Here's how it works:
1) You buy zee fish, and pay the breeder tha price of the fish and a small fee to have them shipped to the transhipper (I like the make the initiative of e-mailing the breeder instead of waiting for them to e-mail me, because they have a lot to keep track of). This is usually $5 or $6. It is so little because a lot of fish get shipped at the same time, so $5 per fish covers the shipping cost. Most breeders will ship to whatever transhipper you want, but some will only ship two or or two different ones. I have gone through Victorea Earnest for transhipping and have bought fish directly from Jennifer Vivieros... and I highly recommend either of them.
2) After I win a fish, I like to contact the transhipper I'll be using and let them know they're going to be receiving a fish I bought (with the breeder's name and whatnot). You pay the transhipper a few dollars in import fees, and the price of shipping from him/her to you.
3) I believe it's once per month, the huge shipment of fish leave the breeder's country and get sent to the transhipper. The transhipper picks up the fish from the airport, brings them home, unpacks them all, gives them all once-overs, provides a place for them to stay for the night (or however long it is before you've worked it out to receive them), and ships them out usually the next day.
All in all, it is quite easy after you've taken the plunge, and it only costs about $8 more per fish to get them from overseas vs. the US. Hopefully that helps. If you have any other questions I can try to answer them.
One final question. How many ozs are the jars you put the bettas in after they've hit puberty supposed to be? I've seen 32 advertised, but is that too small?
