Below are answers to common questions about ordering online including shipping, returns, and import tax.
To place an order online, follow these steps:
1. Create an account using your email address and password
2. Verify your email address by clicking the link in the email we will send you (please check your spam folder)
3. Browse our shop and add the items you require to your basket
4. Proceed through the checkout and set your shipping and billing address
5. Select your shipping method
6. Proceed to payment using your preferred payment method
7. Confirm your order has been received.
If after placing your order you realise that you need to change it, we advise you to email us straight away by replying to your order confirmation email. Unfortunately, we are not able to amend orders once they are placed, so your order will have to be cancelled and refunded, and you will then have to place a new order.
Please note that orders received during working hours (Indian timezone) are typically processed straight away and so may be processed before your email has been received and read by our team. We therefore highly recommend you check the items you are ordering before placing your order.
We review our prices every year and where necessary make revisions in the first week of April. Any revisions that do occur are normally driven by the rate of inflation in a given year which affects the cost of raw materials (cotton) as well as other costs such as energy, packaging, shipping, and of course our papermaking team. Once set, prices are fixed for that year.
If you live in a country with a low customs import duty and tax threshold (also known as De Minimis import threshold) the courier will pay the duty and tax on your behalf at the point of import and will then send you an invoice to be reimbursed, they may also include an administration fee.
We strongly advise checking the import duty and tax thresholds for your country before placing an order to avoid a surprise import duty or tax bill. Countries in the EU typically have a low threshold before applying VAT whereas other countries, such as Australia, are more generous allowing orders of a higher value through without charge.
🇺🇸 US customers: Due to import tariffs introduced in September 2025, shipments from India to the US now incur a significant import duty. We advise customers to research these costs before purchasing. Please be aware that the customer is the "Importer of Record" and is responsible for all local taxes and duties.
It used to be possible to order out of stock items as "pre-orders" which would be shipped once stock that those items were replenished. However, these pre-orders were often subject to delays due to varying production times and changes to our production schedule. As such, it is now not possible to order out of stock items, however, it is now possible to register to receive an email notification when the item is restocked.
It typically takes around 3 weeks to make a new batch of a particular colour – that includes the whole papermaking process of beating the pulp, lifting the sheets, drying, calendaring, and sorting, as well as preparing finished packs ready for shipping. However, this can be subject to delays and changes in our production schedule.
An at-a-glance view of stock availability is available for each of our categories:
Artisan Account customers will see the precise amount of stock available.
Restock notifications can be created by following the steps below:
When an item is restocked, notifications are sent to Artisan Account customers first and then on a first-come-first-served basis to other customers in the notification list.
Please note that there is a chance this item may have sold out by the time you visit our website, in which case we recommend creating another notification as we are most likely still adding more newly-made pieces.
While preparing each order we carry out a final quality check on the items that have been ordered. On very rare occasions, the stock we have can fail this final quality check (for example, due to faded colour). On these occasions, we will inform you of the issue and ask whether you are happy to accept the slight difference in shade.
If the issue is of a more severe nature and we feel the items are below our acceptable quality standard, we reserve the right to cancel and refund your order.
In either case, we will aldo let you know if we have any other colours in stock which are ready to ship as possible alternatives.
Orders are processed twice a day – 9 am and 1:30 pm IST. Your order will be processed immediately if it is received before the courier cut-off time and if there are no other orders in our processing queue, otherwise it will be processed the next working day. The cut-off timings in IST for each courier are:
Please note that these timings are approximate and change day-to-day depending on factors like weather, traffic, and courier network load.
For international customers (outside of India) we offer the following shipping options:
- 3-5 days via DHL – $22.00, trackable (recommended)
- 14 days via FedEx – $9.00, trackable.
Additionally, all orders over $90 / £70 / €80 / AU$125 ship with DHL for free.
For domestic customers within India we offer 3 delivery methods, each with a differing transit time and price:
- 3-5 days via Bluedart – price calculated at checkout, trackable (recommended)
- 5-7 days via EMS – price calculated at checkout, trackable
- 7-10 days via India Post – price calculated at checkout, untrackable.
Yes, for international customers with orders over $90 / £70 / €80 / AU$125 we offer free shipping via DHL's Express Worldwide service.
For standard post shipments within India, it is not possible to track the progress of the delivery.
Courier shipments can be tracked via the courier's website using your tracking code from the despatch notification email which we will send you when you order ships.
If you opted for the standard post shipping option within India we'd be happy to send you a replacement free of charge, but before we do, often a few extra days is all the parcel needs in order to appear. Please also note that a standard post shipment requires a signature on delivery, so it may be at your nearest post office. A surprising number of shipments are returned to us as "uncollected" despite the customer not receiving a notice to collect it. If it still hasn't arrived after 21 days of the shipping date and after having checked at your local post office, please get in touch with us.
If your pieces were shipped to you via a courier, we advise you to contact the courier with your tracking number for an update. For some EU countries such as Greece or Italy, there is a chance the courier requires additional information from you before they can clear your shipment for delivery.
The courier will make several attempts to deliver your order and will also notify you either with a card or via email with updates. If, in the unlikely event, the delivery fails we will be contacted by the courier informing us that the package will be disposed of. In these instances, we are unfortunately unable to provide a refund for your order.
If you do receive an update from your courier notifying you that a delivery attempt was made and failed, we recommend that you contact the courier as quickly as possible.
If you are placing an order for delivery outside of India, you will most likely receive a bill for tax/duty on the imported items charged by your government.
We strongly advise checking the import duty and tax thresholds for your country before placing an order to avoid a surprise import duty or tax bill.
As the bill mentioned, it is for tax/duty on the imported items which would are being charged by your government (this isn't a charge for the paper goods or for the shipping).
We strongly advise checking the import duty and tax thresholds for your country before placing an order to avoid a surprise import duty or tax bill.
A bill for import tax/duty is a tax levied by your country on imports and is not a bill for the goods or for the shipping. We strongly advise checking the import duty and tax thresholds for your country before placing an order to avoid a surprise import duty or tax bill.
If you refuse to pay the bill, your package will be destroyed by the courier. In this instance, we are unable to provide a refund for your goods.
Items that you have ordered can be returned to us within 30 days of receipt and must be returned in their original condition.
To return an item please package it up securely, mark them as "Returned Goods (Zero Value)", and return them to us at:
SAHMP
50 S.V. Patel Salai
Pondicherry
India
605001
Please note the following important requirements:
- Use standard post instead of a courier as a courier will route the return through customs which will require us to pay processing fees and import duties even though you are returning goods to us. These fees and duties will then have to be deducted from your refund amount
- Ensure the parcel is marked as "Returned goods (zero value)" including on the CN-22/23 customs declaration form which has to be stuck to the outside of the parcel
- Be sure to include your name and order number on or inside the parcel so we know to process the refund to you
- We can only offer a full refund if we receive the pieces in the condition we sent them to you in.
We also recommend emailing us before you submit your return to let us know to expect it.
On a rare occasion that our items do not meet your expectations, we are more than happy to help you process a return and receive a refund. Please email us with details of the issue and we will guide you through the return process.
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