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A Message To Our Customers - We Are Shipping

COVID-19 has impacted every one of us in different ways.  However, one of the few bright spots of this pandemic is the increased time we get to spend with our loved ones.

Backyard astronomy has enjoyed a massive and unprecedented  increase in popularity these past several months because it is complimentary to social distancing and can be experienced alone or with your family.  The surge in interest is "astronomical", and we anticipate that this moment will bring more innovation to our industry and further advance our ability to explore the night sky as amateurs.

However, such a spike in demand for our products does not come without its challenges. Today, our HOURS of operation remain the same, our team is working overtime and yet this unprecedented global event has caused shortages and shipping delays for both telescope manufacturers and retailers.  Increased customer interest has also affected our email and telephone response times. Below, we explain further what our dedicated team of 32 amazing employees is doing about it.  If you'd like read more about the continued shortages & delays from another perspective, check out the COVID-19 Telescope Manufacturer's Statement.

Shipping

We are experiencing inbound shipment delays headed for our warehouse.  Overseas air shipments and cross-country carriers are experiencing delivery delays of 2 – 8 days as a result of enhanced COVID-19 precautions.  That means our replenishment inventory isn’t arriving as fast as it usually does, which in turn delays shipments to you.  

Additionally, UPS is NOT GUARANTEEING Expedited delivery dates and UPS Ground shipments are taking longer than normal to reach their final destination. We have also received several complaints about US Postal Priority Mail shipments not showing movement and/or arriving 2 – 4 days late.  In response to our inquiries the US Postal Service has informed us that they are significantly understaffed and as such are unable to deliver packages on time.  

What We’re Doing About It

To address and overcome these challenges, we are actively communicating with our suppliers and closely monitoring inbound shipments. As a result of these efforts, shipments started to arrive at our warehouse two days ago. We are also working with dedicated trucking companies to facilitate faster deliveries for future inbound shipments to our facility.

We have removed US Priority Mail as a shipping option on our website and are upgrading all of the orders that qualify for free shipping to UPS Ground & UPS Sure Post for more accurate and timely delivery.  

Phone & Email Correspondence

Our phone wait times are longer than usual. The average wait time to reach one of our non-commissioned product advisors is between 5 - 15 minutes. Due to an increase in technical support and order status inquiries, we are also experiencing a delay in email response times, some of which can take 72 - 96 hours.

What We’re Doing About It

Our team is working feverishly to get to your questions as fast as possible, without sacrificing on the quality of our response or service.  They're demonstrating their dedication every day by working overtime to normalize our response times.  

Thank You!

High Point Scientific is a family business.  When we started the company in the fall of 2001, we never imagined that we would have such a fantastic group of employees, customers, and partners.  High Point Scientific’s growth has exceeded even our wildest dreams, and our evolution is due to your support.  

Today we are experiencing some challenges.  We are not a perfect company; we make mistakes from time to time, but we consistently try as hard as we can and our commitment to you is unrelenting.  Our team appreciates your patience and understanding while we continue to adjust during these unprecedented times.

All of us wish for you and your family’s safety during this time.  We encourage you to take this time to look up and explore our beautiful universe.  We're here to support you as you embark on your celestial journey!

Robert Dugan
CEO

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