Was My Product Included in the Next Container from South Africa?
We've got exciting news! Your favorite South African goodies might just be on their way to New Zealand! 🌍
Ever wondered how we manage to keep our shelves stocked with those nostalgic flavors from home? It’s quite the adventure — and involves a bit more than just placing an order and waiting for the postman to show up! Here's how it works:
1. Customer Recommendations: It all starts with you! We listen closely to the requests and cravings of our loyal customers. From your nostalgic favourites to the latest South African trends, we gather your suggestions and start the hunt.
2. Sourcing Directly from Manufacturers: We go straight to the source, working directly with manufacturers in South Africa to ensure you get authentic products at the best possible quality and price. No middlemen, just the real deal!
3. Bulk Ordering (The Challenge!): Here’s where it gets tricky — to make importing viable, we have to order in bulk. That means products arrive in larger quantities, often by the pallet. Unfortunately, this means some speciality items can't be sourced unless we can justify a full-batch order. Think 'family-sized snack stash' level quantities!
4. Production and Shipping: Once orders are placed, the manufacturers start production, which can take a few weeks. Once ready, the goods are sent to our consolidation point in South Africa, where they’re carefully packed (think a giant game of Tetris) into a shipping container. Now imagine a 40ft container...20 pallets stacked 2.7m high...that's a lot of goodies! 2024 we were lucky enough to do 14 of those...
5. The Journey to New Zealand: Next, the container begins its epic voyage, departing from Durban, often stopping in Singapore, before finally making its way to Auckland. It's like a world cruise for your biltong spice and rusks — minus the sunbathing.
6. De-vanning, Biosecurity, and Stocking: Once the container arrives, it’s not quite shelf-ready. Goods are unloaded (de-vanned), undergo thorough customs and biosecurity inspections (New Zealand takes its quarantine duties seriously!), and then finally make their way to our warehouse, where like all smaller businesses...we unpack every pallet onto the shelf...by hand.
And then...at last... After 4-6 months from the time we place the order, the products are finally ready to hit the shelves for you to enjoy! 🎉...Oh, and did we mention payment upfront 😜
We truly appreciate your patience during this process — good things take time, and we're committed to keeping you connected to the tastes of home. If you have any product suggestions (or a craving that just won’t quit), keep them coming! You can send us your requests anytime.
Thank you for your continued support and for being part of our Something From Home family.
