Why We Don’t Offer “Free” Shipping—and Why That’s a Good Thing

At StringWorks, we’ve long considered switching to a “free shipping” model like many other retailers. But here’s the truth: shipping is never truly free. It’s either paid by the customer at checkout—or baked into the price of the product.

And that’s exactly why we’ve stuck with our current model of flat-rate, subsidized shipping: because it supports our core values of transparency and honesty in pricing, values we’ve upheld since the very beginning in 1997.

The Illusion of “Free” Shipping

We all know the experience—ordering something from a mega-retailer like Amazon with “free” two-day delivery. But what’s often overlooked is that those companies pay drastically less for shipping due to massive volume, and in Amazon’s case, they even operate their own shipping networks. That’s not an option for small, independent businesses like ours.

And if you look closely, the products on those platforms often cost more than they would elsewhere. Why? Because the shipping cost is simply included in the price, hidden from view.

We don’t believe in that.

What Shipping Actually Costs—and What You Pay

Shipping costs have been rising dramatically, especially for small businesses that don’t receive volume discounts. Here’s what we currently pay on average:

• Violin: $70

• Cello: $165

That includes packing materials and high-quality shipping boxes to ensure your instrument arrives safely. But we don’t pass those full costs on to you. In fact, we charge less than half of what it actually costs us to ship. The rest, we subsidize—because we want to offer our customers real value without inflating our instrument prices.

Our Commitment to Fair, Transparent Pricing

We could easily raise our instrument prices and slap a “free shipping” label on every order. But that would go against our promise to offer clear, fair pricing without games or gimmicks. When you shop at StringWorks, you know exactly what you’re paying for: a high-quality instrument, priced fairly, with no hidden markups.

If you ever have questions about shipping or pricing, we’re always happy to walk you through the details—because we believe honesty builds trust, and that’s something worth investing in.