| Living in Spain can have its ups and downs. Regular | | | | customers making door-to-door courier cheaper that |
| contact with the country you have come from eases | | | | the postal service for heavier items. A door-to-door |
| the transition. In these days of email communication, | | | | service can never deliver a postcard cheaper than |
| ordinary letters are not so vital but some mail, like | | | | the mail (and isn't the point of a postcard that it has |
| birthday cards or thank-you letters, is still important. | | | | the stamp?) but even letters of 50g can now be |
| Then there are those documents you really cant | | | | sent cheaper and more efficiently than through the |
| afford to loose, pension letters, title deeds, credit | | | | Spanish postal service and parcels of 1kg can be sent |
| cards, contracts, educational certificates, hospital | | | | by courier for less than parcel post. |
| reports... the list goes on! | | | | Who benefits from this? Individuals sending presents |
| And what about people who make their living from | | | | back to their families - if you buy a fine Manchego |
| sending things through the post? Thousands of | | | | cheese to introduce a friend to some of the delights |
| people rely on getting their product to their customer | | | | of Spanish cuisine it can cost more to post it home |
| through the postal delivery monopolies. Everybody | | | | than the cheese cost in the first place! Businesses |
| that lives in Spain knows that the postal service here | | | | selling on eBay who want to keep their feedback |
| is less than optimal, to understate the case. | | | | ratings as high as possible. People sending post and |
| However, premium rate courier services are not | | | | parcels to British Commonwealth countries where |
| affordable... or were not until the first discount cheap | | | | Royal Mail arrives in a fraction of the time of the |
| courier parcel services to and from Spain | | | | Correos post. |
| opened.eBayers who have moved to Spain can now | | | | Above all, hundreds of individual businesses in Spain |
| send their goods back to the UK with companies that | | | | now benefit from going through the alternative route |
| send by Courier to the Royal Mail sorting office | | | | of discounted, cheaper courier parcel services and |
| where they blend seamlessly with UK domestic first | | | | therefore save money and increase their efficiency. |
| class mail. Many of their customers dont even know | | | | This goes as much for national, within Spain, deliveries |
| that they are not in the UK! eBay feedback awards | | | | as it does for international. |
| points for speed of delivery and delivery cost. Many | | | | There are thousands of ex-pats with businesses in |
| people buying on eBay look at the delivery costs | | | | Spain from Estate Agents, to Flamenco Costumes, |
| before they even consider bidding and eBay itself | | | | Guitars and Vintage Car Parts who all depend of the |
| recommends free delivery. | | | | efficient and reliable transfer of physical goods from |
| In order to understand how this works you need to | | | | one place to another to fulfil their end of the |
| know that courier companies are preparing for postal | | | | commercial bargain. The sooner they learn how to |
| liberalisation within the EU so prices have been | | | | adopt a competitive distribution strategy the quicker |
| dropping like a stone. Although published prices from | | | | they will be maximising their profitablity and, |
| FedEx or UPS seem way above those of the | | | | increasingly, that means looking away from the |
| Correos, there are companies which receive huge | | | | established Postal Monopolies. |
| discounts and so can pass these onto their | | | | |