General BathSilk.com Questions

Where does BathSilk.com stand on the issue of animal testing?

We don’t use ingredients that are tested on animals, nor do we use supplies, ingredients or support any company or business that tests its products on animals. Stopping all animal testing is something that we truly care about. In true conscience, we believe there is no way to justify testing cosmetics or any of their ingredients on animals. The only way to see if they’re safe for humans is to test them on humans. We believe this to be the only worthwhile position to adopt, and we encourage all bath & body products companies to adopt the same policy.

Are your bath and body products all natural?

 
BathSilk.com has a large selection of natural products, but we never did say we were All Natural.

 
In order to please most of our customers, we make both natural products, and products that are mostly natural. We don’t impose our personal beliefs on our valued customers. We feel that it’s not our place to say that only all natural products are the best products.

 
Our customers have told us what they “really” want. We make our products according to what actually sells! Sales have shown us that all natural products are not our best selling items. Consequently, we create the products that you our customers want, while using the gentlest ingredients possible.

 
For example, we use food grade colors in our blend of Scented Bath Salts. Other than the color, our bath salt is made with all natural ingredients. We don’t add very much color, but our colored bath salt outsells all natural bath salt 10 to 1. According to the feedback we’ve received, the most important criteria is the smell of the product. The second most important thing is how the product looks, not if it’s all natural. You’ve told us how it is!

 
There are many synthetic ingredients that provide benefits that natural ingredients will not provide, such as an acceptable shelf life, stable emulsions and generous lather. If you want lots of lather and bubbles, we’re sorry to tell you that only a detergent will do that! If you’re looking for something natural and soothing to your skin, try a melting bath butter made with cocoa butter. We won’t insist on which is better, we simply offer you the choice of both.

 
If you are looking for all natural products, we have many products for you to consider: just click on this link to our natural products category.

Why does it sometimes take longer to receive my order?

 
Our products are handmade in small batches to ensure freshness, and to ensure your purchase is long lasting. For that reason, we occasionally run out of stock. If the item you ordered is currently out of stock, it may take up to 5 business days for your order to be handcrafted for you. We thank you in advance for your patience. If you should further Shipping questions, please refer to our Shipping Information page.

In which currency are prices expressed on the website?

 
Our website defaults to Canadian dollars as we are based in Canada. Our US customers can change to the US dollar price set by simply clicking on “Price Set” at the top of any page on our website, or by clicking this link.

Shopping Cart, Order Placement and Billing Inquiries

 
How secure is your shopping cart?

 
The BathSilk.com shopping cart uses Secure Socket Layer (SSL) certified by VeriSign to transmit from your browser to our payment system. Our payment system encrypts your payment details using 2048 bit encryption. Once your payment has been processed, we DO NOT retain your credit card information to ensure the security of your financial information and to prevent fraud.

What do I do if my favorite product is out-of-stock on the website?

 
We do run out of some products from time to time. All our products are made by hand in small batches, so our products can always stay fresh. Out-of-stock items are usually back in stock within 5 business days. Please check back periodically to see if the product you want is back in our store.

How do I checkout and finalize my order?

 
Once you’ve completed your shopping, you can click on CHECKOUT at the top of any page, or click on the CHECKOUT button on any of the “ADD TO CART” product pages. You can also click on the View “Shopping Cart” link to view your cart, and then click on the CHECKOUT button below the displayed shopping cart.

What address do I use for the billing address?

 
If you are using a credit card for payment, your billing address must be the exact address that is on your credit card statement for that particular card. Online credit card processors require that you provide a billing address that matches exactly what your credit card issuer has on file when you buy online. If you’re unsure of the address, get the latest copy of your credit card statement and verify the address.

What happens if I enter the incorrect billing address?

 
Our shopping validates the billing address you entered against the address your credit card issuer or bank has on file. If the billing addresses aren’t an exact match, the address verification process will fail causing your payment to fail; therefore your order will not be completed. This is one of our important security features to help prevent fraud.

 
Occasionally, a payment authorization is created even though a billing address verification fails (a payment authorization looks like a real payment, but in actual fact is not). Your credit card issuer or bank should remove the transaction within 3 to 4 days; occasionally, these will remain for a few weeks depending on your credit card issuer or bank (this is beyond our control).

My credit card statement lists a pending transaction even though I wasn’t able to successfully place an order online – what happened?

 
A pending transaction is the same as a payment authorization and results from failure to verify your billing address. This may have been caused by entering your shipping address in the billing address fields, or that your billing address entry was not an exact match with the billing address your credit card issuer or bank has on file for you. A pending transaction is created during the address verification process, but does not represent an actual payment (similar to when you use your credit card to check into a hotel room or to rent a car, the funds are reserved until you conclude the transaction at checkout). The pending transaction (reserved funds) can use up your available balance as the funds are “reserved”. Once the pending transaction drops off your account, you will have access to the reserved funds again.

 
The payment authorization or pending transaction is a function of your credit card issuer or bank. As stated above, the transaction should drop off of your account within 3 to 4 days; however it can remain for up to 30 days. If your credit card statement should continue to display a pending transaction, contact us at support@bathsilk.com and provide us with your email address, name, date of the pending transaction, and the amount of the transaction. We will investigate with our credit card processor and get back to you.

 
What is a CVV number and why do I need to enter it in the shopping cart?

 
The CVV number is a security code that is typically listed on the back of your credit card, and is used to establish that you have physical possession of your card to make an online purchase. We require that you enter the CVV number for yours and BathSilk.com’s protection, as it establishes that the card you are using is physically in your possession. This is one of our many fraud prevention security features.

Why do I need to provide my Tax ID or Social Security Number (SSN) for my order if I’m ordering from the US?

 
Due to the fact that we ship from Canada, US Customs requires that the Tax ID or SSN for all orders over $200 US. This is US law and BathSilk.com must have this information if your package is to reach you (US Customs will not allow your package into the US without your SSN or Tax ID).

How do I take advantage of an online promotion?

 
If we’ve given you the promotional code for a particular offer, simply enter the promotional code (usually a word combination) in the box provided during checkout. If your code is still valid but the shopping cart is not accepting the code you entered, email us to allow us to correct and evaluate the problem ASAP.

Order shipping, Tracking and Returns

Does BathSilk.com ship to PO Boxes in the USA?

 
Currently, we are able to ship orders to US PO box destinations, as we use Canada Post and USPS as our official carriers. However, we will soon offer shipping by UPS as a secondary carrier and they WILL NOT deliver to any PO boxes – we apologize for this inconvenience.

Why can’t I receive an order to APO & FPO addresses?

 
USPS (US Post) has implemented regulations for any mail to APO/FPO addresses. Due to heightened security, they will return any mail or package weighing more than 16 ounces to sender if the package wasn’t presented for inspection by a USPS clerk at the post office at the time of mailing. Since we are a Canadian company, it is quite impossible for us to go to US post offices; therefore we cannot send any orders to APO/FPO addresses. If you can provide us with an alternate address, we will gladly send your order to any physical address in the continental USA.

Can you handle special delivery instructions?

 
Unfortunately, Canada Post and UPS do not accept special delivery instructions for orders placed through BathSilk.com; therefore we cannot accommodate special instructions. Please appreciate that we are bound by the terms of our carriers.

How can I track my order?

 
Your order is not traceable until it has left our facility and has been assigned an active tracking ID by Canada Post. Canadian customers can track their package until it reaches its final destination using the tracking number we will send you in our confirmation email to you at time of shipping.

 
US customers can only track their package using the same method outlined above until it reaches US Customs. Once your package leaves US Customs, your package is now in the hands of USPS for final delivery, and USPS currently does not offer a tracking method for packages not originating in the USA. As your package is entering the US through the state on New York, the normal delivery timelines to US destinations from NY State apply. See the chart on the USPS website for approximate delivery times.

How do I return my order?

 
BathSilk.com wants you to be happy with your purchase and experience with us. If you wish to return your product, please email Customer Service to obtain a return authorization and receive instructions on how to return your product. PLEASE do not return your order without first contacting Customer Service.

 
Also see our Shipping Information Page for complete return instructions and conditions if required.

Wholesale Questions

How do I login to your wholesale pages?

 
Your first step is to email us to request to become a wholesale customer. Once approved, you will receive your wholesale password to login to our wholesale pages.

 
Getting to our wholesale pages is simple:

-         Click on “Wholesale” at the top of any page on our website;

-         Click on “Login” on the page displayed;

-         Enter your email address and the password we issued you; and

-         Click on the "Wholesale" button on the left side of the page, followed by the “Change” on the right side of the page and you now have access to our wholesale pricing. You'll know you're on the wholesale pages from the "Wecome ... " greeting at the top of each webpage.

 
It’s important to note here that the product pages will look exactly the same as our retail pages except for the "Welcome ..." greeting at the top of the page, and the pricing will be the wholesale pricing, right through to checkout. Some items are not available for wholesale and will be identified as such in the wholesale pages.