Ceramics are heavy, fragile and made to order, which makes shipping them across the Atlantic a fair question to ask before you buy rather than after. Here is how it actually works when a piece leaves Caltagirone for an address in the United States.
How long does delivery to the United States take?
Two separate stretches of time, and only one of them is transport.
Production: up to 30 days. Every piece is made after the order is confirmed. The clay is worked, dried, given a first firing, hand-painted, then fired again. None of those stages can be rushed without showing in the result, and drying times depend on the size of the piece and the season. If you pay by bank transfer, the clock starts when the payment clears.
Transit: 4 to 9 days. Once packed, the piece travels by UPS, FedEx or DHL depending on destination and size, and reaches most US addresses within that window. You receive tracking when the parcel leaves.
Are there times of year when you do not ship?
Yes, twice. The workshop closes for the Italian summer break and over Christmas, and because everything is made to order those pauses affect production, not just dispatch.
- Orders placed after 5 August are produced and dispatched from 28 August.
- Orders placed after 10 December are dispatched from the second week of January.
If a piece is meant as a Christmas gift, order it in November rather than December.
Who pays customs duties and import taxes?
Shipments to the United States currently travel DAP, Delivered At Place. The price you pay us covers the goods and the transport; any import duties or taxes owed on arrival are collected separately by the carrier before delivery.
What you will owe, if anything, depends on the declared value of the order and on the US import rules in force when your parcel arrives. Those rules have changed more than once in recent years, so rather than quote a threshold here that might be out of date by the time you read it, we would point you to the carrier’s own duty estimator: UPS, FedEx and DHL all publish one.
The practical point: budget for the possibility of a customs charge on delivery, and do not be surprised by a message from the carrier asking you to settle it before the driver comes.
One thing that catches people out: the carrier’s request is often not only the duty. UPS, FedEx and DHL each add a brokerage or advancement fee for clearing the parcel and fronting the payment on your behalf, and it appears on the same notice. That is the carrier’s fee, not a tax, and not something we receive.
We declare the actual value of what is in the box. We are asked now and then to mark an order as a gift or to write a lower figure, and we do not do it. Beyond being a customs offence, the declared value is the figure an insurance claim is paid on: a parcel under-declared to save on duty is a parcel that is under-insured if it arrives broken, which on ceramics is the risk that actually matters.
How much does shipping to the USA cost?
International shipping is charged by destination and is calculated at checkout, before you pay, so the figure you confirm is the figure you pay. There is no free-shipping threshold for the United States. The free shipping we offer over €100 applies to Italian addresses only, and we would rather say so plainly than let you discover it at the last step.
How can I pay?
Credit and debit cards, PayPal, Apple Pay, Google Pay and Shop Pay. If you prefer to spread the cost, Klarna lets you pay in three instalments or 30 days after delivery, and PayPal offers three interest-free instalments on orders between €30 and €2,000. Bank transfer is also accepted, though note that on a transfer the 30-day production window starts when the payment clears, not when you place the order.
Is the shipment insured against breakage?
Yes, on every shipment. Not an upsell, not a checkbox: insurance is simply always included.
There is one thing we need you to do, and it takes five seconds. Sign for the delivery “with reserve”, even when the outer box looks perfect. Most couriers let you write this next to your signature, on paper or on the driver’s device. It is the step that keeps an insurance claim open if you open the box later and find a crack.
If you sign clean and then discover damage, the claim becomes very difficult to make. This is not specific to us; it is how carrier liability works everywhere.
What should I do if a piece arrives damaged?
Write to us straight away at info@ceramichesofia.it attaching detailed photographs of the damaged piece, and of the box if it looks knocked. We handle the report and proceed with a replacement.
Photograph the parcel before opening it if anything about it looks wrong: it makes the claim straightforward.
Can I return an item from the United States?
Yes. You have 14 days from receipt to return a piece. It must come back intact and in its original packaging, and the refund covers the goods but not the original shipping cost. Write to us first and we will send the instructions and the return label.
Before you order
Two things worth doing while you decide. Check the dimensions in inches as well as centimeters, because Sicilian pieces are consistently larger than photographs suggest. And if you are choosing between models, ask us: we can tell you which decorations hold up best in strong light, and which pieces travel well. If you are still choosing, the Caltagirone ceramics buyer’s guide sets out the main families of pieces and how sizes and decorations are named, and where to buy authentic Sicilian ceramics online compares the kinds of seller you will find. For after it arrives, how to care for Sicilian ceramics covers washing, winter frost and food use.
The catalog with US-facing prices and both units is at italianpottery.us. Questions go to our contact page, and we answer in English.
