Frequently Asked Questions

The easiest way to pay for your order is with a credit card.
Paying by credit allows you to earn points from your bank on purchases, and speeds up the refund process if items become unavailable.

If you cannot pay for your order using a credit card, we now offer PayPal as an alternative option.

What is PayPal and how does it work?

PayPal is an online payment system that makes paying for things online and sending and receiving money safe and secure. When you link your bank account, credit card or debit card to your PayPal account, you can use PayPal to make purchases online with participating stores.

You can also pay using your Iqaluit Child First Initiative voucher, which is used like a Gift Card at checkout.

If you have any questions about payment options please email orders@thenorthernshopper.com

You can use your Inuit Child First Initiative Vouchers for payment by entering the code you received in email at checkout. The amount you owe will be reduced by the amount remaining on your voucher (Up to $500). Please do not put Food and Diapers on the same order. You must use your Food voucher separately from the diaper voucher or the order will need to be redone, due to reporting requirements from the City of Iqaluit.

Unfortunately we do not accept Email Money Transfers as a form of payment.

If you would like to pay for your order with a debit card, we would suggest using PayPal.

What is PayPal and how does it work?

PayPal is an online payment system that makes paying for things online and sending and receiving money safe and secure. When you link your bank account, credit card or debit card to your PayPal account, you can use PayPal to make purchases online with participating stores.

If you have any questions about payment options please email orders@thenorthernshopper.com

We cannot begin an order until payment has been received.  Your order is not placed in the fulfillment queue until we receive payment, so it is wise to pay using a credit card when placing your order.

If you are a regular airline employee, please choose your actual community and proceed with your online shopping.  At checkout, please add your employee number to the delivery address. When placing an order as an Airline Employee, a Northern Shopper agent will refund the freight to the original form of payment once the order is paid in full and
fulfilled.

If an item is unavailable at the time of packing the order, your item will be refunded to you. Refunds can take 2-5 business days to show back on your card.  Items may be unavailable due to stock,quality, or other uncontrollable issues.

If you paid using a credit card, we will refund within 24 hours of fulfilling the order.  Please allow a few business days for the funds to return to your card. 

To use a gift card, use the gift card code the purchaser received via email.  The code must be entered into the Discount Code Field at checkout on our website.

This usually occurs when the postal code used in the billing address in your online store account profile does not match with the postal code in the shipping address or the postal code that was used when your credit card was first activated. Please make sure that your billing address in your online store account profile is the same as the address where your credit card is registered.

If an order is unsuccessful due to card failure, the charge will show up as “pending” or “authorized” on your credit card statement. Please allow at least 24-48 hours for the pending charge to disappear. 



If an order is successful, the pending charge will then change to “posted” on your credit card statement as the charge has been processed.

If you are having issues making a payment, please contact our team at orders@thenorthernshopper.com or call 613-224-1549 between Monday and Friday, 9am to 4pm (we are closed for all Stat holidays)

The time between when you place your order on thenorthernshopper.com and when you receive your purchase is broken up into two phases: processing and shipping.

Processing is when we verify the details of your billing information and prepare your item for shipping in our warehouse(packaging, labelling, and deep freezing when necessary)

Shipping is when the shipment has left our warehouse and has been tendered to Canadian North Cargo Ottawa.  Shipping times can vary based on proximity to a freighter day, weather events, and other variables outside of Northern Shopper’s control.

Your order begins processing immediately after you click “Place order”. There is a limited time after you submit your order when it may be possible to change your shipping address, shipping method or payment method, but once the order moves into the shipping process it cannot be changed.

To request a modification after you have submitted your order, please contact us with your order number for quick resolution.

We fulfill orders Monday to Friday (business days).  We deliver to the airport in Ottawa from Monday to Friday. An average order will be filled within 1-2 business days of receiving it. 

There is a minimum order value of $99.

Yes, there is an order minimum shipping weight requirement to be met. Please see below for details:

• Iqaluit
  Minimum Weight Per Order: 14.33kg
• Igloolik
  Minimum Weight Per Order: 5.16kg
• Pangnirtung
  Minimum Weight Per Order: 6.79kg
• Pond Intel
  Minimum Weight Per Order: 4.71kg
• Kinngait (Cape Dorset)
  Minimum Weight Per Order: 6.42kg
• Sanirajak (Hall Beach)
  Minimum Weight Per Order: 5.24kg
• Qikiqtarjuaq
  Minimum Weight Per Order: 6.40kg
• Rankin
  Minimum Weight Per Order: 6.82kg
• Arctic Bay
  Minimum Weight Per Order: 4.27kg
• Resolute
  Minimum Weight Per Order: 3.77kg
• Kimmirut
  Minimum Weight Per Order: 8.14kg
• Clyde River
  Minimum Weight Per Order: 5.39kg

If you are a regular airline employee, please choose your actual community and proceed with your online shopping.  At checkout add your employee number to the delivery address, or notes section. 

For Airline Employees who place an order though our website the order has to be paid in full, and the freight is refunded after the order is placed, and fulfilled.

Regular Airline employees are eligible for the Nutrition North Canada Subsidy, and the cost of freight will also be removed from your order. 

If you have any further questions about this process please contact orders@thenorthernshopper.com

Creating an account makes it simple to shop at thenorthernshopper.com. With an account, you can track your order online, you can save your address and credit card for faster checkouts, and you can manage your subscription to our newsletter. Accounts are easy to create, easy to manage, and certainly helpful if you are a regular customer.

Orders cannot be cancelled or modified once they have been prepared. If you need to cancel or modify your order, please email orders@thenorthernshopper.com as soon as possible.

Yes, we are here to help our customers have access to products we currently do not have on our website.  Email us at orders@thenorthernshopper.com and we will try our best to add those items to our website. 

Note, if we have a similar item, we may not be able to carry a duplicate product that is differentiated by brand, but we may consider changing brands for you.

Once at checkout, you will see an option of allowing substitutes if an item is unavailable. If the item requested is not available, depending on your choice of allowing subs or not, we will add a substitute of equal or higher value, or we will refund you for the items. If any details about subs need to be made aware to our team, you can add in the notes section of your order at checkout.

Please let us know if you are not satisfied with your order.  We can either credit, refund, or reship, depending on the issue. If the product has spoiled during transit, please take pictures and send the details to orders@thenorthernshopper.com. We guarantee all our products for quality and freshness and will work put a smile back on that face of yours. 

If an item is not as advertised, defective, damaged, or expired, we will provide a credit or refund.

We cannot provide a credit or refund for items that a customer changes their mind about or if the item was a custom request without pictures or other key specifics.

If there is an item you are looking for that you cannot find on our website, please contact orders@thenorthernshopper.com and we will see if we can add it to the website for you permanently.

We understand that food security also pertains to accessing culturally specific foods. With this in mind, we do continue to accept food deliveries from stores specializing in international ingredients that we do not already carry.  For example, African Queen, T&T Supermarket, Pilipino, European, and other international grocery stores.  These deliveries are not subsidized but you will be able to access discounted freight rates.  Additional repackaging fees may also apply. 

For non-food items, we offer freight-forwarding, pickup, purchasing and receiving services. Contact MJ@thenorthernshopper.com for more information.  For example, furniture, appliances, textiles, machinery and electronics, sports equipment, alcohol with permit, and house plants, to name a few things.

If you are having issues placing your order, please contact our team at orders@thenorthernshopper.com or call 613-224-1549 between Monday and Friday, 9am to 4pm (we are closed for all Stat holidays)

We deliver to Ottawa Cargo 5 days a week, Monday to Friday.

After your order is packed, you will receive an email with your tracking number. You can login to your account and track orders in your Account Page by clicking on the tracking number. Please allow up to 24 hours after delivery to Ottawa Cargo for the tracking number to be activated by Canadian North Cargo. If the number has not activated within two days of receiving it, please contact us at orders@thenorthernshopper.com.

We are currently in the process of creating a delivery notification that informs our customer of real-time updates on the location of their shipment. This means that even if your order is partially delivered, our team will contact you with an update. We hope in the future this will create a more efficient way of tracking your order!

All shipping fees are included in the prices of the products found on www.thenorthernshopper.com. The Nutrition North Canada Subsidy is also applied to all eligible products shipping to Nunavut.  On your final invoice you will see a "Cost Breakdown" with shipping and taxes.  These amounts are not in addition to the product prices seen above, it is just a breakdown to show you, Nutrition North Canada, and Canada Revenue agency how much shipping and subsidy make up the cost of the products you purchased.

Once you receive a tracking number, it should take 1 to 4 days for cooler to arrive in Iqaluit, and 1 to 7 days for freezer and dry to arrive in Iqaluit.  Please allow additional time for communities beyond Iqaluit.

You may go to Canadian North Cargo once you have been notified by phone that your order is ready for pickup.  If you have not received a call but the tracker at https://canadiannorth.com/cargo/track-and-trace/ shows that your order has shipped, please allow 24 hours before contacting cargo as agents need to unload and sort the cargo cargo plane.

Cooler products have priority over all other items, so it is not uncommon for your cooler and frozen to ship separately. Continue to track your order to keep updated on when your frozen goods ship. The shipping speed hierarchy is as follows, from fastest to slowest: Mail, Guaranteed Merchandise, Cooler, Freezer, Dry Food, General Merchandise.

If you notice your food or merchandise is damaged while you are still at the cargo facility, request a Cargo Loss and Damage Claim and complete the claim, then have an agent acknowledge the damages by signing the claim, then forward the claim to us for reimbursement.

If you notice your food or merchandise is damaged only once you get home, take a bunch of pictures of the damages and email orders@thenorthernshopper.com to begin the claim process.

If you determine that Canadian North Cargo has lost your order in transit, please contact info@thenorthernshopper.com immediately so that we can step in on your behalf to correct the issue.

If you are having issues tracking your order or preparing a cargo loss and damage claim, please contact our team at orders@thenorthernshopper.com or call 613-224-1549 between Monday and Friday, 9am to 4pm (we are closed for all Stat holidays)

Yes, we offer receiving services for sealift orders that you complete online. You will need a sealift contract to prepare a shipping notice. Please visit our sealift section.

Aurora Reward Points are eligible on product purchases made on our online store (norshop.ca). We do not offer Aurora Reward Points on other services related to sealift (example, receiving, maritime shipping, custom procurement).

Ship to the following address: 

Your Full Name - Your Sealift Contract Number c/o Northern Shopper

46 Antares Drive, Unit 1 

Ottawa, ON 

K2E7Z1 

**Please note, our receiving hours are 9-4 Monday-Friday** 

Please complete our Freight Forwarding Request form here to make your experience as smooth as possible.

It is very important that your name shows up on the package or else we will not know who it is for. If your order is coming from the USA or another country, you may be required to pay additional customs duties. We do not pay customs duties on your behalf unless we purchased the item on your behalf.

We offer a range of services to suit your needs. The rate from our door to yours averages $1.76 per kilogram to Iqaluit.

Yes, we can help you ship Dangerous Goods.  We do not process these shipments in house, but we do all the logistics to make sure the goods are safe for maritime transport.  The costs can be prohibitive, please contact us before making a purchase of a Dangerous Good to be transported by air so that you can see if the price of Dangerous Goods processing is worth it.

Many items can be dangerous goods without us knowing it. Always search for the product SDS online and check section 14 to know if it may be dangerous good. For example, soda stream charges, most paints and stains, propane, other compressed gases such as air fresheners and cooking spray, some automobile parts such as shocks and batteries, some adhesives, all motorized vehicles, all engine-powered tools such as generators and pressure washers, ammunitions, and chemical cleaners and solvents.

We can source, purchase/pickup, inspect and repackage any item from any store in Canada for a reasonable price.  Please contact sealift@thenorthernshopper.com for an estimate or quote (quotes can only be offered with exact details given). 

We do ship IKEA Orders.  We can receive your order at our warehouse, pickup your Click and Collect order, or purchase your items on your behalf. 

If you are having issues placing your General Merchandise order, please contact our Freight Logistics Coordinator at mj@thenorthernshopper.com or call 613-224-1549 between Monday and Friday, 9am to 4pm (we are closed for all Stat holidays)

Yes, we offer a popular freight forwarding service called Norship to help you gain access to more companies and merchandise from Southern Canada. Additionally, we can pickup online/telephone orders on your behalf, or complete purchases on your behalf.  We can even help you find an item that you cannot find on your own. Please visit the Norship section to start your request.

Ship to the following address: 

Your full name c/o Northern Shopper

46 Antares Drive, Unit 1 

Ottawa, ON 

K2E7Z1 

**Please note, our receiving hours are 9-4 Monday-Friday** 

Please complete our Freight Forwarding Request form here to make your experience as smooth as possible.

It is very important that your name shows up on the package or else we will not know who it is for. If your order is coming from the USA or another country, you may be required to pay additional customs duties. We do not pay customs duties on your behalf unless we purchased the item on your behalf.

There is a minimum per shipment shipping charge of $44.84, and a $20.00 handling fee for smaller shipments.

Community rates are as follows. Prices are subject to change (higher or lower) and your official estimate will contain the most up-to date pricing:

• OTTAWA to IQALUIT: $5.19 + GST / KG
• OTTAWA to ARCTIC BAY: $15.81 + GST / KG
• OTTAWA to CLYDE RIVER: $12.50+ GST / KG
• OTTAWA to IGLULIK: $13.39 + GST / KG
• OTTAWA to POND INLET: $14.88 + GST / KG
• OTTAWA to KIMMIRUT: $8.25 + GST / KG
• OTTAWA to RESOLUTE BAY: $18.13 + GST / KG
• OTTAWA to KINNGAIT: $10.34 + GST / KG
• OTTAWA to SANIRAJAK: $13.40 + GST / KG
• OTTAWA to QIKIQTARJUAK: $10.80 + GST / KG
• OTTAWA to PANGNIRTUNG: $10.26 + GST / KG
• IQALUIT-SOUTH BOUND to OTTAWA: $4.39 + GST / KG ($39 MIN)

All minimum receiving charges are waived for approved commercial clients.

Additional re-packing or inspection fees may apply.

Yes, we can help you ship Dangerous Goods.  We do not process these shipments in house, but we do all the logistics to make sure the goods are safe for air transport.  The costs can be prohibitive, please contact us before making a purchase of a Dangerous Good to be transported by air so that you can see if the price of Dangerous Goods processing is worth it.

Lithium-Ion batteries are subject to Dangerous Goods processing fees (For example, laptops, cell phones, remote control toys, cordless power tools, cordless appliances, etc). Other items may also be dangerous goods (For example, soda stream charges, most paints and stains, propane, other compressed gases such as air fresheners and cooking spray, some automobile parts such as shocks and batteries, some adhesives, all motorized vehicles, all engine-powered tools such as generators and pressure washers, ammunitions)

We can source, purchase/pickup, inspect and repackage any item from any store in Canada for a reasonable price.  Please contact mj@thenorthernshopper.com for an estimate or quote (quotes can only be offered with exact details given). 

We do ship IKEA Orders.  We can receive your order at our warehouse, pickup your Click and Collect order, or purchase your items on your behalf. 

If you are having issues placing your General Merchandise order, please contact our Freight Logistics Coordinator at mj@thenorthernshopper.com or call 613-224-1549 between Monday and Friday, 9am to 4pm (we are closed for all Stat holidays)

In ALL situations, the client must do these steps first:

1. Fill out the Cargo Loss / Damage Report with a cargo agent before leaving the facility. This is per the Canadian North Claims Policy; if you receive conflicting information from the cargo agent when you request this at Cargo, please let us know.
2. Provide us with all applicable receipts. In the case of a damaged item, please provide photos.

Different Cases for Claims

3RD PARTY FOOD ORDERS (WE DID NOT PURCHASE)

We will process the claim on your behalf and reimburse you immediately for the entire freight amount. Unfortunately, we cannot award any monetary value to the food until the airline makes a full judgment, which can take 12 - 18 months.

UNINSURED FREIGHT FORWARDING / PROCUREMENT

We will process the claim on your behalf and reimburse you immediately for the entire freight amount. Unfortunately, we cannot award any monetary value to the products until the airline makes a full judgment, which can take 12 - 18 months. 

Without insurance, the max the airline will typically reward is $1.10/kg.

PROCUREMENT WITH INSURANCE

We will process the claim on your behalf. We can either replace the entire order at no charge or refund you for the product and freight fees.

FREIGHT FORWARDING WITH INSURANCE

We will process the claim on your behalf and reimburse you immediately for the entire freight amount plus the insured value for the product.