Canada Post, Ottawa, and Borderfree Ltd., a technology services company based in Toronto, announced a service yesterday that automatically converts currency for Canadian customers making purchases at U.S.-based Web sites.
Twenty merchants and more than 100 Web sites currently are enabled with the Borderfree technology, including the National Hockey League, Crate and Barrel, and Brookstone.
When Canadian consumers shop at these sites, they receive the cost (including duties and taxes) in Canadian dollars and the approximate delivery time. Purchased items are delivered to a consolidation site in the United States where they are validated by a broker and prepared for import. Once in Canada, the items go to Canada Post for delivery to the consumer.
The service complements Canada Post's GoShopping Online Directory, a virtual shopping mall featuring 1,000 online Canadian stores accessible through one Web site, www.GoShopping.canadapost.ca.
According to Canada Post, 40 percent of all Canadian online purchases are from U.S. Web sites.
