These are some of the most common questions we get from customers. If you have a question that is not answered here, please feel free to send us a message our Get in Touch page.
Why can’t I…..?
If you are having any problems with the site, such as a “we don’t deliver to XX country” error message, and you are using Microsoft Internet Explorer or Microsoft Edge browser, please try using Google Chrome or Mozilla Firefox. Microsoft browsers seem to have some compatibility issues.
Why do I get a “No shipping method” or “cannot calculate delivery cost” error?
The shipping cost is calculated when the postcode is entered. (Certain address fields must also be filled in.) If the website is telling you that it cannot calculate the cost it is usually one of the following 2 problems. (A) You have not entered a postcode (zip code) or you have entered an incorrect postcode. Or (B) you have entered a postcode that is not within our regular delivery area. You can see a list of postcodes here. Please note that if the district you wish to deliver to is not listed, we may still be able to help you, but we ask that you contact us first with the delivery information. You can reach us at service@avignonflorist.com
Can you deliver flowers to (name of city)?
We deliver to all of Taipei City and most areas of New Taipei City. Please see the delivery fee schedule below for the specific areas of New Taipei City. We can deliver to other areas in Taiwan, but we ask that you contact us before placing your order.
Do you charge for delivery?
Currently, our policy is that our prices include delivery to MOST AREAS of Taipei City* for orders over 1500 NT For NEW Taipei City and surrounding areas, the delivery fee varies by district. Please see below:
- Taipei City except Wenshan and Beitou districts* (Free)
- NEW Taipei City- Districts of Xizhi, Zhonghe, Yonghe, Xinzhuang, Sanchong,Banqiao, Wugu, Luzhou: Delivery fee is NT$500
- NEW Taipei City- Districts of Xindian, Tucheng, Taishan, Shenkeng:Delivery fee is NT$800
- NEW Taipei City- Districts of Danshui, Shiding, Shulin, Sanxia, Linkou, Yingge, Ruifang, Bali: NT$1,000
- Keelung City: NT$1,000
For all other cities or districts, please contact us with an approximate address. We can usually help you out, but we do need a little more information. Please note that some “cities” in Taiwan cover huge areas of remote countryside, so the more accurate an address you can give us, the better the chance that we can help you out.
*Please note there are some areas of Wenshan, Shilin, and Beitou districts that are quite remote and mountainous. These areas may incur an additional delivery fee. Please contact us with a specific address if you have any questions.
How can I find the postal code?
The delivery fee is calculated after the postal code has been entered. In order for the fee to be calculated, the Address, City/Town, State/County, and Postal code fields must be filled in. The postal codes can be found on this page.
Why do you charge for delivery? Many online shops advertise free delivery.
There is no such thing as free delivery. If a store offers free delivery, the cost of delivery must be incorporated into the cost of the flowers. This means that the people who request delivery near a shop are paying more than they should and people far away are paying less. We felt that the only fair thing to do is to charge a delivery fee in proportion to the distance from our shop. Some flower stores approach this problem by deducting a portion of the cost of the flowers and transferring the order to a shop closer to the recipient. Often the online store offering free delivery is not a real flower store at all. Please see the question “How are you different from all the other online flower shops?” below. There are also numerous articles written about “free delivery, including this one.
Can you do an arrangement similar to this one? (picture attached)
What we really love to do is custom designs. People often send us a picture of an arrangement and ask us to make a similar arrangement. Just send us the picture and we will tell you how much it will cost for us to make a similar arrangement. However, please be aware that every florist has their own style, and this makes it difficult to make an exact replica. Also, please note that many of the pictures on internet flower shop sites are heavily photoshopped, and cannot be reproduced exactly like the picture. Alternatively, if you want to send something unique and leave the design up to Vanessa, you can just give us a budget (NT$ 1500 minimum) and some guidelines to follow, such as “pink roses” or “something romantic.” Vanessa will make a custom creation just for you.
What is the minimum order?
We can do an arrangement of any size if it is being picked up in the store. However, we have a NT$ 1,500 (approximately $50) minimum order for deliveries to most locations. Some locations further from the shop will have a higher minimum order.
Can you deliver today or tomorrow?
We really try our best to accommodate all requests. However, the answer to this question depends on three things: the type of flowers you want, the place you are delivering to, and the time of day you are asking the question. If you don’t absolutely need to have the arrangement delivered today, it is best for you as well as us to give us a day or two notice. If it is urgent (For example, you forgot your anniversary or your wife is really mad at you) please send us an email or call us and we will see what we can do. Usually, we can deliver on the same day, but the selection of products may be limited. In this case, the best thing is to call or email us to see what products are available or to place a custom order, in which case you give us a budget and Vanessa will create something unique for the occasion.
I don’t have a PayPal account. Can I pay with a credit card?
You can pay with a credit card. PayPal processes all our payments, including our credit card payments. Having said that, the PayPal page sometimes makes it difficult to find the link. If you can’t find it, see this picture. We use PayPal because they specialize in protecting your payment information. Therefore, they can do it much better than we can. We never see your credit card information. Please do not send credit card information to us by email because we cannot process it except through the website and because your email may be visible to the NSA or other third parties.
I got to the PayPal page, but I can’t figure out how to pay with a credit card.
Say no more. See this picture.
Do I have to open a PayPal account if I pay with a credit card?
No, you do not have to open a PayPal account. PayPal gives you the option of opening an account. Just be sure that no boxes are checked enrolling you in PayPal.
My credit card gets declined by PayPal. What should I do?
You can pay with most major credit cards through PayPal. However, sometimes a card gets rejected. Often this is because a credit card from outside Taiwan is being used to place an online order in Taiwan dollars. Either the credit card company or PayPal may see this as suspicious and block the transaction. This seems to happen with American Express the most, but it can happen with any card. The first thing to try is to re-place the order using US dollars. Credit cards seem to give transactions in US dollars less scrutiny, so it usually goes through. If this doesn’t work, a call to the card issuer informing them the transaction is legitimate usually does the trick.
Why won’t PayPal take my Taiwan credit card?
Unfortunately, due to a recent law passed by Taiwan, PayPal is not allowed to take credit cards with a billing address in Taiwan to make a payment to a vendor in Taiwan. We are looking for another provider. In the meantime, if you have an account with a Taiwanese bank, you can place the order using the ATM transfer option. This will allow you to transfer the funds via ATM, your own bank’s website, or by going to the window at your bank or the post office.
Why can’t I use my Taiwan PayPal account?
Unfortunately, the law applying to Taiwan credit cards also apples to Taiwan PayPal accounts. You cannot use a PayPal account registered in Taiwan to pay a vendor with a PayPal account registered in Taiwan. See the previous question for options.
Can I give you my credit card information over the phone or by email?
Our agreement with PayPal forbids us from accepting your credit card information and submitting it directly. However, your information is submitted directly on PayPal’s site, not on our site. PayPal is the market leader in providing secure online payments and their entire business is based on protecting your payment information. Therefore, they can do this much better than we can. Please do not email your credit card information to us under any circumstances. Unlike PayPal, email is not secure and it is possible that your information could be seen by third parties.
How is Avignon Florist different from all the other online flower shops?
We don’t consider ourselves an online flower shop at all. We are a local flower shop with a store in Neihu District of Taipei City. We arrange our flowers by ourselves and deliver them personally. If you call or write, you will speak personally with either Dave or Vanessa. We just happen to advertise our store online for the convenience of our customers. When you search for flower shops in Taiwan, the vast majority of results are “virtual flower shops” that do not have a physical presence in Taiwan at all. If you would like to know the advantages of shopping with a local florist, see my blog posts “Why You Should Order From a Local Florist” and “5 Tips To Find a Local Florist“.
If you have a question that we didn’t answer here, please let us know here.