Frequent Asked Questions

General

• Q: What is the purchasing process?
• A:  Ordering at our store, for the time being has two stages, the first stage is on-line where you fill in your shopping cart and place your order. Currently there is no on-line check-out process to make; once you complete the order we will then check the whole order and get back to you by e-mail with the final quote including the shipping cost, if there are any items that are not available and mistakenly were available at the time of creating your order then they will be removed and the quote we will send you will be updated. Once you confirm the quote we will then agree on the payment terms and ship your order.

• Q: What is the minimum order quantity (MOQ) I need to purchase?
• A: The MOQ per an item is always one bag. The quantity of units that comes per bag is usually 25 pieces but can also be different. Please check in the item description for this data.
  There is no other minimum order or any restriction that apply, there is no minimum order as per value amount order either, and any value amount is accepted to be ordered; However, if your order is too small, then the shipping cost will be higher than the order value itself, and will not be cost-effective.
   
• Q: What is the country of origin of your beads and the other items sold in your electronic store?
• A: All the beads and other items sold in our electronic store are MADE IN PERU. This is our pride and the reason why we have created this e-store, in order to promote and to strength the production of beads (and other related items) in Peru. Under the unlike possibility in which an item was not made in Peru, the item description will let you know about that. If there is no data of this nature, it is because the item was 100% manufactured in Peru.
   
  
  Shipping, Handling and Delivery
   
• Q: How will you ship me my order?
• A: All orders are shipped with DHL, wherever DHL reaches, we can ship there. DHL has a door to door service, so you should receive the parcel from DHL to the shipping address you registered your account with. In some cases, where the destination address is considered by DHL as a remote areas DHL works with local service providers for the delivery… it can be local post office or other companies; but in most cases the deliver at destination is done by DHL. All DHL shipment are traceable at DHL web site and we can know each day the location of the parcel.

• Q: When can I expect my order to arrive?
• A: DHL Shipments are very quick, but since we ship from Peru South America then it also depends on how far away you are... Shipping from Peru to Australia and to Asian countries will probably take the longest, but it is quite fast too… only a few days… for more specific info and estimated time frame please contact us directly. Also, we need to consider the customs regulations and policies in your country, there are countries where custom clearance is very quick and other places where it takes more time, it also depend on you – the buyer who is the importer – to collaborate with customs with info and documentation in case you are requested to…
  
   
• Q: Will I pay duties for my order?
• A: Different countries have different custom rules and regulations; you need to check with authorities in your country. Duties are to be fully paid by the buyer. You can contact us to see if we have specific info about your country as some countries do not have duties on goods from Peru.
   
• Q: How fast will you ship me my order?
• A: We work on a stock base shipment; so, your order will be shipped within three business days counting the next day to your order date.
  This is only for items available in stock, if an item is not available even if mistakenly it was shown as available, we do not commit to a timeframe for its replenish, although, if you want it very much we will make the effort to replenish it ASAP, but this can take several weeks.
  
  
• Q: What is the cost I am charged for the shipping?
• A: We have a credit account with DHL with fixed rates defined by the country we ship to, and the weight of the package; the rates increases the bigger (heavier) the order is, and also by the location of the destination, nearby country costs to ship to less than a far country… this is defined by zones: North America and Crribean, South America, Europe, Africa, Far East, Oceania. Also, there are factors that are changeable each month like the Fuel Surcharge fee that is a percentage on the fixed base rate so this also changes and affect the shipping cost; Once we receive your order we will calculate the weight and will send you by e-mail a quote including shipping.
   
  Prices & Payments
   
• Q: How can I pay?
• A: Currently the payment is not automated through a Check-out system in our web store; the web store currently is only for placing your order. The payment is dealt seperatly and off line. We are usually paid with Western Union, Money Gram is also an option. If you have any other service, you want us to consider – please advise. Also, for big orders paying with bank transfer (T/T: Telegraphic Transfer) is also an option; we do not process payment with cards and we do not accept PayPal. Please contact by e-mail to discuss further if you have any doubts or worries.
   
• Q: My purchase is pretty big, is there a way to reduce the shipping cost?
• A: For orders that are over 50 KG we have the option to request a special quote from DHL, which we will… The special quote is only for orders that are 50 KG or more, so there is a chance to obtain a better shipping rate by comparison to the fixed chart rates we have with DHL. We will do it and be in contact with you by e-mail about that. It is important to say that this is not something we control and it depend on the DHL quote, not always they can improve the fixed rate quote we have in our contract with them; also, there could be times where this service of special rate is suspended by DHL, for example: sometimes in the high Christmas season they suspend it.
   
   
• Q: What does the price include?
• A: The price except from the direct cost of the goods you buy also includes the handling. The price does not include the shipping cost which will be calculated separately by us once you place your order so we will get back to you with the full quote including shipping. Also, the price do not include any duty charges that might be charged by authorities in your country.
   
• Q: What is the cost I am charged for the shipping?
• A: We charge the exact cost we are charged for by DHL. The shipping cost is affected by the following:
• The zone of which your country is subject to, there are four zones and they all cost differently.
• The weight of your order.
• The additional fees applied by DHL, like for example the Fuel fee (FSC).
  
  *** We encourage you to contact us in order to get some tips on how to minimize shipping costs in our electronic store, there are a few tricks you can use and benefit from. 

• Q: What are the shipment zones mentioned in the previous question and what do they mean?
• A: DHL divides all destinations to which it ships to, into four zones according to its distance from the origin - Peru. The closest zone is the one that costs less (Zone 1) and the most distanced zone is the one that costs the most (Zone 4) for a determine weight. The zones are:
• Zone 1: Americas: North, South and Central.
• Zone 2: Europe
• Zone 3: Asian countries
• Zone 4: Africa, the Middle East, Oceania and the rest of the world
   
• Q: In what currency are the prices in your e-store?
• A: All the prices and costs are in United States Dollar. The shipping cost that are quoted separately after you place your order are also in USD. Payment can only be made in this currency.
   
  
  Return Policy
   
• Q: Do you accept returns?
• A: Yes, you can return the goods to us under the following restrictions and conditions:
• Goods must be in good conditions, not damaged or broken. Original packaging must not be altered.
• Goods must be shipped back in the original boxes and in the same packages and carry along the same documents that they were shipped with.
• Buyer pays the shipping back cost and fees.
• You must contact us before shipping it back letting us know you will ship it back and advise the reason for that.
  
  Once the return package has arrived and was processed we will contact you to see what would you like to do next, the options are:
• Refund
• Exchange with different goods
• Credit you for a future purchase
   
  *** We preserve the right to decide to use the refund option even if the client would like to use a different option.

But, having said all of the above, we still prefer if you contact us first to discuss and see what happened and what are the damaged items and seek a better solution, one that will not have to involve shipping the goods back to us to avoid the extra work, energy and costs in cause to both parties.

• Q: How long does it take to process a return?
• A: Take under consideration the shipping time back (ask the local operator for estimated shipping time) and also the custom clearance process can be up to 3 or 4 weeks, yes, customs here are not too efficient. We cannot do any compensation or credit you before getting the package and process it. Once we have your package in hands, we will process it within two working days; we will contact you once we have finished processing.
   
• Q: I got my package but some items are damaged or broken, what should I do?
• A: Due to the nature of the products we sell being fragile, although we pack the goods in a safe manner and have achieved a very small rate of damages to our customers, still this is something that can happen, so we apologize for that and ask you to contact us to find best solution to compensate you… please be kind enough to provide us with images (the more, the better) of the broken pieces and give us full details of how it arrived, in what conditions, so we can learn from it and try to avoid it from happening again.
   
  
  Product Safety
   
• Q: What is the recommended age for the beads and pendants?
• A: Our beads and pendants are not recommended for children under 12 years old. The Beads and Pendants are not toys; they are components to create jewelry and handcrafted works.
   
• Q: Are the beads Lead (Pb) safe?
• A: Yes, our ceramic items are all being manufactured with safe pigments, glazes and over glaze paints that are free of lead. The lead level in our pieces is usually less than 100 ppm.
   
• Q: Are the beads Cadmium (Cd) safe?
• A: Yes, our ceramic items are all being manufactured with safe pigments, glazes and over glaze paints that are free of cadmium. The Cadmium level in our pieces is less than 100 ppm. There are two exceptions for that and it is for the items that are glazed in red and orange colors. These glazes color use pigments that do have a certain amount of Cadmium in it by the manufacturer definition of the raw material used in production, to our best knowledge there are no such pigments in the industry to be found that do not contain Cadmium. The Cadmium amount in these items does not exceed the 600 ppm, which by itself is not considered high or risky.