
That's why we contacted chocolate manufacturers and asked them how they ship their chocolate to their customers in the summer. Some manufacturers collect orders and wait until the temperatures drop . But do you really want to wait? Orders made in July could, in the worst case, not be shipped until September if it stays hot until then. And if it does get hot again during transport, you'll only receive the chocolate with a loss of flavor!
We therefore don't think this solution is acceptable. So we continued researching and looking for solutions. Food, for example, can be shipped very well in coolers. But coolers are made of Styrofoam, which isn't very environmentally friendly, they're expensive, and the standard sizes aren't very suitable for us (for example, they're not suitable for shipping 1 kg of milk chocolate – Venezuela Dammenbeg chocolate). Besides, it's actually a bit of an overreaction to use such "guns" to kill "birds"! After all, we don't want the chocolate to arrive in sub-zero temperatures; a pleasantly cool 17 degrees Celsius in the shipping box is enough for us.
The Edelmond Chocolatier chocolate manufacturer ships its chocolate without refrigeration, even when outside temperatures exceed 20 degrees Celsius (68 degrees Fahrenheit), and in most cases manages to adequately protect the chocolate through clever packaging. This is true even when the temperatures in the delivery vehicles are significantly higher. So why create so much waste and expense when it can still be easily delivered at 20 degrees Celsius (68 degrees Fahrenheit) through improvisation?
We continued searching and found a good compromise for everyone: During the summer temperatures, we ship the chocolate tightly wrapped in paper and packed with ice packs, Monday through Thursday . This way, the chocolate doesn't sit in DHL's overheated transport vehicles over the weekend, and the ice packs ensure the perfect transport temperature. Because in the cool boxes, there's even a risk of shipping the chocolate too cold, rather than at the optimal 12 to 18 degrees Celsius! The chocolate would then arrive with white spots. While this doesn't affect the quality or taste, it doesn't look very nice...
To optimally package the cooling pads and chocolate, we ordered large quantities of kraft paper. It 's made from 100% sulfate pulp using an environmentally friendly process. It's 100% recyclable and environmentally friendly, and boasts extremely high tear resistance! But kraft paper primarily serves one purpose: as perfect insulation for the ice pack and chocolate during transport...
We know that many other online shops shy away from this extra expense; after all, the higher shipping costs that are not passed on lead to less profit and are associated with additional work! And we know from customers that some chocolate suppliers have problems in the summer. Marketplaces like Amazon and eBay in particular offer high-quality chocolate which then arrives in poor quality. Of course, that is completely unacceptable for us! So we have to find a solution that makes everyone happy! That is why we are happy to cover some of the higher transport costs and do not make any compromises when it comes to transporting the chocolate . And we know that all customers feel the same way. They order high-quality premium chocolate not because they want cheap or rancid chocolate, but because they love delicious chocolate... .
And the extra work for this little chocolate wonderland is immense: We have to freeze the ice packs in a specially purchased freezer, and the chocolate can only be packed with the ice packs shortly before shipping and has to be taken directly to the post office . So we'd rather go to DHL twice a day than have to leave the package waiting for an extra 24 hours.
In the summer, we only charge you €6.99 for packaging and shipping. We operate transparently so you can see how much the shipping costs actually are. Here's an overview of the "largest" items. We don't include the purchase price for the freezer, travel costs to DHL, etc.
| Transport/packaging costs | |
| Shipping DHL*: (mostly parcels up to 5kg, the price we as business customers actually pay to DHL)): | 6.01 € |
| Shipping box: | 0.90 € |
| Ice packs (average 2 pieces per package) | 1.90 € |
| Deep freezing of the batteries | 0.20 € |
| Soda kraft paper | 0.90 € |
| Working time (approx. 20 minutes/package) | 5.00 € |
| Total packaging/shipping costs: | 14.01 € |
€7.99 shipping is pretty fair, isn't it? We want you to enjoy chocolate even in the summer, so we're not passing on the full cost! Nevertheless, we know that €7.99 is a lot of money. But anyone who wants to enjoy premium chocolate also wants the chocolate to arrive in the best possible quality. And that's just as important to us as it is to you! Even if we risk losing some customers. It would be much easier for us to just wrap the chocolate in thick paper and hope that everything arrives safely despite the heat...
Thank you for your understanding, and as always, we look forward to receiving every single order from you. If you have any questions about shipping, please contact us using the contact form or email Kim-Rudolf directly at kim@schoko-wunderland.de.
General information about shipping costs can be found here: Shipping and payment conditions
*DHL price of 6.01 Euro: This is the price we pay as a business customer to DHL including VAT)