Reply To: Dear UK miniature makers

[ced1106Participant 6224xp 0]

Unfortunately, increased shipping and other fees has and will be around, hurting small businesses of all kinds. In the USA, frex, states wanted to impose a sales tax on all online transactions, which would cost small businesses both time and money. Imagine being a one or two-person shop and spending your hours on government regulations, rather than a hobby you want to share with others.

Anyway, the VAT issue is also appearing on KS, for miniatures and boardgames, and backers have clearly said that VAT has caused them to not back overseas projects. Higher overseas shipping costs certainly deterred me from backing non-domestic projects that I was on the fence about.

Hopefully, 3D printers will become more accessible to hobbyists, so we won’t have to deal with shipping issues, any more than email lets us avoid waiting for a letter to arrive. Certainly on KS, I’m seeing more 3d files for miniatures, avoiding not just shipping headaches, but also allowing custom miniatures to be made. Me, I have a huge pile of metal, resin, and plastic, and really should cut back…