DOING BUSINESS WITH CHICAGO IMPORTING COMPANY
DOING BUSINESS WITH US*
Effective January 1, 2023
NEW CUSTOMERS
Thank you for choosing Chicago Importing Company to supply your specialty foods and confections needs. Chicago Importing Company is wholesale only. Our New Customer Form Registration is available here: Registration. Fill out this form completely including federal EIN or non-profit exemption # plus a copy of your actual state resale certification. Upon receipt of the completed form and state resale certificate, we will email you a Login and Password to access the website for convenient online ordering. New customers must pay by credit card when placing their first order. Internet Retailers are required to sign our Special Provisions for Internet Retailer Customers documents, with special conditions for our internet retailer customers.
PLACING AN ORDER
Shop 24/7/365 at www.chicagoimporting.com
If you are new to ordering online with us, please call Customer Service at 800-828-7983 or email [email protected] to set up online ordering access.
Our minimum order is $300 net of all discounts and promotions. Backorders are by request only with the exception of pre-orders which are automatically backordered. All backorders are subject to freight charges and the $300 minimum. You may add Everyday items onto your seasonal order to meet the minimum, however those Everyday products will ship with your seasonal order.
All sales are final. We do not guarantee the sell-through of merchandise. Seasonal Pre-Orders may NOT be canceled. Cancellation of Everyday orders will result in a 25% re-stocking fee. You are responsible for freight expenses incurred for undeliverable orders.
Special orders are non-refundable.
PRICING
Prices printed are FOB Huntley, IL and are subject to change without notice.
PRODUCTS
Our products are sold by the case and cannot be mixed or split. Pack sizes are subject to change.
Most products ship from our warehouse with approximately six months remaining remaining shelf life. We guarantee we will not ship product with less than 60 days remaining shelf life. Ship dates are subject to availability.
Please check with the laws in your state before purchasing alcohol-filled products. It is unlawful to sell alcohol to persons under the age of 21.
PAYMENT
We gladly accept Visa, Mastercard, Discover, and American Express credit cards. Net 20 terms are available for qualified customers. If Net 20 credit terms are desired, please contact Customer Service and allow 4–6 weeks processing to complete your application. New customers must pay by credit card when placing their first order.
A service charge of $30.00 will be collected for any NSF check. NSF checks or credit card rejections will result in a delayed shipment of subsequent orders to allow payments to clear.
Invoices more than 60 days past due will incur a finance charge of 1.5% per month. Any past due invoices must be paid prior to shipping additional orders. An account will convert to pre-payment status when payments trend beyond established terms.
SHIPPING
Order lead time is 3 business days from P.O. receipt to pick-up with no revisions. Holiday season (Sep-Dec) is subject to longer lead times due to the large volume of orders.
We do not blind ship and, a wholesale only company, we do not sell or ship directly to consumers.
We do our very best to secure freight service from reputable carriers who provide competitive pricing. For smaller parcel shipments, our vendor is FedEx Ground and your charges will be added to your invoice.
For larger shipments, we will use a trucking company with experience shipping to your particular area, or you may choose your own carrier and arrange for pick up. Some shipments may require a refrigerated truck.
There will be an extra charge for rush orders, accessorial fees, and additional delivery services you request or that the carrier deems necessary (lift gate, inside delivery, limited access, appointments, notifications, etc.). When shipping to or through warm weather climates, if a cooler box is needed there will be a $10.00 charge per box.
PREPAID SHIPPING INCENTIVE
For Sales Orders $3,500 and over after discounts and promotions, you will qualify for our Prepaid Shipping incentive. Chicago Importing Company will pay the cost of shipping up to 7% of the invoiced amount of shipped items, excluding accessorial and special service fees (e.g.: lift gate service, inside delivery, residential service, advance notification, limited access delivery, etc). The portion of shipping cost over 7% of the invoiced value will be added to your invoice. All accessorial fees and special service fees will be added to your invoice, as they are not covered under the Prepaid Shipping Incentive.
PERISHABLES & WARM WEATHER SHIPPING
Perishable products, such as refrigerated and frozen fish, meat, cheese, and lefse, will require refrigerated truck delivery service. Smaller shipments (parcels) of perishable products will require expedited delivery service via FedEx or UPS at the buyer’s expense. Perishable products will be shipped in insulated boxes with ice packs via a guaranteed overnight or second day service. Refrigerated or expedited shipping cannot be declined on fish, meat, cheese, and lefse.
Chocolate, fish, meat, cheese, lefse and other perishables packed in insulated cooler boxes with cooling materials will incur a charge of $10.00 per insulated box.
Chocolate products, shipped during warm weather, will require temperature-controlled truck delivery service. Smaller shipments (parcels) of chocolate products during warm weather will require expedited delivery service via FedEx or UPS at the buyer’s expense. Chocolate products will be shipped in insulated boxes with ice packs via a guaranteed 2-day service. If such expedited service for chocolate products during warm weather is declined, buyer assumes full responsibility for any melted chocolate products.
Summer Months: Chicago Importing Company will not ship refrigerated or frozen items in any manner except by refrigerated truck between June and September. Chicago Importing Company reserves the right to delay or hold shipments for temperature-sensitive items such as chocolate depending on the weather, unless you agree beforehand to accept the terms and fees of overnight or second day shipping service.
Orders which include both perishable and non-perishable items may be shipped and invoiced separately.
Items affected by this policy are denoted with F, R, or W in our price lists and are identified on our website.
RETURNS & CREDITS
We are unable to accept any returns of merchandise except for the following reasons:
Quality – If there is something wrong with the product you purchased, please notify us immediately in order to obtain a return authorization.
Shipping Damages – If something has happened to your shipment during delivery, notify us of the damage within 48 hours in order to obtain a credit.
- Please provide us with a copy of the Bill of Lading with the damages noted and the driver’s signature.
- Pictures of all items affected in the damaged shipment are required.
- Damages to shipments by truck must be written on the bill of lading at the time of delivery or return claims will not be accepted.
Returns cannot be accepted without a return authorization and must be shipped to us or ready for pick up within 48 hours of the return approval. Any credit for damaged product will be issued on a per unit basis.
CONTACT US
Hours: Monday-Friday 8am-5pm CT
Email: [email protected]
Phone: 800-828-7983 or 847-669-2100
Fax: 847-669-2154
Mail: Chicago Importing Company, 11200 E. Main Street, Huntley, IL 60142
*Terms & Conditions differ for Distributors and other business types. Contact Customer Service for details. Terms & Conditions are also subject to change without notice. Not liable for printing errors and omissions. All catalog and website content is copyrighted by Chicago Importing Company. No images or copy may be used without permission.