Hello! Thank you for ordering and for your patience while we package your stationery goodies. While our processing time is normally 1-10 business days, there may be extensions during sales and events. Please refer to the top of our website to see the most current processing time.

US Tariffs

There are many uncertainties at the moment regarding US tariffs, and many people are understandably worried. While I am not well-versed in US politics, US policies, and trade policies in general, I will try my best to outline some notes for our customers.

My notes will be blunt & it will not cover little caveats so it is digestible:

• August 29th. Currently, things you purchase from other countries under $800 are tax-free. Supposedly on August 29th, any purchase being shipped from other countries will be taxed. The % depends on what you purchase and from which country.
• Wariness. Due to the several on-and-off declarations of tariffs being enforced since January, there is wariness about whether tariffs will actually be enforced. There is also wariness about whether the US postal system will be able to collect tariffs on an additional 4 million daily parcels, overnight.
• Nobody really knows. And due to the previous point, no lay person, no post office employee, no small business owners, and likely, even no big corporations really knows what will happen. The only group of people who knows exactly what will happen would be the US government and decision-makers.

How is TCMC navigating this?

• US priority. I made the decision to temporarily allocate the majority of the TCMC staff to pack US-bound shipments so we can get as many out as possible. Even though I don't know whether tariffs will be enforced, I want to be on the safe side. The last truck crossing the US-Canadian border is August 28th.
• Pause. After August 28th, we will pause packing & shipping US orders for a few days to see what happens. Are tariffs being enforced? Are shipments from other comapnies being taxed? Or like many of us are hoping for, perhaps there will be a resolution? Based on that reality, I will make any necessary decisions & announcements. If it's the case that tariffs are being enforced, and it's an unreasonable charge that makes things unaffordable, we may offer exceptions to our policies such as allowing cancellations of preorders.
• My staff. The TCMC team is working into the evenings, and over the weekend to get as many US orders out as possible. I want to mention this as I am deeply grateful for my staff and their dedication.
• Canadian & international customers. We are still processing Canadian & international orders–just not at the same speed. I understand this is unfair and not what was stated at the time of ordering. We will still ensure we meet deadlines, but orders will not go out in sequential order. I hope some leeway can be extended during this abnormal time. I sincerely apologize 😔
• Your orders. At this time, I am unable to say whether your order specifically will go out before August 29th. We are working at physical capacity to get as many orders out as possible. If in the case your order cannot go out before August 29th, please see the second bullet point ("pause").
• Untracked lettermail. If ordering only stickers and shipping as lettermail, these envelopes are not taxed.

In summary:

• No one really knows what's going on, but we are all trying our best to prepare.
• You will not be surprised with a tax on your order.
  • Shipped before August 29th: No tax
  • Shipped after August 29th: We will wait and see what happens. If tariffs are enforced, you will be informed and you can make the decision to cancel

If you made it through all of the above, I will wrap this up with a more personal note. This is again an uncertain time. As someone who already deals with many forms of anxiety, one of which is financial anxiety, this is scary for me and I'm sure many other small business owners. But please know that my concern is always the wellbeing of my customers and we will adapt in whatever way necessary. If that means the majority of preorder products are requested to be refunded, that is fine. I want to assure you that we will be reasonable. It's just that at this time, I am unable to give a clear answer with unclear information.

Frequently Asked Questions

Q: How often do you update the current order number?

A: Once a day, before we leave our office. We tend to stay at the office very late hence the update will be late in the day. We sometimes do not update on the weekends.

Q: My order number has been passed and I have not received a shipping notice! Is something wrong?

A: This page is a way for customers to gauge our progress, however it is not a definitive guide. A few possibilities to consider:

1. Check your account history for the order status. If it says fulfilled, that means it shipped. Sometimes shipping notices get sent to spam or lost in the cyberspace...
2. Check whether your order contains any preorder or subscription items. Preorders have a disclosed processing time of up to 3 months, and subscriptions ship on a set schedule. These are not part of the regular order packing queue.
3. Wait 1 business day. Since we work with many couriers, pick-ups and drop-offs are at different times. Sometimes, shipping notices will be sent out of sequential order.
4. If your order is still unfulfilled, contains no preorders/subscriptions, and it has been 1 business day since your order number passed, please email thecoffeemonsterzco@gmail.com and we will look into it! We could have made an error :(

Q: If I preorder something, does the non-preorder items ship first?

A: Since shipping is paid once per order, we send out one package. Therefore, we need to wait for all items of your order are ready. If your order contains a preorder, then your entire order will not ship for up to 3 months until the preorder product is ready!