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Late orders & ship-by dates

Every order you receive has a ship-by date — the date by which the piece should leave, based on the lead time set on the product plus the order date. When a piece passes that date without shipping, it's flagged as late.

Written by The Oblist

Where you'll see "late"

  • Dashboard — a red banner: "X order(s) past the ship-by date". It can't be dismissed and disappears on its own once you've shipped (added tracking).

  • Orders list — a red ⚠ Late tag next to the affected orders.

These are there to protect your reputation with collectors and keep your account in good standing.
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What to do

  1. Ship the piece and add the tracking as soon as you can — that clears the

    flag automatically.

  2. Genuinely running late? Open the order and Report a delay so we keep the

    collector informed with the right tone (see Reporting a production delay). Once we confirm a revised date, the order steps back off the late radar until then.

How "late" is calculated

  • Based on the product's lead time (e.g. "4–6 weeks") and the order date.

  • Pieces that are shipped (tracking added) or delivered are never flagged.

  • Pieces still awaiting a separate shipping arrangement (white-glove) are handled on their own timeline, not flagged as late here.

Good to know

  • Keep your product lead times accurate in your catalogue — that's what the ship-by date is built on. Too short and you'll look late when you're not.

  • A reported (and confirmed) delay is the clean way to handle a real hold-up — it's not the same as ignoring a late order.

Where to find it

The late banner is on your Dashboard; the Late tag is in your Orders list.

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