Hello There!

     When it comes to protecting magazines for shipment, common sense will be your best guide. You need to protect them from excessive friction, moisture, impact, heat, pressure and light. It may seem like a lot to consider but just a few basic precautions will keep your magazines in tip top condition. Whether you're shipping magazines you have sold, or you are simply storing them for your own future enjoyment, a very small investment in protection will provide great dividends in the long run.

     Magazines you're selling or collecting should always be put in plastic sleeves. Mylar sleeves have been the collectors choice for a long time. Mylar is tough, crystal clear and contains no elements or compounds which will injure even the most delicate comic books and magazines. Although almost any type of plastic sleeve is suitable for shipping and short term storage, I personally recommend Mylar sleeves and acid free backing cards for long term storage in private collections.

     If you're just protecting magazines for sale and shipment, almost any commercially available plastic sleeve will do. I use basic note book sheet protectors for almost all my protective needs. They are sized very nicely to fit most standard magazines. They protect from dust, moisture, friction and edge curl. The best part is that in quantities over 200 they can be purchased for about .05 cents apiece. I slip the magazine in, put a small piece of paper over the top edge and cover the center of the opening with a piece of tape. The magazines are held firmly in place and stack up as nice or nicer than they ever did. For larger magazines I buy sleeves made to hold Life or Rolling Stone issues.

     When it comes to shipping magazines please follow a few simple guidelines:

1)Never roll or fold a magazine for shipment.
2)Never place magazines loose in a box that is too large.
3)Always pack magazines in a way that will prevent the
  shipping carrier from folding them.
4)Always provide enough padding to protect the magazines from impacts or crushing..

     Far too often I have received shipments from good sellers only to find that the item I bought was injured in shipment. Magazines that are placed loosely in a box which is too large will shift and slide against each other and can be significantly damaged on a long trip. Magazines which are put in a plastic shipping envelope without additional protection are exposed to all the crushing, bending and impact that can be associated with cross country shipment.

     When I pack a single magazine for shipment I first put a cardboard cover around it. It's as simple as taking two strips of cardboard and snugly wrapping one strip in each direction. One strip is as wide as the magazine and goes around from top to bottom and one strip is as tall as the magazine and goes around from side to side. When I'm done none of the magazine is exposed and it cannot be bent without absolute effort to bend it. Then I place the cardboard armored magazine in a bubble envelope or USPS priority shipper and fasten that outer shipper nice and snug. What I end up with is a package that will withstand more abuse than it needs to. I've never had to respond to a complaint of damage from shipping.

     When I package multiple magazines for one shipment, I find a box that is as close to my merchandise size as possible. The trick is to eliminate as much excess space as you can. Air space in a package allows movement of the contents and that's how items get damaged. When you find a box that fits close, then fill the extra space with any kind of firm light fill to prevent movement inside the package. I use newspaper. Even though my magazines are all shipped in individual sleeves, when I'm shipping multiples I put the whole bunch in an additional plastic bag just as an added safety measure. My goals in shipment all boil down to this:
I want my customer to receive their item in the same condition it was when I sold it to them.  

In conclusion, I'm hoping that as a serious seller of magazines you'll give adequate consideration to the protection of your product. Keeping the basics in mind will go a long way to satisfying your customers. Keeping your items flat, dry, and protected will pay you great dividends in the long run and you will feel a very special satisfaction every time a customer compliments your packaging. Design your own style and techniques for merchandise protection. Give due consideration to how your item will arrive at it's destination. I guarantee your customers WILL appreciate it!

Grand Avenue Treasures LTD