Why the shop quotes shipping before you pay, and why it shows your currency

The first time I sold a calendar, I charged what felt fair for shipping: ten dollars inside the country, thirty overseas. Then the real invoices came in. One overseas order cost fifty-five dollars to ship. Across the run I was about three hundred dollars under, on a product that didn't make three hundred dollars. I stopped selling.

That's the story behind two decisions you'll notice in the bag.

1. Shipping is quoted for your country before the address

Pick where it's going — Canada or the United States — and the bag asks the print partner what it actually costs to ship those exact items there. That number is the one you pay. It isn't averaged across countries and it isn't a flat rate that quietly loses money on one side and overcharges the other.

You don't need to type a postal code to get it, because print-on-demand rates are set per country, not per city. The full address happens once, on the secure payment page.

2. Prices show in your currency

Canada sees Canadian dollars. The States sees US dollars. The rate between them is set in the shop and reviewed, with a small buffer so a swing in the exchange rate doesn't turn a sale into a loss on our side or a surprise on yours. What you see at checkout is what your card is charged, in that currency.

Free shipping, when it's real

Above a threshold that's shown on the bar at the top of the site, standard shipping is free. That threshold exists because at that order size the shipping cost is small next to the order, not because a marketing calendar said to run a promotion. If it changes, it changes for everyone, and the bar changes with it.

The rule the shop runs on

Every number you see before you pay is a number we've already checked. Shipping, currency, taxes shown on the payment page, delivery window. It's a slower way to build a store and a more boring one. It's also the only version I'm willing to run twice.