Online shopping is an absolute godsend for those of us who aren’t all that keen on kicking it with the regular shop-walking folk.

It’s also pretty enjoyable, at least until the money exits your account, although some of the finest offerings are to be found abroad, which brings with it another set of problems.

Whether it’s Amazon or eBay or whatever online retailer you prefer, there are few things more frustrating than finding a killer deal, only to be told that they don’t ship to South Africa.

Hello, we exist down here and we have actual money, so please make it easier to take it from us.

Of course, if you’re a seasoned pro, you know better. You can now order goods from anywhere in the world with Postbox Courier, and have them delivered to your door within three to five working days.

The ‘pay as you go’ system is easy to follow, and there’s also a handy calculator that gives you an instant quote on all of the shipping costs involved.

You know – the shipping itself, import duty and VAT, clearance, and disbursement, which are the kind of thing that you really don’t want to be hit with when you try and collect your goodies from Customs.

In order to get your quote, you need to check the product information tab (or product specifications, or something along those lines) on the item you want to purchase.

Takealot, for example, has this info available on each product page. Here’s what greets you if you go for one of their top-selling blenders:

Amazon has the same info listed for each of their products under the ‘Product description’ section.

Let’s punch those numbers into the Postbox Courier quote calculator, assuming that we’re buying the product from a US retailer, and see what we get:

Bang – you’re paying around $98 to have the goods delivered to your door, with every Customs hassle sorted.

When you consider some of the savings these international sites offer on products, it can often work out cheaper to order them from overseas, and this time you can kick the hassles goodbye.

No queues, no fighting with the person at Customs who hates their job and you, no worries.

Signing up for Postbox Courier is free, so head to their website to find out more.