Electronics > PCB/EDA/CAD

Arrow Electronics Free Shipping

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Etesla:
Anyone have the inside scoop on how arrow is getting away with free overnight shipping on all orders? Just curious.

rx8pilot:
Me too!

I have ordered a few small things from them - they are absolutely losing money on me. The rep is trying to pull me away from DigiKey though.....I am not a huge customer but enough to justify a few emails and phone calls I guess. The money lost on this is a marketing budget, but can't say it is working for me.

I still use DigiKey based on ease of use and a very broad catalog. I rarely have to go searching for parts outside of Digikey. Arrow can get just about anything - but it may or may not be listed and may or may not be in stock.

t18d16:
I just registered to share my 'mixed' Arrow free shipping experience (also applied 10% coupon code).

In spite of having all parts in stock in their US warehouse (at Reno, NV) , they split my $11 test order (all smd parts) in 2 separate shipments and shipped on the same day. Fedex demanded $8 advancement fee on each of them, apart from duty/taxes. I have refused the second shipment (containing just a 3x4mm QFN chip) as it made zero economic sense to accept it (yes $8 is a big deal in India)!

Some observations from my first shipment:

Even if you order a cut tape of 1/2 smd parts, you get the oversized packaging meant for full reel; e.g. 3 xp-e leds were sealed in a large MBB bag (proudly announcing seal date and class 1 moisture sensitivity) with silica gels and moisture indicator card inside.
Got 6 page long delivery note and an MSDS.
Apparently, the smallest shipping box they have is 10'x9'x4'.
Their invoice can be cryptic for customs officials (although it contains HS code) and as a result, you may be overcharged. For example, they describe resistors as 'res', power managment ics as 'dc-dc conv' etc.


I have a conspiracy theory that I was penalised (through split shipment) for making such a small order, which may or may not be true. Anyways, they have pretty good price for some cree leds.

UPDATE: I also received a wrong part (smd resistor reading 320 while my order was for 210k). Too bad smd caps don't have any markings on them. Will definitely test them. Will definitely not recommend them for small order.

thm_w:

--- Quote from: t18d16 on July 25, 2018, 01:06:09 pm ---I have a conspiracy theory that I was penalised (through split shipment) for making such a small order, which may or may not be true. Anyways, they have pretty good price for some cree leds.

--- End quote ---

Same split shipments to Canada here, means I will not order from them again, as each was charged $10 in fees.
But I highly doubt it is penalization, if value is below $20 then there is no fee here for example. Its just a very poorly optimized operation.

t18d16:
Arrow has finally agreed to refund me $6 after I accepted the 2nd shipment. (Fedex, however, did not entertain my request to waive off the surcharge at all). Contrary to misconception, the customer service was very prompt to reply to my mail.

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