July Update
over 2 years ago
– Sun, Jul 10, 2022 at 01:19:15 AM
Greetings backers!
I wanted to confirm a few things with the shipment center before posting an update this month. Now that I have confirmation, I am say that EMS service to the UK, Israel, Italy, the Netherlands, and Malta has resumed! People in those countries will be getting new tracking numbers as soon as I can update Backerkit with the new ones.
US/Canada parcels are still shipping out. There are thousands of parcels going out to North America and the fulfillment center is going through them as fast as possible. All of the packages should be sent out by late July, so if you haven't received a tracking email yet, please don't worry! It's just likely that yours hasn't been processed yet.
This means that there are only a few countries left where EMS service is still blocked, and so a few packages still cannot be delivered. I am hopeful that Japan Post will continue to resume EMS services to these countries soon, but I can't say when that will happen. You can see the list of countries currently served at this link: https://www.post.japanpost.jp/int/information/overview_en.html
As over 90% of backers will have received their rewards this month, I am planning to make the print-on-demand version of the book available on Amazon to the public later this month. It's been economically difficult not to release the book yet, but in fairness to backers I wanted to wait as long as possible until most of the pledges have been delivered.
Once the rest of the pledges have been delivered, I will offer up excess stock (collectors editions, etc.) for order to backers first, and then to the public, while supplies last. I will make another announcement when that happens.
Thanks again for all of your patience during this difficult delivery period! I'm so grateful for all of the positive comments from those who have already received their books. Thanks to all of you for backing, and for your understanding in regards to the delays!
- Matt
Shipping Update: US/Canada Shipping Soon, France Shipments Resume
over 2 years ago
– Mon, Jun 20, 2022 at 05:15:50 AM
Greetings backers!
I have a quick shipping update.
I've received word from the fulfillment center that US/Canada orders are going to begin shipping next week (after the Juneteenth holiday). Shipping was originally planned to be USPS, however at the recommendation of the fulfillment center that has been changed to FedEx, as there have been a lot of problems with lost packages under USPS lately.
You will receive tracking numbers via email with your FedEx tracking number in it. If you have any specific delivery preferences or changes you should be able to handle them using FedEx's website once you have your tracking number.
There are thousands of packages going out, so if you don't get your tracking number right away on Tuesday, please don't worry! They will ship several hundred boxes per day, so the entire process will likely take a few weeks. Your tracking number will be emailed to you once it ships.
In regards to European orders, France has now reopened shipments as well. French backers will be receiving emails with new tracking numbers shortly. I will send those through Backerkit once I have them. These will be fulfilled by Japan Post EMS then transferred to your local postal service (not FedEx).
The Japan-side fulfillment center is looking into alternate shipping services to handle the remainder of European countries, but we are hopeful that regular postal services to the rest of Europe will resume soon. I will update again when I have more information regarding these countries' orders.
Thanks again for all of your patience! We're almost finished! :)
- Matt
June Shipping Update
over 2 years ago
– Thu, Jun 02, 2022 at 03:42:40 AM
Hello backers!
It's June, so I wanted to drop a quick update about what's going on with shipping.
First, US & Canada:
The first shipment has arrived at the fulfillment center and is currently processing for shipment! The second shipment is passing through customs and should be ready to distribute soon too. I don't know precisely what day things will start shipping out to you all, but it should be very soon! Please note that it is not possible to update addresses anymore, as we are too far into the processing of packages. If you have moved in the past month, please talk to your post office to arrange for parcel forwarding.
European and global orders:
There has been some improvement on packages delayed by the war. Shipments to Ukraine and Belgium have resumed, so backers in those countries should be receiving books now. I'm hopeful that parcel services to other countries will begin resuming soon too, but unfortunately I can't say when that will be our which countries will move first. That all depends on Japan's postal service. I hope to have more information for you soon, but in the meantime I thank you for your continued patience. Japan has begun relaxing its strict border controls as of this month, so I think other improvements will follow.
That's all I can say for right now, but I'll post again when I hear more from either fulfillment center.
- Matt
May Shipping Update
over 2 years ago
– Mon, May 02, 2022 at 12:48:37 AM
Greetings backers!
May is here, and it's time for another update on shipping.
First, global orders:
The status of orders to everywhere except for USA/Canada hasn't made any progress since the last update. While the first few shipments of books were successfully shipped out, the rest of the books have either been returned to Japan, or have not yet been sent out due to suspension of parcel services due to the combined effects of the war in Ukraine and coronavirus. About 50% of the global orders were delivered, while 50% remain at the fulfillment center waiting for the OK to go out. Japan's postal service is slowly increasing shipments to other countries, but the system is essentially paused right now. Right now all we can do is remain patient and hope that things are sorted out soon.
Second, USA/Canada orders:
Books have left Japan! The freight ship carrying the books left Japan last week and will arrive in LA later this month. The shipment is so large that it had to be split in half and sent on two different ships, which will arrive in the US on different days. After that they will pass through customs, then be loaded onto trucks for the trip to the LA fulfillment center. The fulfillment center is eager to get started distributing orders right away, but I don't know exactly how long it will take for everything to be unloaded and sorted before distribution can begin. Although I hesitate to give out dates because who knows what else could happen, I estimate that people will begin receiving their orders in next month!
Thank you everybody for your patience and understanding through these frustrating delays. It hasn't been fun to wait this long to deliver the books, and I know it isn't fun to wait this long to receive them. But we're almost there!
- Matt
April Shipping Update
over 2 years ago
– Wed, Apr 06, 2022 at 04:42:25 AM
Greetings yokai lovers!
Last month was a roller coaster ride, with packages going out to Europe and the mail system shutting down on the very next day, causing half of the sent packages to be returned and the remaining packages to be canceled. In the interest of communication and clarification, I'm sending out a new update so everyone is aware of the current situation.
Global Shipping
Currently new shipments are stalled. East Asia, Australia, Japan, and some other countries have been successfully fulfilled, while most of Europe and several other locations are in a bit of a limbo. If you have a tracking number and it says your package has been returned, you have been affected by the Ukraine war, and your parcel is waiting at the Japan post office for global shipping lanes to open up once again. If you have not yet received your tracking number, your parcel is waiting at the fulfilment center for the post office to begin shipping again. After that happens, you'll receive a tracking number.
Right now, nobody can say when things will clear up. Mail services to Europe have already resumed, but parcels are still on hold. Hopefully this will change soon, and I'm sure the post office is working hard on it, but right now they are unable to give any hints about when that might be corrected.
Please continue to hold tight!
US/Canada Shipping
Finally some good news on this front! The last of the pallets are being picked up next week and schedule to leave Japan at the end of the month. From then, it takes almost a full month to complete the sea journey, clear customs, then local delivery to fulfilment center (assuming no new snags). From then, the packages will need to be sorted at the LA fulfilment center and sent out via USPS. I'm wary to give a date for fear that it will jinx things, but my best guess is that the first packages may start arriving in June.
Because of this, I am making a last call for address changes! If you've already requested an address change from me, I've passed on your changes to the LA fulfilment center. If you haven't done so yet and you need to, please do so immediately. I won't accept any more address changes after 4/13!
Ebook Release this Month
Lastly, I want to announce that because we're getting closer to delivery, I will soon be releasing The Fox's Wedding on Amazon in ebook format only. It's always been my intention to wait until backers have their books before releasing the book for sale to mass markets as a way of thanking everyone for believing in the project. However, because of the delays and shipping-crisis surge pricing, the costs of not shipping has really been adding up. Since ebooks were delivered some time ago, releasing the book in ebook format only will provide me with some relief without going against my original intentions.
Once again, thank you everybody for your continued patience and understanding. It's been stressful to say the least, and I'm aware of how frustrating it is to have to keep waiting for your rewards due to delay after delay. But now the last of the pieces is in set motion, and the end will soon be in sight!
I'll post another update when I have further information.
- Matt
