Grupo Riba Smith is a shipping company run by the Riba Smith grocery chain in Panama City Panama

Lcda. Orly L. Arauz
Dept. de Pedidos Directos
Delvi Inc.
Grupo Riba Smith
Tel: (507) 209-3939 ext. 4408
Tel USA: 1-305-407-9185
www.Delvi.com

Since the almost ONLY company I was a fan of in Panama while I was there was Riba Smith, I’m more than happy to recommend them, although the one time I did call them to find out pricing, the girl couldn’t speak English well & never called me back, but there’s a US number above. Saying that, I find that even when I call an American number, if the company has anything to do with a Panamanian company, the lack of good service shows. I hope your experience will be better than mine.

Grupo Riba Smith is a shipping agent in Florida that will take anything you can fit into a container. They charge by volume, not the weight, so for items that are heavy and dense, this is a bonus if you are shipping from the US to Panama.

Make sure you create a shipping manifest telling them how many boxes you have, and the value of your contents.

Their ship ships out their containers once a week from Miami. It then clears customs and your items are transfered to their warehouse in Costa del Este which is closest to David Panama. If you are moving closer to Panama City, ask them where it’s shipped to.

They then call or e-mail you with the bill for the shipping, duty, taxes and fees. You can deposit the payment in one of their two bank accounts anywhere within Panama.

From there you take the invoice and receipt to Fletes Chavalle which is a Panamanian local shipping company who I have used a few times and is efficient. They will pick it up at the port and deliver it to David or Panama city. You pay for the Fletes Chavalle shipping when you pick up your shipment.

Now since Fletes Chavalle doesn’t have hydraulic lifts on the backs of their trucks, they will charge you a premium plus truck rental for any large crates, so you may want to pack things in smaller boxes.