FAQ, SHIPPING, REFUND
Last Revision: Apr 12,2023
GENERAL FAQ
We are based in Korea! All of our products are sourced and shipped from Korea.
Delivery to the US is taking ~1.5 weeks
We offer wholesale pricing! To get started, please email us at daniel[at]gochujar.com with the following details:
- The product(s) you're interested in
- The quantity needed
- The country for delivery
The two websites are identical with the same products - but we deliver to different countries.
Gochujar ships only to US customers.
Gochujar Global ships to all other countries.
If you are based in US, please shop at Gochujar!
SHIPPING & TRACKING
We use Korea Postal Service as our primary logistics partner.
They are partnered with the United States Postal Office (USPS).
Once the parcel leaves Korea, the Korea Postal Service hands the parcel over to USPS for delivery to your home.
You can track your order via United States Postal Service (here).
We offer a flat rate intl. shipping to US for $5.
If you order contains 2+ items, shipping is free!
Note: We don't surprise you at checkout with exorbitant shipping fees!
We ship-out your parcel within 1-3 business days of your order date.
There may be instances when a product is out-of-stock.
If so, we'll email you with the delay time.
When the order ships out, you'll receive an automated email with the tracking number.
PLEASE CHECK YOUR SPAM FOLDER - as often times, the automated email gets filtered to there.
We shipped your order in multiple parcels.
Please check your email for the tracking numbers.
International shipping is very expensive - especially if you try to ship everything in one large box (dimensional weight fees).
We get better rates + quicker clearance through US Customs when large orders are split into smaller boxes.
Visit USPS Tracking Tool (click here)
Then paste your tracking number "LK3SDCFXS..." into the box that appears on the website.
Once your parcel leaves Korea, it is handed over to the United States Postal Service.
USPS is responsible for updating the tracker once your parcel enters the US.
Often times, the tracker is updated quickly and efficiently.
Sometimes - because of holidays, harsh weather or one-off events, the tracker is not updated.
Rest assured, seeing no updates does NOT mean your parcel has stopped processing or is lost.
It is most likely processing, making its way from US Customs Office → Regional Distribution Hubs → Local Post Office → Out for Delivery
Sometimes, updates to the tracker occur all at once (as opposed to step-by-step).
However, if it passes 4 weeks without any updates to your tracker, please contact us for assistance.
If your order hasn’t shipped out...
Log into “My Account” and update your address. Then email us as well.
If your order has already shipped out...
Unfortunately, we can't reroute packages.
You can try contacting your local post office. Provide them with the tracking number and ask what options they have for correcting an address.
If your parcel returns back to Korea, we can reship the parcel.
However, the postage fee would need to be paid first.
OR we can also process a *partial refund.
*The sunk postage fee is deducted from total refund amount. All food items are non-refundable and deducted from total refund amount. However, non-food items can be restocked and will be refunded.
REFUND & EXCHANGE POLICY
We process a 100% refund, if:
- your parcel is lost-in-transit
- items arrived damaged
We process a partial refund, if:
- delivery is unsuccessful and parcel returns back to Korea
*The sunk postage fee is deducted from total refund amount. All food items are non-refundable and deducted from total refund amount. However, non-food items can be restocked and will be refunded.
You can also ask for us to re-ship the parcel if it returns back to Korea... however, the postage fee needs to be paid first.
We do not provide refunds or exchanges for other reasons, including:
- Customer has changed their mind (size, color, etc.)
- Product is damaged due to customer usage or mishandling
- Customer refuses delivery (and parcel returns to Korea)
- Customer refuses to pay customs fee, VAT or other related fees (and parcel returns to Korea)
- Parcel is opened by Customs Office and customer claims as 'damaged'
We do a thorough inspection of all our products. And we would never intentionally send you a damaged product.
But we do recognize that items can get damaged during the shipping process.
If your item arrives damaged, please email us within 10 days of your package arrival date.
In the email, please include photos and/or video of the damaged product.
If we can reasonably conclude that the product was damaged during the shipping process, we'll ask you to either send the item back to Korea or dispose of it.
We will then issue a full refund or send a replacement item.
However, we will not issue a refund or send a replacement if...
- 10 days has passed since successful delivery date
- There is no image (or video) proof of the damaged product
- The product has been clearly used by the customer
- Customs office have opened the parcel or items for inspection and customer claims it as damaged
- After assessment, the product isn't deemed to be damaged or defective from the shipping process or by the manufacturer
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Note: There have been a few instances where the contents of fermented food products (i.e. gochujang, doenjang, liquid extracts) have slightly leaked from the container.
This is caused by the difference in air pressure from the international flight.
This case does not qualify as a "damaged" item - not valid for refund or exchange.
Has it passed 4 weeks since you've seen an update to your tracker?
If so, please email us - and we'll file a "parcel whereabouts request" with Korea Postal Service.
Upon investigation, if it's concluded that the parcel is "lost", we'll process a full refund.
Note: With modern-day tracking, it's rare that parcels get lost. Most likely, the parcel is stuck in line at US Customs or slowly processing through USPS.
We do not issue refunds for delays in shipping time.
The expected shipping times are provided by Korea's Post Office and the majority of shipments are delivered on time.
Note: The delivery time depends heavily on the processing speed of US Customs office and the efficiency of your local post office.
Neither Korea Post nor Gochujar can negotiate with the US Customs office or local post office for faster delivery.
We do not offer refunds for products that are seized, refused entry and/or returned to Korea by your country's custom office.
We try our best to make sure that there are no additional fees - and typically there are none.
We pay close attention to the way we package your products AND how customs forms are marked.
However, we do not offer a guarantee.
If there are additional taxes or any other associated fees regarding your order - that is on the customer.
We reserve the right to refuse customers who attempt to 'game' or take advantage of our policies.
Customers who make repeat claims of damaged products, delivery failures or attempt chargebacks/fraud are flagged in our CMS for future reference.
We reserve the right to refuse bad customers.
ORDER CANCELLATION / REVISION
Yes, you can cancel and receive a full refund if you order has not begun processing.
Please contact us immediately and ask us to cancel the order.
However, if your order has already begun processing, you can not cancel.
Yes, we'll try our best to accommodate any changes to your order.
If you contact us within 24 hours of your order, we can most likely make the changes.
However, if the order has shipped, we can not accept any changes.
PAYMENT ISSUES
Yes, we accept both.
If you don't have a Paypal account, you can still pay via credit card without signing up for a PayPal account (read next section).
You can pay by credit card without signing up for a Paypal account.
Here's how to do so on web (computer):
1. During the last step of the checkout process (Payment section), click on the "Pay with Paypal" Button
2. A pop-up module will appear. Click on the "Pay with Card" option.
3. Then input your email.
4. Fill in the rest of the payment info - and select "no" when asked to create a PayPal account
5. Click continue - then your credit card payment will be processed.
You can pay by credit card without signing up for a Paypal account.
Here's how to do so on mobile:
1. During the last step of the checkout process (Payment section), click on the "Pay with Paypal" Button
2. A pop-up module will appear. Click on the "Pay with Card" option.
3. Then input your email.
4. Fill in the rest of the payment info - and move slider to "no" when asked to create a PayPal account
5. Click continue - then your credit card payment will be processed.
Email us a screenshot of your cart.
We'll then send a custom Paypal Invoice to you that you can pay with a few clicks.
Note: Please include your Paypal email address.
Yes. All credit cards are processed via PayPal - which means we don’t receive (or store) any credit card information.
CONTACT US
Please contact us via email.
We'll get back to you within 24 hours!
Gyeongbokgung Palace at dusk ;-)