Fuel surcharges? We're holding steady!

Ouch! Increased freight is hurting small business.

We don’t usually talk too much about the behind-the-scenes logistics of running a small business, but this one feels worth sharing, especially because it directly affects how orders are priced and shipped.

Like many small independent brands, we’re currently feeling the impact of rising freight costs across the board.

Not just outgoing parcels to customers - but everything that comes in to make our products too. Ingredients, glass bottles, jars, aluminum lids, labels, cartons… all of it.

And it adds up.

First - a change on US shipping

You may have noticed we’ve recently suspended shipping to the United States.

This wasn’t a decision we made lightly, but it became necessary due to tariffs and the increasing complexity and cost of getting parcels through reliably.

We’ve explained a bit more about this here in our FAQs:
👉 Why have you stopped shipping to the US?
https://naturebody.co.nz/pages/faqs

 The reality of shipping as a small brand

One of the things people don’t always see is that shipping isn’t just a courier fee.

We ship almost everything in small cardboard cartons rather than plastic courier bags. This is intentional.

It means:

• a higher shipping cost, BUT
• better protection for our glass, aluminium, and cardboard packaging
  
• less damage in transit
• less plastic entering the system!

But it also means our base shipping cost is higher than if we used lighter plastic satchels.

It’s a trade-off we’re happy to make, but it does come at a cost.

We’ve always subsidised shipping (and still do)

To stay competitive, we’ve always absorbed part of the shipping cost.

In most cases, the actual cost we pay to send an order is significantly higher than what you’re charged at checkout.

On larger orders, this balances out reasonably well.

But on smaller orders, especially when product margins are already tight, that gap can get very small. At times, it’s almost non-existent.

It’s just one of those realities of being a small, values-led brand trying to keep pricing as fair as possible.

The juggle: product pricing vs shipping

There’s always a balancing act in the background:

Do we increase product prices to quietly cover shipping?

Or do we keep product pricing as accessible as possible, and separate out shipping so it’s transparent?

We’ve always leaned toward the second option.

Because we’d rather keep product pricing honest and clear, even if it means absorbing some of the shipping cost ourselves.

Fuel surcharges: the invisible increase

Recently, fuel surcharges have been added across courier networks.

That means:

• outgoing shipping costs have increased
• but so has everything coming in to us as well

It’s not always visible, but it’s constant and it affects every single order, every ingredient delivery, every restock.

What’s changing (and what’s not)

We’re holding steady on our shipping charges for now. 

However, we have made one small adjustment:

👉 Free shipping threshold has increased from $125 → $150

This helps us keep things sustainable without needing to increase product pricing or quietly reduce quality elsewhere.

Everything else stays the same.

Why we’re sharing this

A customer recently mentioned it would be helpful to know that we subsidise shipping, sometimes significantly.

And they’re right.

We don’t think most people need to think about what it costs to get a parcel from us to you. But we also think transparency matters.

Especially in a small business where every order really does count.

So this is just a small window into the reality behind it.

Thank you

If you’re reading this, you’re already part of what keeps small, independent brands going.

Every order supports not just a product but a whole chain of people and choices behind it.

And we don’t take that lightly.