📦 Shipping Policy
aka “We ship fast, but not Amazon Prime fast” 💨
All Bowie & Co. gear is handmade to order — no pre-made piles, no mass production, just quality gear built from scratch for your four-legged sidekick 🐶✨
Because of that, we ask that you please read the info below to better understand our processing times, delivery timeframes, and how shipping carriers work — especially for international orders!
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Important Shipping Update for Our U.S. Customers
Hey there lovely Bowie & Co. family,
We’ve got another important update to share with our U.S. customers. As you may know, Australia Post is still unable to ship parcels to the U.S. due to the import tax law changes rolled out by the U.S. government under President Trump. Unfortunately, there is no timeline yet for when AusPost will resume normal service.
So here’s what that means for you:
• We’re now shipping all U.S. orders with DHL so your parcels don’t get stuck.
• Postage prices have been updated and are slightly higher — this is the best possible rate we can secure until AusPost resumes.
• U.S. customers will now need to pay import tariffs/fees before parcels can be delivered. To put it simply: when your parcel arrives in the U.S., DHL may send you a bill. These fees don’t go to us — they go straight to the U.S. government. Until those fees are paid, DHL won’t release your parcel for delivery.
We know this feels frustrating — trust us, we’re feeling it too. These new rules are designed to benefit the government by collecting more tax, but they leave both customers and small businesses like ours out of pocket. We’re doing our absolute best to keep your costs as low as possible and to make sure your orders still reach you safely.
Until AusPost resumes service, these DHL rates will remain in place. Once normal shipping returns, we’ll be back to our standard setup where taxes are collected at checkout and everything is paid upfront — no surprise bills at your door.
This definitely isn’t the kind of news we love sharing, but we believe in being transparent and keeping you in the loop. Thank you so much for sticking with us through this mess — your support means the world to our little Aussie business.
With love (and probably too many coffees),
— The Bowie & Co. Team
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🧵 Processing Time vs. Shipping Time
These are two separate timelines, and both are important:
• Processing Time = how long it takes us to make your item(s)
• Shipping Time = how long it takes the parcel to travel from us to you after dispatch
Processing time varies depending on the product — from 3 business days to 15 business days — and is updated regularly on our [FAQ page] (please check there before ordering).
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🚚 Shipping Timeframes (Delivery Estimates)
Once your parcel has shipped, these are the estimated transit times provided by Australia Post:
✨ Domestic (Australia):
• Standard Shipping: 2–8 business days
• Express Shipping: 1–3 business days (after dispatch)
(remote areas may take longer)
🌍 International:
• Standard International: 10–20 business days
• Express International: 7–12 business days
(depending on location and customs processing)
⏳ These are estimates only and not guaranteed. Delivery can be affected by customs, border delays, or postal disruptions — especially with the ever-changing landscape of international trade.
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📦 Express Shipping — Read This!
Selecting Express Post at checkout does not mean we start making your order faster — it simply means once your order is made, we’ll ship it via Express 🛫
If you’re on a tight deadline, reach out before ordering and we’ll let you know what’s possible.
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🛑 Postal Delays, Strikes & Courier Alternatives
We primarily use Australia Post for all shipping.
However, in cases of postal strikes, severe delays, war zones (yes, it’s happened 😬), or temporarily suspended services, we may use an alternative courier and will always contact you first.
We’ve previously shipped using:
✈️ International:
• UPS
• FedEx
🚛 Domestic:
• Aramex
• StarTrack
• DHL Express
• (We’ve also used Couriers Please, but don’t recommend unless requested)
If you have a preferred courier, just let us know — we’ll do our best to accommodate (please note: costs may vary depending on the courier used).
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🔍 Tracking Your Order — Especially International
Once we ship your order, we’ll email you your tracking number.
For international orders, please note:
🗺 When your parcel reaches your home country, Australia Post hands it over to your local postal service. This means:
• Australia Post no longer controls or scans the parcel
• The tracking number stays the same, but the tracking link may change
• You can enter the same tracking number on your country’s postal service site for more accurate updates (e.g. USPS, Royal Mail, Canada Post, etc.)
The AusPost tracking link will still work for most of the journey, but if things seem to stall, check your local carrier’s site for better tracking updates 👌
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🤍 TL;DR:
• Your order is handmade before it ships
• Shipping estimates are postal transit times — not production times
• Express Post speeds up shipping, not processing
• Couriers may vary depending on service availability — we’ll always contact you
• Once an international parcel enters your country, it’s handled by your local postal service
• Tracking number = the same the whole way; tracking link = may change
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🌍 CUSTOMS POLICY
We love sending our gear around the world! But please note:
• 🌐 International orders may be subject to customs, import taxes, VAT, or handling fees charged by your country.
• 🧾 These fees are the buyer’s responsibility and are not included in the product or shipping cost at checkout.
• 💸 We do not offer refunds for packages returned due to refusal to pay customs fees.
• ⏳ Customs inspections may delay delivery — this is unfortunately out of our control.
If you’re unsure whether your country charges customs on overseas parcels, we recommend checking with your local postal service or customs authority before placing your order.