Hello from Spray HQ
Hi Everyone,
How are you all? Just a quick catch up from us here at Spray HQ. I know everyone is keen to know when the Meta Pirate spray will be back in stock. We are having to be a bit cautious as when we released the first batch we were completely overwhelmed with demand. We sold out very quickly, leaving us with a backlog of 100+ orders. Then the lock down happened and we lost Michelle and Lin. Brooke and I did the best we could on our own but then as most of you know she had an accident and was out of action for quite a while so it was just me doing what I could while trying to care for her. Thankfully she has been improving well and is able to work a bit more now so we are gradually catching up. However, we know as soon as the Meta Pirate is back in stock we will be inundated with orders again. Stocks of some sprays are lower than we would like as it is a delicate balancing act between sending out orders and having enough sprays to fulfill those orders! People rarely order just one spray and I know a lot of you have been postponing placing orders waiting for the Meta Pirate too, if we release say another 100 again we know that 24 hours later they will have sold out and we'll have a backlog of 100+ orders. So what we have decided to do is release small amounts of it at a time and when we have dealt with those orders, we will release more. I know it's not ideal but it's necessary for us to stay sane and at least have the illusion that we are on top of this!
So, apologies that things have not been happening as quickly as usual. Of course everyone is in the same boat, our suppliers, the Royal Mail, all are working with less staff and have backlogs as a result. Even when we get the orders out we know that they are going to sit at the Royal Mail depot for a while waiting for a flight to the relevant country. There are only 10% of the usual number of flights leaving the UK at this time. So you have to allow at least 4 weeks if you are not in the UK, there are backlogs at custom points as well. To help expedite your orders can I just ask that you give as much information as possible with your order ie please make sure we have your email and phone number, if you give your mobile you will get text updates too. We never pass on your information to anyone else, it is simply to ensure we can keep you informed. If we don't have an email address then you won't be sent a shipping confirmation or your tracking details. Also do double check your email addresses, we get quite a few emails bouncing back due to a typo in the email address. At least if you've added a mobile number you will get a text notification.
Today is a holiday in the UK so no orders will be going out again until Monday. However we are working to stock up on sprays. Yes Meta Pirate is on the list! But the list is long and the sprays for which we have orders waiting must come first.
One of the other challenges of the lock down is that we are seeing shortages of some products that are essential to produce the sprays. The latest of these is atomisers. If you have ordered recently you may have noticed that some of them are different to our normal ones. There is a worldwide shortage I'm afraid and there won't be any more in the whole of the UK until mid June. We will have run out long before then and we can't make sprays without them so it's a problem. We are working on it and hope we have found a solution but please bear with us until the middle of June when hopefully normal service is resumed.
While we are on the subject, if you have a blocked atomiser the following method (which can also be found on our FAQ page) works really well. Place the atomiser head down in a mug of boiling water, leave to soak until the water is cool enough to touch. Turn the atomiser the other way up and, with the tail in the water, pump the warm water through. If it's just a blockage this will clear it but you may have to repeat the process. If your atomiser is actually broken, ie the spring isn't working, then please email me and we can send you a replacement. Bear in mind that if you are not in the UK it will likely take a few weeks to reach you.
We have also had a couple of queries about the Sunrise New Dawn spray. Asking if it is "off" or there is something wrong with it because there is sediment at the bottom. There isn't anything wrong with it I promise. This spray contains Benzoin essential oil, which is a thick resin. When it's cold it can thicken or solidify. When you shake the spray it can also leave smears on the inside of the glass which may not look particularly attractive perhaps but the spray is fine. If you place a crystal chip in the bottle it will help to emulsify the oils when you shake the bottle. Little drops of Benzoin can also sit at the bottom of the bottle. These are attracted to the bottom of the atomiser tube and this can cause the blockages. It's a good idea to take the tube out and wipe it off, you can even cut the end off (on a slant) which provides a wider opening. This is predominantly an issue in the winter and particularly when orders have been waiting a long time in cold warehouses etc. We are working on a new formulation for all the sprays which enables all the oils to be completely dissolved in the water so this will no longer be an issue. You may receive a spray which has an extra label listing this new solubiser and preservative we are using. More news about this another time when all is finalised.
One last thing, if you wouldn't mind writing a review of your favourite sprays on the website we'd be very grateful. It's easy to do, just go to the relevant product page and you will see a place for reviews at the bottom. Thank you and thank you to everyone who has already done this. It's so helpful for others to have this information when trying to decide which spray to buy.
I think that's all for now. Thank you for your continued patience and understanding, we've had some lovely emails from you and these are always appreciated. Thank you so much as well to those of you who sent love and healing to Brooke, we were so appreciative and I'm sure it helped as she has made such a good recovery considering the damage she did.
Take care and stay safe everyone.
Much Love from all at Spray HQ!
Tracy x