FAQ - Frequently Asked Questions
ANNOUNCEMENT
Hi everyone! There have been many changes going on in the industry, some old and some new, that have been brought to our attention. We wish to address them in this post. Our wish is to let customers know that we are both aware of these changes, are working to address them, and to alleviate any concerns customers may have to the best of our abilities.
🐘 First let's tackle the elephant in the room. A lot of people are concerned (rightfully so) regarding their orders due to the recent news of two of the more well-known Anime Figure stores (Ukiyo Kumo and Connexe Toys) filing for bankruptcy and/or closing down. We are very sorry to hear that a lot of people who have ordered preordered from these stores are not able to get their refund. While we only heard about this from customers and social media, we cannot confirm this but we hope that these stores will try their best to do right with their customers.
💎As for us, we do not have any plans to close down in the near future. Pre-orders with us that we are unable to fulfill due to manufacturer cancellations, we will refund in full. Items that were delayed AND that we still have coming in, we will try to fulfill them. While we do not know the exact reasons the two stores mentioned above (as well as various other stores) are closing, we do have a pretty good idea. Customers that have been following us closely may have known that from JAN 2023, we have started making a lot of changes. From MAY23 to now (AUG 2023) our support has been lacking due to the majority of our effort being concentrated to dealing with the delays and course correcting to that we don't fall into the same pitfalls that other stores have encountered. While there is still more work to be done, it's safe to say that we have avoided the majority of the pitfalls.
📧 Regarding email support and DM messages. We have been getting a huge increase in the number of messages and emails, and with our limited staff we are unable to keep up with all the replies. It also didn't help that the mailbox had issues due to the increase. We are trying our best to get to all of them and we sincerely apologize to anyone whose emails we haven't gotten to yet. We suspect that this increase is due to everyone worrying about their orders due to other stores closing and people being left bewildered. We understand your concern and wish to know the status of your orders.
🌧Regarding the continued delays. While we had expected to be all caught up with the delays, unfortunately we are only about 80% there. For people who have been following and know of the cause of the delays (mentioned in a post back on JAN 2023 and on our website), the sudden closure of two of the big name stores actually made it a lot worse. Our shipment that was for AUG got pushed back to after SEPT. We had previously said we would be caught up by the end of AUG 2023 but unfortunately that doesn't seem to be the case now.
❌Regarding Cancellations. As mentioned previously, we will refund in full any items that have been cancelled by the manufacturer or distributor. There have been a few such cases during these past months, and we have been/are refunding everyone who ordered these items. However, we are spacing out the refunds so as to not to let it negatively impact the business. We will refund ALL items that have been cancelled, it just takes a bit of time since we want to avoid what happened with the other stores.
💧For customers that want to cancel items that are delayed and are still coming in. We ask that you give us a bit more time. However, if you must cancel with us, we will oblige. If your order with us has items that are in stock, we will ship it out and cancel the item that we don't have. There will still be a 10% cancellation fee for the processing cost. Since we still have to eat the cost of the item when it comes in, as mentioned above, refunds will be spaced out. We appreciate your understanding regarding the matter.
🌟Regarding new pre-orders and/or the lack thereof. As many may have noticed, we have not been posting a lot of new preorder items or not the comprehensive list as we did before. We are still trying to figure out what we can and should put up for preorder, that falls in line with our core principles and business ethics. There has been a huge price discrepancy, for example 1/4 Bunny Scale Figure is being sold at $400+ while the MRSP should only be $300. Unfortunately, no one is able to offer it at that price due to the cost of the item being closer to $400.
While we can offer it for preorder at $400+, and most likely still get sales for it. It goes against the core principle of doing honest business. We do not feel comfortable selling it at that price. Until we find a happy medium that won't compromise our business integrity and our business health, we will refrain from offering such items from certain brands.
👨👩👧👦Glacier Hobbies is a small locally owned family business with a few dedicated employees. We don't have the huge capital or the big name pull to make big changes in the industry. What we do have is our principles and the way that we conduct business, which has landed us some connections and allowed us to work with some of the core businesses in the industry. We cannot make big changes, but we are making changes and constantly improving, it just takes a bit of time.
❤️ End❤️
We do not deny that we have faults in the delay, but we have made great strides in fixing the problem on our side, and are not just waiting to have the rest of the items shipped. We plan to stay in business for a long time and your trust is important to us to fulfill that goal. We appreciate the trust everyone has in us and we will do our best to live up to that trust.
General Questions
Are the items authentic?
Yes, all our items are authentic. We do not carry any bootlegs. All our products are from official sources or their partnered distributions
Can I pick up my order in person?
Yes, we have a pickup location in Southern California. If you order online before 4:00PM, you can do next day pickup.
T1 Cleaners (Pickup Location Only) 19019 Bushard St, Huntington Beach, CA 92646
What can I do if my item has a manufacturer defect or missing parts?
If your item came with a defect or with parts missing, take a deep breath and be assured that all our items are 100% authentic. This means that they are backed by their manufacturer.
If the item in question is from Bandai, it will have the official bluefin sticker and logo on the side of the box. Locate the sticker and find the contact information on it. Most of the time it should be "customerservice@bluefincorp.com" but sometimes it could be different. You can contact them with the issue and they will be more well equipped to assist you.
If the item in question is from the list below: GOOD Smile Company, Max Factory, ORANGE ROUGE, Phat!, FREEing, GOOD Smile Racing, KADOKAWA, Di molto bene co.,ltd., Hobby Stock, PLM, native, Bellfine Co., Ltd, PLUM, KAITENDOH, Embrace Japan, Capcom, Souyokusha, Broccoli, Fine Clover, Revolve, Aspire, Progress, BINDing, Rocket Boy, Second Axe
These items would fall under Good Smile Company's Support Team. They would be able to assist you. You can go to this link: https://partner.goodsmile.info/support/eng/inquiry/ If the item in question is from Megahouse or other companies not listed above, you can contact us (sales@glacierhobbies.com) and we will work with the manufacturer to get you replacements parts. Please include the following in your e-mail when requesting replacement parts:
1. The item's brand, name, model #, barcode and/or other identifying factors
2. Images of the item's damage/defects.
3. Description of the issue
*Product replacement parts are not guaranteed* But we will try our best to help you out.
Pre-Order Questions
What happens if the Manufacturer cancels the product?
We will refund in full if the manufacturer officially cancels the product.
Can I cancel my Pre-Order?
Pre-orders can be cancelled at any time before the Pre-order (P.O.) due date has passed. There will be a cancellation fee of 10%.
Please check out our Preorder Policy page for more information
Link: Pre-Order Policy
How do I cancel my Pre-Order?
If the pre-order PO date has not past, then yes, you cancel your pre-order.
To cancel your pre-order, please e-mail us (sales@glacierhobbies.com) with your order number and the reason for cancelling your pre-order.
Do you price-match Pre-Orders?
Yes, within limits. We are a small family-owned business so there are limits on how much we can price match. You can e-mail us at sales@glacierhobbies.com with your inquiry.
We do not price-match pre-orders after you have placed the order.
When can I expect my Pre-Order to ship?
On the product page, there will be an "Expected U.S. Release Date" section with a month and year the item is expected to be release. The release date is just an "estimate" that the manufacturer gives us. Once it is released, it would have to pass the ports, get sorted out at the distribution center, coordinate with us about item quantity, and then shipped to us. Unless there are delays, you can expect your pre-order to be arrive at our store within 1-3 weeks and shipped to you the a day that it arrives.
The Expected U.S. Release Date has passed and my order hasn't shipped, what can I do?
It takes time for the Pre-Order Item to go from manufacturer to retailer. The expected U.S. Release Date is just an estimate, but a good rule of thumb is that it would take 1-2 weeks after release date month.
For Example: The Item's Expected U.S. Release Date is JULY 2022, you can expect to receive the item around the 2nd-3rd week of AUGUST 2022.
If it's 2 weeks after the month of the expected release date and you still haven't seen your orders shipped, you can contact us (sales@glacierhobbies.com) and we can check with the manufacturer or supplier to see when it will ship. We try our best to stay on top of delays and release date changes We offer pre-orders from multiple brands and product lines, so sometimes we might miss some changes. There are also cases where items are delayed without the manufacturer notifying us.
What is the P.O. Date?
The P.O. Date is the last day we have to put an order in with the manufacturer. It is always best to place your pre-order in before the P.O. Date. You can find the P.O. Date in the description of the product. Some items have a very short P.O. Date, so place your order in as soon as possible to secure your place.
Can I place my order after the P.O. Date?
Yes, in some cases. If the P.O. Due date has passed and the item is still available to pre-order then you can still place your order. If we aren't able to secure the preorder we will notify you via email within 1-3 days of the order.
I have multiple items in my order, both Pre-order and in-stock, when is it going to ship?
We only ship when ALL items in the Order are available for shipping.
If you have in-stock items along with pre-order items in the same order, we will ship the whole order when all the items become available.
If you have multiple Pre-Orders in the same Order, we will ship the order when all the pre-order items are released and available to us to ship.
Can I split or combine my Pre-Orders? (Update FEB 2023)
Due to the lengthy delays, we do allow orders to be split now.
There is a flat $10 shipping fee for the split order.
Shipping Questions
How much is Shipping?
For 48 States in the contiguous U.S. (Excluding Alaska and Hawaii):
Orders under $300.00 have a Flat Rate of $10.00 Shipping.
Orders over $300.00 have FREE SHIPPING!
For Alaska, Hawaii, and international shipping:
The price is variable depending on the item size and weight.
How fast is the shipping?
We will ship using USP and USPS, depending on the order. In most cases, we will ship UPS Ground 1-4 days or USPS Priority Mail 1-3 Days.
For orders that include aerosols, we will adhere to U.S. Law and ship it ground.
Small orders will be shipped via USPS First Class Package.
Changes to USPS have increased the time for shipping with USPS First Class Package from 1-3 days to 1-5 days. Small orders will still be shipped via USPS First Class Package, its just orders farther away from California (such as the East Coast) will take up to 5 days.
[UPDATE] Books and Mangas will be shiped via USPS Media Mail.
What days do you ship out orders?
For in-stock items, we package and ship all orders made before 3:00PM (UTC-7) the same day. Orders made after that time will be shipped the next day. We do not ship on weekends. All orders made after 3:00PM (UTC-7) on Friday would ship out on Monday.
If there is a problem with your order, we will contact you by e-mail and hold on to your order until the problem is solved.
Does the shipping have a tracking number?
All orders that we ship will have a tracking number. The tracking number is automatically e-mailed to the email you provide when making the purchase. Please allow up to a day for the tracking information to be updated
The tracking number says the item has arrived today, but I don't see it, what's going on?
There are a couple of reasons for it, there are the most common reasons we've encountered:
1. Sometimes shipping carrier prematurely marked an item as shipped before it is actually shipped. Give it a day and if it doesn't arrive, you can file a missing items report with the respective carrier.
2. A Family member might have picked it up and brought it in.
3. It could have accidentally been dropped off at a neighbor's house. Give it a day and if it doesn't show up, you can file a missing items report with the respective carrier.
My order arrived damaged, what can I do?
If you ordered an item with the label [BOX DAMAGE], it is an item where there is cosmetic damage on the box.
If the item is brand new and damaged, it is most likely though shipping. You can file a claim with the respective shipping carrier that caused the damage. After you file the claim, please let us know the claim number and we can follow up and provide any necessary information to the carrier to help your claim.
The majority of our brands, we pick up the item directly from the supplier or manufacturer. Unless there is a manufacturer defect, the box itself is mostly in pristine condition. We pride ourselves in our packaging and presentation, we try our best to protect the products through the shipping process. We also do quality checks for every shipment we receive to make sure we don't sell any items that are damaged.
*The only time we sell an item with any cosmetic damage, is when it is specifically requested and it will have a [BOX DAMAGE] label on it. *
Return Questions
Can I return an item that I bought?
Yes, we allow returns. The item would have to fulfill the following requirements:
1. Purchased within 30 days.
2. Proof of purchase is provided
3. The item is unopened and not damaged. (Manufacturer Sealed)
Clearance item sales are final and cannot be returned.
How do I return an item?
To return an item please do the following:
1. Email sales@glacierhobbies.com with the subject line "Return for Order #" (Replace # with the order number)
2. Once we confirm the request, place the item in the original packaging. You would be responsible for the cost of sending the item back to us.
3. Once we receive the item and confirms that it adhere to our return policy, we will issue you a refund for the item.
How long will it take for my refund to show up?
Once we receive the return item and confirm that it adheres to our return policy, we will issue a refund.
When we issue a refund, it goes into effect that same day. However, it would take 3-5 days for the refund to show up on your end, depending on the method of payment.
Do you provide return labels?
Unfortunately, as we are a small local business, we cannot afford to send return labels. You will be responsible for your purchase and return.
However, if in the case that we sent you the wrong item and you do not wish to keep it, please email us (sales@glacierhobbies.com) and we will help you with the return process.
Can I get a replacement?
Unfortunately, no we do not offer replacements.
For manufacturer defect, you can contact them and they will help you with replacements.
For damages caused by shipping, please file a claim with the carrier, then let us know so we can follow up on that claim and help provide the necessary information to help your claim.