# Webshops



## Guest (Oct 6, 2012)

Just curious!
Is there many webshops in Cyprus. How to pay? Is Paypal used? 
I know that many of the shops we use today dont deliver to Cyprus for some reason.

Anders


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## PeteandSylv (Sep 24, 2008)

The use of the web over here is very limited. Many companies have a web presence which is 1 or 2 pages telling a little about them and where they are. These pages are forgotten once they are live and rarely do you see any updates.

Couriers only tend to deliver to households in the big towns. Outside of that you have to drive to the courier to collect parcels. Thus one half of the web trading requirement is inadequate.

I've never seen a good Cypriot web trading site. The mentality here prefers face to face contact, discount negotiation and cash.

Pete


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## Guest (Oct 6, 2012)

PeteandSylv said:


> The use of the web over here is very limited. Many companies have a web presence which is 1 or 2 pages telling a little about them and where they are. These pages are forgotten once they are live and rarely do you see any updates.
> 
> Couriers only tend to deliver to households in the big towns. Outside of that you have to drive to the courier to collect parcels. Thus one half of the web trading requirement is inadequate.
> 
> ...


Yus that is my feeling to when you Google. 

One thing I dont understand is why many webshops in Europe does not deliver to Cyprus and the few who does charge rediciolus for the shipping. Here from Germany we can send a 31 kg package for 40 euro to Cyprus, but I have seen shops that want 150 euro

Anders


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## PeteandSylv (Sep 24, 2008)

Vegaanders said:


> Yus that is my feeling to when you Google.
> 
> One thing I dont understand is why many webshops in Europe does not deliver to Cyprus and the few who does charge rediciolus for the shipping. Here from Germany we can send a 31 kg package for 40 euro to Cyprus, but I have seen shops that want 150 euro
> 
> Anders


I don't understand the shipping issues either. It may be that many of the carriers don't consider Cyprus as Europe which, of course, geographically it is not, and charge accordingly. Fortunately Amazon delivery charges are reasonable.

Pete


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## Veronica (Apr 5, 2008)

I have found there are not many decent webshops in Cyprus but there is a website which gives details of UK websites which will deliver to Cyprus

Directory


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## Veronica (Apr 5, 2008)

I've just found this site

Mega Mall Cyprus - The online shopping revolution in Cyprus, shop now!


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## hypnoman (Oct 8, 2012)

*Catching On*

Maybe internet shopping is still a little behind in Cyprus and just needing someone 'with a van' to network with potential international sellers and start delivering. As already commentated, its not actually expensive to get the goods to Cyprus, it is getting it to the door.

Just a thought!!


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## PeteandSylv (Sep 24, 2008)

hypnoman said:


> Maybe internet shopping is still a little behind in Cyprus and just needing someone 'with a van' to network with potential international sellers and start delivering. As already commentated, its not actually expensive to get the goods to Cyprus, it is getting it to the door.
> 
> Just a thought!!


A good thought too unfortunately handicapped by the problems of addressing in Cyprus:

Outside of the big towns there are very few street signs and many places, including mine, that have no official address.
Postcodes refer to the entire village rather than streets or houses.
Many places are found by directions such as "next to the fire station" etc.

So any delivery person will have to drive 20 or 30 Km to a village and then start asking where they can find the addressee. Couple that with the problem of dealing with deliveries for people that are not there at the time and you can get an idea of why this is not likely to be a profitable service.

Even for websales within Cyprus where international shipping charges don't apply, the same problem exists.

Pete


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## Guest (Oct 13, 2012)

PeteandSylv said:


> A good thought too unfortunately handicapped by the problems of addressing in Cyprus:
> 
> Outside of the big towns there are very few street signs and many places, including mine, that have no official address.
> Postcodes refer to the entire village rather than streets or houses.
> ...


This also explains why there is no map for Cyprus in any navigator you can buy in Europe. Wonder how the one you buy in Cyprus work...

Anders


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## PeteandSylv (Sep 24, 2008)

Vegaanders said:


> This also explains why there is no map for Cyprus in any navigator you can buy in Europe. Wonder how the one you buy in Cyprus work...
> 
> Anders


Not very well I would imagine outside of the big towns! I've never seen one in use here.

Pete


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## Guest (Oct 13, 2012)

PeteandSylv said:


> Not very well I would imagine outside of the big towns! I've never seen one in use here.
> 
> Pete


If it is so big problem with addresses, is it easy to get a P.O. Box? Are they present in the villages? I can imagine that the house we are interested in have no real address and I need to be able to fetch my mail.

Anders

Sorry found the answer myself by searching old threads!


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## PeteandSylv (Sep 24, 2008)

Vegaanders said:


> If it is so big problem with addresses, is it easy to get a P.O. Box? Are they present in the villages? I can imagine that the house we are interested in have no real address and I need to be able to fetch my mail.
> 
> Anders


Most villages have their own PO boxes. Ours is down in the village (we live outside). The post is delivered and collected from one of the coffee shops and the owner is the agent responsible for putting it into the boxes, getting signatures for parcels etc. There is no charge for the PO box. Larger villages may also have a postman employed by the village.

Pete


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## Veronica (Apr 5, 2008)

Even if you have a proper address the post is not very reliable and it is always better to have a post box. ourvillage has a reasonable delivery service but we still prefer important mail to go to our p.o. box in town. It is much safer.


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## hypnoman (Oct 8, 2012)

*Wow*

This is really interesting. I had not realised that as yet there is no easy way to locate properties. Given its past British administration, I am suprised this wasn't developed from then. How does the post get to you then if you live in an out-lying village setting? Maybe a possible solution to distribution then is to negotiate with a local trader then. This has actually been suggested in the UK to save costs to the Royal Mail, but not yet happening.


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## Guest (Oct 13, 2012)

More then 60% of all postal service in Sweden is now taken care of by local shops of different kinds. They handle parcels and letters both ways, sells stamps etc... Its many years since the postal service had home delivery of parcels, you only get a notification that you can pick it up. Many times these shops has a better service then the postoffice, open many times 7 days a week etc. Postoffice in sweden is open Mo-Fr. But still the postal service deliver the normal mail ofc.

Anders


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## Veronica (Apr 5, 2008)

In our village the 'post office' is someones house. All the village mail goes there and they deliver it when they have the time Parcels are kept there and they put a note in your letter box to go and collect them.
There are some proper post offices in Paphos but they don't deliver to houses in the villages just to the one which acts as a local post office.


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