Bean Card Program & Shipping Changes
Posted by Helen Wang on
Greetings ❤️ I feel like for the past few months, I have just been sharing bad news, and I'm so sorry for that 😓 I have two updates today. The first, I was already planning on announcing next week. The second, came up unexpectedly on Friday. I thought to just get these announcements out together earlier rather than later.
0. Table of contents
1. Bean Card Program Changes
The bean card program is a concept I came up with before I designed my first sheet of stickers, 10 years ago 🥹 It has been a really unique part of TCMC, which is why it greatly pains me to say I have decided to end the program on February 28, 2026.
Moving forward, I will be focusing on the potato points program. I will be adding a selection of vinyl stickers, sticker sheets, and other fun rewards which customers can redeem on the website using points.
This decision was made as an effort to reduce a big part of my workload. It is quite taxing to record-keep: especially with stickers purchased at retailers, being traded, gifted, and unfortunately, photocopied. On new release days, we typically receive 500-800 emails, with the majority being for bean cards. While I have a rockin' assistant working alongside me, we still get very overwhelmed each time 😔
It is very hard for me to take things slow voluntarily, because I truly love working on TCMC so much 😭 I am very, very aware that this is stepping away from the charm that we have, towards something automated, and I am so sorry. I would not have made this decision unless I felt it was necessary for me to continue in the years to come :(
I hope in the long run, with a lighter workload and a lighter mind, I can give back in other ways. I hope to indulge in my random creative ideas, chat with everyone more, pack orders, attend more in-person events, host workshops, etc.
2. USA & International Lettermail
This second piece of bad news came-up unexpectedly this Friday. Canada Post started to refuse en masse, untracked lettermail of stickers to the USA & international countries. While some are still going through, we have received several cartons back as well. At this time, I do not feel comfortable sending lettermail and taking chances especially with customers' orders.
The biggest hit will be international customers who rely on lettermail the most 😔 I will be speaking with my accountant about obtaining an IOSS number for prepaid duties in the future. In general, I will continue to look into solutions to mitigate this issue but at this time, this is an abrupt end to untracked lettermail which we do not have a say over.
Snail Mail Subscriptions: Because these are only sent 4 times a year, we have an alternative that may work. I want to double check some things first before confirming, but I will keep customers updated.
3. Shorter Summary
Bean Card Program
- Ending Februrary 28, 2026. We won't be accepting cards in exchange for freebies after this date.
- Starting February 28, we will launch a restructured points program on the website. Customers will be able to redeem a variety of vinyls, stickers, and discounts using reward points. We will be doing a recalculation of the rewards to ensure it will be fair for customers.
Shipping Changes
- We can no longer accept lettermail orders from USA & international customers. All USA & international orders will have to be (un)tracked parcels.
- This is because Canada Post is returning some of these shipped lettermail.
- I will be working diligently in the coming weeks to find other shipping solutions, in hopes of lowering shipping costs for our customers.
- This does not affect Canadian customers.
4. Personal Note
It has always been important for me that my work is accessible to customers. It means the world when customers choose to spend their dollars at my store.
While I was stressing over the bean card program announcement, getting hit with this shipping challenge has in honesty, been more devastating to me personally. (One of our machines also randomly broke yesterday, but I will save that for another day 🙃) As mentioned earlier, I will be trying my absolute best to find other solutions in the coming weeks.
Thank you for reading. These changes do not benefit customers much, if at all, and I completely understand any disappointment. Shopify does not have a feature where we can respond to blog comments (whyyy???) so if you have any questions, please email thecoffeemonsterzco@gmail.com so I can properly get back to you! Thank you again for your time, and... um... bye 😭
Comments
Hi for one am in The. I’m glad the bean cards are going away camp because I always forget to use them. I think I’ve got five or six that are full now and I love the potato because it’s already on the website. All I have to do is pick it. While change is always a hurdle this shows growth, and growth is good. Am I happy about the shipping issue, well no but that is out of your hands, I know several Canadian companies that use third party shippers because the USPS can be difficult to work with, and now this from Canada Post, I can’t help but think this has something to do with the Asshat in the White House and his sphere of influence, as major companies here who have always shipped USPS have ended their contracts with them over his decisions and that increases shipping costs, and I know he has many supporters within the Canadian government or so I am told from my Canadian friends. I am willing to pay a higher shipping cost although I live on a fixed income and am unable yo order like I want to, I could spend a small fortune on TCMC stuff and because of my monetary limitations I miss out on things of a higher bracket like the Pen and Ink, but I save and order the stickers I really want and will use and I will continue to do so, even with higher costs for shipping.
Hi Helen
Those return mails, what will happen to those return mail orders
Si if I have bean cards how can I redeem them before ending date?
Awwwww, I’m so sorry to hear this, especially since I am in the U.S. and just discovered TCMC. My bean card will be ticked lovingly inside my 2026 journal. I can only imagine the stress this has caused, and I look forward to other ways to have your amazing art shipped to me. In the meantime, I will be happy with your digital items. Remember, take care of you!
The only thing I’m sad about with the been card program ending is that I now have 2 full cards i hadn’t redeemed with stickers on them i could have used in my planner. not that big of a deal, and I totally get why its ending. Less stress for Helen is better for customers in the long run.
My favorite quote for every time I struggle is, « this too shall pass. » You are brave for realizing something you love working on and a part of you has to be let go to improve yourself and your work for the better. It is indeed difficult, just by reading through your words and I hope in time you will find peace in knowing you made the right decision for what is best for everyone. And for the post issues, this too shall pass Helen.
As a fairly new customer (2025) thank you for your transparency. We must change and adapt.
I think it’s a great idea to change the bean programme. I often forget to trade mine in, and I can see what an admin heavy task it is. International post will effect me, but it is what it is. I’m sure there will be a solution. I can get some things from UK stockists too. See this as a sign that it’s ok to slow down and change stuff from the universe. You’ve been on the go for years! Xx
Hi Helen,
I’m so sorry the shipping change just fell on you like this…
I live in France so I’m definitely affected but that’s okay, it’s not like nothing can get shipped at all so we’re still safe !
On another note, I’m pretty excited about the new potato points system, sounds like fun !!!
I feel like stopping the bean card program is a good idea, it’s a lot of work on your part and change isn’t always a bad thing !
Good luck with all the changes and thank to the full team for all your hard work !
Aloha Helen, Mahalo for the updates. Change is always scary, but often necessary. Can’t wait to see what 2026 holds.