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Top E-Commerce Markets to Explore in the Middle East
Trade and retail analysts are in agreement that the Internet has made the world one big market. The unprecedented and phenomenal success of Amazon is clear proof of this assertion. The global retail market is further divided on the loose basis of regions from an e-commerce standpoint. For instance, there is an Asia Pacific market, and then there is this MENA (the Middle East and North Africa) region.
The best thing about the ongoing e-commerce boom is that its benefits are not limited to an elite club of conglomerates. Even online ventures operated by individual sellers can sell their products in the far-off markets without going broke. If you are also one of an ambitious small online vendor who is looking to tap into the Middle Eastern market, then read on. We are going to discuss some of the top E-commerce avenues of the region where you can exhibit your products with the help of a seasoned Importer of Record.
We are going to divide these markets/platforms into two categories, i.e., the ones that offer to list and the ones that offer holistic e-commerce services (from storage to delivery).
E-Commerce Marketplaces (Websites) Offering Selling Programs
If you have acquired a warehouse in the country of your target market (UAE, KSA, etc.) or have made an arrangement with e-commerce IORs regarding the safekeeping of your cargo, then these are the options you can explore.
Awok
Awok is one of the leading marketplaces in the Middle East, especially in the KSA and UAE (the two major contributors to the online economy of the region). With an annual revenue of over $60 million and a workforce of 700 employees, the website primarily gets traction for its buzzing marketplace of electronics. If you are also dealing in electronic gadgets and gear, then becoming a seller on Awok is worth a shot.
Besides its impressive online footprint, you should also consider working on Awok because you don’t need to pay any amount to register yourself as a seller. Similarly, the listing of products is also free. You need to pay Awok just for the products sold.
Lets Tango
Let’s Tango is another marketplace that promises you good exposure in the Middle Eastern E-commerce landscape with its listings. You don’t need to have a big bulky portfolio to register yourself in their seller program. Any individual seller working with an e-commerce IOR can reach out to prospective customers through Lets Tango.
Lets Tango is primarily known for the shopping of electronic appliances, sports gear, and fashion items. So, there are many niches that you can explore with your products. You don’t need to pay to become a seller on Lets Tang. However, the 10% commission has to be paid on every item sold. The best thing about Lets Tango is its seller-friendly interface.
You are not required to install any plug-in or dedicated app to work on Lets Tango. A seller Dashboard embedded in its website is enough to streamline your activity on the platform.
Jollychic E-Commerce
Jollychic is a Chinese platform that has become a leading e-commerce marketplace in the Middle East in the last couple of years. Besides MENA, it also extends its services to several European countries. If you are planning to scale your business in different regions at the same time, then it is the place to be.
The majority of Middle Eastern buyers used Jollychic for electronic appliances and apparel. But the website also takes care of a range of consumer goods. Like the majority of leading e-commerce marketplaces, this one also offers free registration and commission-based service charges (15% on every item sold).
Easy Shopping
As the name suggests, this e-commerce marketplace has one of the most elementary user interfaces to work with. If you are expanding your brick-and-mortar operations on the digital medium, then you can pick this website as the starting point. Like UI, the registration of Easy Shopping is also a breeze. It is good for placing jewelry items, watches, and home appliances.
If you are already working with an expert e-commerce IOR, then you can register yourself on Easy Shopping within a couple of minutes. However, if you are already working online and want to enter the Middle Eastern market in high gear, then don’t sell through Easy Shopping only.
Cobone E-Commerce
Cobone is one of the most established e-commerce marketplaces in the Middle East. It has been working in the region for the longest time among all the platforms we have discussed so far. The website deals with both services and products. If you are looking to sell your auto, beauty, and food products in some target markets within the region, then it’s a good place to start.
Cobone doesn’t just offer placement on lists. It can also devise your marketing campaigns and can write ad copies for you. Due to its targeted listings and extended services, you need to pay 15% to get referrals (while registration is free).
E-Commerce Marketplaces (Websites) Offering Complete Fulfillment Programs
As discussed earlier, you have two options to work in the Middle East e-commerce marketplace. One is to list your products on the given website, get your products on the destination port through a good e-commerce Importer of Record, and then manage your inventory and packaging.
The other route is to register in a complete program where the e-commerce operator will take care of your shipments from storage to packaging to delivery. In the Middle Eastern market, two major players are offering holistic e-commerce services to small and individual online sellers. One, of course, is Amazon, and the other is Noon (Noon Seller Lab).
Amazon (Souq)
Souq was the largest E-commerce marketplace in the Middle East when Amazon acquired it two years ago. Now, Amazon runs its operations in the Middle East through the storefront of Souq. It is a no-brainer that if you are looking to make a full-fledged entry into KSA, UAE, or any other Middle Eastern nationwide market, then you need to be on Souq.
Although the registration and listing process on Souq is pretty simple, you still need to prove your business credentials by registering your venture in the respective country. If you are already taking care of your shipments to these countries through an e-commerce IOR and want to get around this requirement, then pick a company that is also an approved Amazon IOR Importer of Record service provider.
These companies are seller IORs that can assume the role of your front. In other words, you don’t need to get into the exhaustive process of business registration and documentation. Just work with a reputable Amazon Importer of Record, and it will take care of everything— from importing your products to the destination ports to delivering them to the Fulfillment Centers and then getting them listed on the platform using its seller status.
The nominal fee you pay to your Amazon IOR in the Middle East is nothing in comparison to the laundry list of upfront and overhead expenses you need to spare otherwise.
Noon (Noon Marketplace)
Though not as big as Amazon, Noon.com also offers a holistic selling mechanism. Its Seller Lab allows you to benefit from the extensive network of the company, particularly in the UAE, to sell products. Like Amazon, it also offers a Fulfillment program that comes quite handy for small online ventures operating with limited resources.
Noon also requires you to register your venture in the region to benefit from its Seller program. This is the requirement that stops many small and individual sellers from exploring this buzzing e-commerce marketplace. However, you can get around this constraint.
Like Amazon Affiliates, you can also find Noon Importers of Record that are already enjoying the status of the seller on the platform. They can help you get the ball rolling if you are new in the market and don’t want to risk big investments.
Bottom Line
Entering the Middle Eastern marketplace entails a lucrative prospect. It is a region that is experiencing the highest growth of smartphone users. Moreover, it is one of those few global markets where a large number of consumers are into luxury goods and willing to spend matching amounts. It is a place where even fewer sales can generate higher profits. Also, the existing offline retail businesses in the region are not that excited about exploring the online potential. Some estimates suggest that only 15-20% of brick-and-mortar Middle Eastern chains have online fronts.
All these points and indicators suggest that it’s just the right time for small and individual online sellers to enter the Middle Eastern e-commerce landscape along with an experienced e-commerce Importer of Record.
Benefits of Outsourcing Fashion Shipping Logistics to Experts
Outsourcing Garment/Fashion Shipping
The Internet has opened the doors of endless opportunities for entrepreneurs working in any market and business niche. If we particularly talk about the garment/fashion industry, then it has experienced exponential growth in the retail sector due to the Internet and connectivity. It won’t be wrong to say that there now exists a consolidated global garment marketplace where people can shop from all over the world.
There are still some areas and kinks that need to be addressed. For instance, garment manufacturers and aspirant shippers are not able to execute their plans for going international because they are not operationally strong enough and prepared to take on the herculean task of importing goods.
In many cases, garment manufacturers resolve and scale up their business to international markets while managing garment/fashion shipping logistics themselves. But soon, they realize that there is so much loss of opportunity in dealing with apparel shipping from the in-house resources that it is not worth it. What’s the point of scaling up your business to international markets if your revenue continues to lurk around the break-even point?
If you are also one of those garment vendors who can’t settle on whether going overseas is a lucrative prospect or not, then read on. We are going to discuss a way in which you can make your overseas venture worthwhile and fulfill the targets of your business expansion. You can do this by outsourcing your fashion shipping to professionals.
Let’s see how you can benefit from outsourcing your shipping operations rather than dealing with them on your own.
You Don’t Have to Create Your Supply-Chain
For all those small and medium-sized enterprises that want to ship their garments to premium markets like the US, EU, and Australia, the task of creating an overseas supply chain proves to be enough to deter them. Creating an international supply chain is no mean task. Even large multinationals and conglomerates face problems in erecting a thriving global supply chain.
In this context, outsourcing your apparel shipping to professionals seems the right option. By hiring a seasoned global garment/fashion shipping logistics service, you can use their intricate network of supply chains spanning every nook and corner of the world. You get to use their wide distribution system which takes years and decades to acquire its current status. Moreover, their storage facilities and comprehensive freight service make sure you don’t have to worry about your garment/fashion shipping logistics at any point in the supply chain.
You Can Optimally Customize Your Garment/Fashion shipping logistics
We often see that a motivated garment manufacturer begins global shipping of its goods on its own but with very limited options and almost no flexibility. Again, having an elementary shipping service won’t help you in realizing your ambitious dream of capturing the international market. However, this scenario does not take place when a professional is handling your garment/fashion shipping logistics. There you get a lot of room to customize your global apparel shipping as per your manufacturing arrangement and clients’ needs.
Let’s try to understand the importance of garment/fashion shipping logistics customization with the help of an example.
Example 1:
An Egyptian apparel company catering to local retailers decides to scale its business to international markets. It tries to set up its importing mechanism and signs a deal with an ocean carrier to ship its apparel goods to the US. The carrier is supposed to procure the consignment from Alexandria to Houston.
Soon after brokering this deal, the company receives an urgent order to deliver 1,000 jackets from a Texas-based wholesaler within five weeks. The manufacturing capacity of the company allows it to complete the order within two weeks. So, the company has three weeks to deliver the consignment to the buyer in the US. By using its shipping service, there is no way it can deliver the order within time.
The average sea transit time from the Port of Alexandria to the Port of Houston is 32 days. Moreover, the company has to wait two days more for the shipping vessel to leave at its prescribed schedule.
Example 2:
Similarly, the same company gets an order of Hawaii shirts from an LA-based wholesaler. The company gets enough time to deliver the shipment via ocean freight. However, the problem is the carrier will unload the consignment at the Houston port, and from there, the Egyptian company has to transport the consignment to the buyer, who is located over 1,500 miles from the port of destination.
Professional Outsourcing Garment/Fashion shipping logistics to the Rescue
In both the above scenarios, the Egyptian garment company can’t benefit from its contract with the carrier company that involves limited shipping options. It has to bear the brunt of added shipping costs, or worse, call off the order altogether. Here, the diverse shipping options that a global garment and IOR company offers will come in handy.
For the first scenario, the Egyptian manufacturer can use the air shipment services of its partner garment/fashion shipping Logistics Company to deliver the order within time. In the second case, the company doesn’t have to procure its consignment to the Houston port. It can directly book ocean freight to Los Angeles with the garment/fashion shipping logistics service.
Having the option to choose between different means of shipping and ports of destination is one of the most important prospects of outsourcing your apparel shipping to professionals. It will make sure you can cater to all clients while meeting their deadlines and can procure their orders to the closest sea and airports.
You Can Simultaneously Scale Your Business to Multiple International Markets For Garment/Fashion
When garment companies want to scale their businesses to international markets while using their resources, they adopt the strategy of “one at a time.” It is surely a sound scaling-up plan with minimal risks involved. However, its pacing is quite an issue. In many instances, businesses can’t scale up to more than two markets because when they can scale up to new markets, they have already been saturated.
Outsourcing of garment/fashion shipping logistics also allows you to venture into various international markets all at once and without exhausting your in-house expertise and resources. For instance, a Moroccan apparel company has the manufacturing capacity to cater to multiple markets with its cotton garments. It can’t make the most of this competence if it tries to run its import network.
On the other hand, by signing up with a global garment/fashion shipping logistics service, it can ship to all the prized markets of the world without altering anything in its existing business function.
A Corollary
This also shows that by outsourcing its garment/fashion shipping logistics, the Moroccan company can focus on its core competency, i.e., manufacturing of cotton apparel. While handing over all the hassle of overseas shipping to professionals, it can further increase its manufacturing capacity to supply to the large international market shortly.
Similarly, it can focus on improving the quality which is an essential requirement to venture into many international markets. Also, it can work on improving its compliance effectiveness. A manufacturer with high standards of compliance measures always has brighter prospects in the international market.
You Can Never Go Wrong with Garment Packing and Packaging
Every item that has to be shipped via air and ocean shipping needs unique packaging and packing. The same is the case with different apparel items. You can’t just book them in large cardboard boxes or gunny sacks for your overseas destinations. The expertise of a seasoned garment/fashion shipping logistics service will come in handy here. They know that not all garment items can be shipped in the same manner. Therefore, they offer relevant options to their shipping clientele.
For instance, if you are delivering a consignment of delicate knitwear from Bahrain to Singapore via ocean freight, then you need to properly fold and pack them in garment boxes because they will remain in transit for more than two weeks. Similarly, if your apparel shipping from Egypt to South Korea consists of silk gowns, then you can’t just fold and pack them in cartons. The consignment will take no less than 38 days to reach the destination via ocean shipping. By spending more than one month in folded and boxed packaging, there are strong chance the gowns will lose their original fall and creases.
After receiving such consignments, the buyer has to iron and steam the apparel which increases its workload and reduces the profit margin. This inconvenience becomes a reason for high attrition rates for many garment manufacturers selling their goods overseas.
You can get around this problem by using the GOH (Garment on Hanger) shipping services of the professional enterprise where you have outsourced your apparel imports. GOH shipping allows you to procure the apparel while they remain on their hangers.
How to Make the Most of Amazon Global Selling?
“The world is at your fingertips”— this phrase is often quoted in the same breath as any mention of the current, precipitous growth of technology, especially the kind related to the Internet. This is no hyperbole. With smartphones in our hands, indeed, we are everywhere at once. The same global and ubiquitous phenomenon of technology and connectivity has also spilled into the business landscape.
As a proprietor, you are not bound by physical constraints anymore. Initiatives, like the Amazon Global Selling program, have changed the game altogether. Now, a small-scale individual seller in one part of the world can sell products to a consumer living in another part of the world without setting up an extensive import and supply-chain infrastructure. For example, a seller, operating out of a garage in New Jersey, can easily make a sale to a customer in Southern Australia. Many small-to-medium enterprises working in local markets have gone worldwide just because of Amazon Global Selling. To say that this brings an enormous opportunity to entrepreneurs around the world wouldn’t be an overstatement.
Nevertheless, many ventures using this Amazon selling feature are not tapping into its full potential. There are many reasons for this, but having no prior experience of imports and customs compliance is the simplest explanation.
If you are mulling over entering the Amazon Global Selling program, then we would suggest that you go all out, fully prepared, instead of cautiously testing the waters. Before we delve deep into the discussion, let’s make one thing clear: you will need to work with an expert e-commerce Importer of Record to make the most of your endeavors on Amazon Global Selling.
Now, let’s see some of the measures that you should consider while operating through Amazon Global Selling.
1) Try to Cater to All the Amazon Marketplaces
There are 14 Amazon online marketplaces spread across five continents. By making an account on Amazon Global Selling, you can sell to consumers in all those markets. However, it has been noticed that many small-scale sellers try to stick to one market only. There is no harm in targeting a single market, but it would be exceedingly better if you reach out to every consumer looking for the type of products you sell from any part of the world through Amazon. There are several reasons why this strategy pays off.
- Your business will not suffer from a formidable competitor that usually enjoys greater traction in a single market. When your sales get divided across 14 different marketplaces, such competitors are not going to affect your business much.
- You can benefit from different purchasing powers in different marketplaces. For instance, you can sell a similar product on Amazon United Kingdom and India at different rates. By manipulating prices and offering discounts by keeping in the purchasing power of the respective region, you can maximize profits successfully.
- When you are an active seller in multiple markets simultaneously, you can get around the side effects of low economic activity in a particular region. A second market can compensate for the inactivity of the first, and so on. This will minimize your risks and protect your investments made on the platform.
So, why do online ventures hesitate to go all out when it entails so many benefits? Well, the first and foremost reason is that they are working without e-commerce Importers of Record. Even the ones that are working with one use services that don’t entail shipments to all the Amazon marketplaces.
Availing the expertise of an Approved Amazon Importer of Record Service Provider that can take your products to all the marketplaces listed on the platform is strongly advised. This will help your business reach every nook and corner of the Amazon Global Selling landscape.
2) Keep an Eye on Local Festivals, Celebrations, and Sporting Events
All retailers and entrepreneurs know that festivals bring in more sales. Likely, you are already dolling out your special Christmas and Easter discount offers. But if you want to work on Amazon Global Selling and want to make the most of it, then you need to look beyond festivals that matter in the region you are operating from.
In India, 20 to 30 religious and social festivals occur annually, including Diwali and Holi. Similarly, in the Middle Eastern Region, you must consider the two Eid festivals if you’re working through an approved Amazon Importer of Record (Amazon IOR).
You need to be aware of local celebrations in regions where Amazon marketplaces are present. Promoting your products during these festivals can significantly boost your sales revenue beyond regular sales.
There is another factor you need to consider while tracking the local festivities. See what are the popular sports in your target market. During, before, and after a major tournament of that sport, you can sell a large number of related products (even remotely related ones) in that marketplace.
Example:
Offering soccer-related accessories and general athletic gear in the French Amazon marketplace after France wins the Soccer World Cup would result in increased sales and profits.
If you’re already working with an e-commerce IOR for your imports, there’s little extra effort required. Simply schedule an annual meeting to organize a calendar, noting all important festival dates and major sporting events in your marketplaces.
3) Work with a Dedicated E-commerce Importer of Record
If you haven’t worked on Amazon Global Selling before, then you must know that Amazon is not going to act as your importer. Many people are under the impression that FBA will also take care of the details of their imports. However, that’s not the case. Amazon and its Fulfillment Centers are not liable to act on your behalf as an importer and take care of all the customs-related requirements.
In short, you will need an importing representative in the country you are taking your business to. For instance, if you are using an FBA for Japan, then you need to have a representative there (e.g., an e-commerce IOR) to oversee the entire importation work. You have two options to work in this scenario.
- Working with the Attorney for Customs Procedures (ACP)
- Working with a Full-Fledged E-commerce IOR
If you opt for the first option, then be prepared to spend both money and time on dealing with your import shipments. ACPs will charge you but will only take care of tax and duty payments in the destination country. The rest of the work (complying with customs laws and different government directives) will still be your responsibility.
On the other hand, a seasoned e-commerce IOR will provide you with all the import-related services. It will take care of your import documentation, declaration, shipment tracking, and customs clearance. In short, it will act as an importer on your behalf so that you can seamlessly get to avail the facility of FBA in that country. These Amazon IORs allow you to focus on your core competencies to scale up your business.
For instance, if you are working with an Approved Amazon Importer of Record (Amazon IOR)Service Provider, you don’t have to worry about anything related to the imports reaching the destination port and the fulfillment center. These established Amazon IORs take care of all these matters.
4) Have a Proactive Marketing Approach on Amazon
Many new sellers, particularly when they start operating on Amazon Global Selling, think that placing the items on the website is enough to reach out to customers. But that’s not the case. Amazon is brimming with sellers and buyers all the time. So, just dropping your product on the website is not enough even if you are working with an Approved Amazon IOR. You need to market your offers as well.
Buyers now treat Amazon as a shopping search engine, so the search bar on Amazon.com acts like one now. Similar to Google, it works on a particular algorithm and makes relevant search suggestions to buyers. All these changes in searching norms on Amazon also require you to mold your marketing and selling strategy accordingly. You need to do some SEO for Amazon. For instance, keep the title of your products concise and full of information so that buyers already know what they are viewing online.
Moreover, try to make the landing page of the product more attractive and engaging. By using Enhanced Brand Content, provided by Amazon on Seller Accounts with a pro subscription, you can add banners, boxes, and more images to the page.
After optimizing the product page, put some money into Amazon marketing service (works like Google Ads). It will give you a good kickstart in any marketplace on the Global Selling Platform.
Fashion Shipping From Jordan & Egypt to the US USA
Egypt and Jordan have always been the hubs of fashion/garment manufacturing in the MENA region. However, this potential hasn’t turned into a large-scale fashion shipping regime. Jordanian and Egyptian fashion manufacturers are importing their goods but not in proportion to the capability of the local manufacturing industry.
Many factors have hindered the growth of both these countries as global fashion exporters. But let’s not just get into this discussion. The good news is things are getting better. Egypt is slowly recovering on the economic front after years of sociopolitical turmoil. Similarly, the looming terror threats in the neighboring countries of Jordan have also been curbed.
On top of that, the administrations in both countries are quite serious about their fashion sectors. For instance, the Egyptian government has vowed to increase its apparel/garment exports four times in the next six years. On the other hand, Jordanian authorities have taken several measures to make their fashion industry better compliant with international standards.
In short, it is the best time for Egyptian and Jordanian fashion enterprises to start thinking about apparel shipping to the overseas market. There are many potential markets that Middle Eastern garment manufacturers can choose as the target of their apparel and fashion shipping.
Fashion Shipping
In this piece, we are going to discuss why Jordanian and Egyptian fashion exporters should target the United States as the destination of their fashion shipments.
US-China Trade/Tariff War Is Going to Help Small Players
The US and China, two of the world’s largest economies and de facto superpowers are up against each other. Both countries are engaged in severe trade skirmishes with each other via tariff manipulations. China is the biggest exporter of apparel and fashion items to the US. More than 70% of the US garment/fashion imports are shipped from China. This humungous share is going to shrink shortly. The US will try its best to cut down on Chinese fashion imports by giving more opportunities to other Asian countries.
This situation offers a golden opportunity for Jordanian and Egyptian fashion manufacturers to build their capacity and reach out to US buyers. No other overseas market offers such a unique and lucrative fashion shipping prospect to the emerging fashion industry.
Low Manufacturing Expenses Increase the Chances of Success
So, why the US is persisting with China as its trading partner amid such strained economic relationships? The reason is pretty straightforward with a basic financial rationale, i.e., the low price of Chinese goods. The Chinese apparel manufacturers offer quality fashion at a low price, which wipes out all the European competition.
The low manufacturing costs are also the reason why a handful of Asian countries have managed to take a share in US fashion imports. These countries can sell their imported goods at competitive prices without taking any hit on the profit.
Egypt and Jordan also have a working environment similar to other Asian fashion-exporting countries. The labor is cheap, and utilities and other overhead expenses are quite reasonable in both countries. This means fashion enterprises from both these MENA countries can work on the same model and offer their fashion goods at a competitive price.
They just need to make sure that their fashion shipping complies with the US fashion importing standards. By offering the complete package of competitive prices, quality, and compliance, any non-Chinese fashion importer can get its slice of the pie in the US market.
Working in a Niche Will Pay off
Many small-scale fashion enterprises refrain from going big and overseas because they only make a single fashion item. It is important to understand that offering a single type of commodity is not a business weakness anymore. It has now become a strength. There are many cases where a niche-based business is churning more profits than an enterprise offering a wide range of products/services.
The same rule now also applies to fashion businesses. The overseas fashion markets prefer to work with the experts of a niche. For instance, a US wholesaler is more likely to buy Jeans from an enterprise that only deals in denim products.
Even if you are making and selling different apparel items, it would be better if you reach out to the US market with a single item. There are many benefits of having a niche-based approach for your fashion shipping.
- Your business can get better visibility in the brimming, saturated US market
- You can keep your operational costs low by restricting your fashion shipping to a single item
- You will eventually earn the reputation of a specialist for a particular garment item that you ship. This goodwill is going to come in useful when you extend your fashion shipping to other countries.
Exporting to the US Is Pretty Easy
Many fashion enterprises, especially in Jordan, don’t give any thought to shipping their goods to the US because of the prevailing misunderstanding of importing business. For instance, many enterprises think that they have to register their business in the United States to establish a garment supply chain from Jordan. However, that’s not the case.
No Need to Have Any Official Footprint in the US for Fashion shipping
You don’t need to register your business or set up an office on US soil as long as you are working with an experienced Importer of Record. By booking their services, you can deliver your fashion shipping to the US from Egyptian and Jordanian ports with the least hassle. From payment of relevant tariffs to dealing with the CBP officials, a seasoned IOR will take care of every importation step on your behalf.
Lots of Destination Options for Fashion shipping
The United States is the third-largest country by land area and is vastly surrounded by the sea from the three sides. For an overseas fashion supplier entering the US market, it is imperative to select the right destination port for its fashion shipping to keep the logistical costs in check.
If you are working with a seasoned Importer of Record, you can choose from plenty of destinations for both sea freight and air freight. For instance, you can book your apparel shipments for five different seaports located on all three coastlines of the US (east, west, and gulf). You can ship to these ports with a transit time of up to 21 days.
Moreover, you get to choose four different destinations for your air freight, as well. By using air freight, you can have your fashion shipping completely processed within 72 hours.
To sum it all up, shipping fashion/garments out of Jordan and Egypt to the US is not an insurmountable task even if you head a small to medium-scale garment enterprise, given that you are working with an Importer of Record that has enough experience of overseeing the imports to the US ports.
Fashion Shipping Services Are there to Help You
There is no doubt that apparel shipping has its peculiarities. You can’t just ship them by stuffing them in a dry container without specified packaging. You don’t have to worry on that front either since some IORs are now also offering special fashion shipping services to exporters based in Jordan and Egypt.
For instance, if you make leather jackets in Jordan and your US buyer insists on getting the entire consignment on hangers, then there is no need to panic and make excuses to risk your contract. Rope in the IOR/shipping service that offers Garment on Hanger (GOH) shipping from Jordan to the US.
These companies have dedicated dry containers designed to accommodate apparel on hangers. You can book your apparel shipping in these containers to comply with the quality standards needed by your US clientele.
Similarly, you can devise your apparel shipment in garment boxes for items that are packed flat. It is always better to use garment boxes for overseas fashion shipping, even if it is not the requirement. It makes a good impression on your business that eventually translates into better retention rates in an overseas market.
Both Air and Sea Freight Are at Your Disposal for Fashion Shipping
As discussed in the earlier section, you can book both air and ocean freight for your fashion shipments. Having this choice will come in handy in managing your consignments in line with deadlines and a client’s location. For instance, if your client is located in Chicago, then it would be better to use air freight because it will directly deliver the consignment to the location. Otherwise, you have to book both sea and land freight for the consignment. This won’t just raise the shipping cost but will also increase the transit time.
The above discussion suggests that the stage is set for Egyptian and Jordanian fashion enterprises to scale their operations into the lucrative US market. If you would like to know the costs for fashion shipping and logistics, you can get a quote from our fashion experts in both Jordan and Egypt.
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Key Considerations for Scaling Your Apparel Business in Europe
Scaling Your Apparel Business to Europe
The European apparel landscape is one of the trickiest consolidated markets for overseas businesses. It is highly segmented, works with strict compliance measures, and doesn’t have a steady supply-demand equation all the time. Therefore, it has never been easy for Asian garment exporters to introduce their goods to Europe.
If you are a MENA-based garment manufacturer and looking to get your products to the European markets, then you have to do some groundwork first to make your entry smooth and gainful. Randomly venturing into any European market with your apparel shipping can prove to be a counterproductive decision. In this piece, we are going to discuss the factors you need to consider before finalizing your plan to scale your apparel business to the European market.
Identify/Build Your Apparel USP First
This is the most crucial step you have to take for venturing into the European apparel market. Europe is the premium marketplace for garment exporters from all over the world. There is a lot of competition going on there. That’s why your business needs to have a Unique Selling Point (USP) to find its feet in the European market with its clothes shipping. So, how you can build and identify your business’s USP? Let’s try to understand this with the help of an example.
Market Research
Let’s suppose you make apparel items from polyester-based fabric in your manufacturing complex in Egypt and want to reach out to European wholesalers and retailers. First, you have to search which polyester-based apparel is most popular in the European market. You also need to narrow down this research to countries.
After taking the popularity and demand of different polyester clothing items in the different European sub-markets into account, you need to look at the manufacturers that are supplying them. This research will give you a clear picture of how to devise the USP of your apparel shipping to the overseas market.
Let’s say you have found out that polyester-based sportswear is in great demand in the UK and the Scandinavian region. Now, you have to lock in that part of Europe as your target market.
Now, the USP that you can go with is “high quality at a low price.” As mentioned earlier, maintaining the binary of quality compliance is a major prerequisite for entering the consolidated European market. So, you have to make sure the polyester apparel you are manufacturing is on par with the vendors already supplying your target market.
After that, you have to offer your goods at a relatively lower price. This strategy doesn’t entail hefty profits in the beginning. However, this will help you establish your place in the market and will facilitate the expansion of your clientele.
You can also take other approaches to develop your business USP for the European apparel market. For instance, you can focus on the Middle Eastern diaspora in your target market with traditional apparel items. There are strong chances that you won’t experience cut-throat competition in this particular niche.
In short, having a USP is an essential element to make your apparel shipping venture a success in the European market.
Factor in the Purchasing Power of the Market
The European apparel market doesn’t have a homogeneous buying tendency and purchasing power. So, you also need to factor in the purchasing power of the segment of the market you are entering. If your manufacturing plant churns only high-end sportswear, then you need to be cautious about the European destination of your apparel shipping.
For instance, France will be a bigger market for your sports apparel than the Netherlands. However, the purchasing power of Dutch nationals is higher than that of French people. This means your apparel shipping has better and brighter prospects in the Dutch market despite the bigger market size of France.
The same matrix of purchasing power applies to the entire Europe. A Norwegian client will be willing to give you a higher price for the same apparel shipment than an Italian client just because of the difference in the purchasing power of the end consumer.
By factoring in the purchasing power of your target market, you can gauge the demand for the apparel you deal in and as well the revenue you are going to earn.
Doing Business with Wholesalers or Retailers
As an overseas garment manufacturer, you have the option to sell to European wholesalers and retailers. You must decide in the beginning whether you want to reach out to wholesalers or retailers. Let’s discuss the prospects of selling to both.
Trading with Wholesalers
Working with wholesalers naturally becomes a better option if you can manage large apparel shipping orders. Doing business with wholesalers and distributors also entails less hassle, especially if you are operating from an overseas location.
Trading with Retailers
Normally overseas garment exporters avoid doing business with retailers because it involves a lot of work. However, there are some instances where reaching out to retailers is also a good business prospect.
- If a retailer is a big apparel brand in the target market, then you must work with them. This won’t just add value to your exporting portfolio, but it will also unlock new opportunities in your home turf (the MENA region).
- If retailers are offering rates where you can easily arrange all the logistical and operational expenses without bearing any brunt on your profit, then there is no harm in doing business with them.
Build Your Compliance Capacity For Apparel
One can’t stress enough how important it is for any overseas garment supplier to comply with the standards set in the European market. No matter how top-quality stuff you produce, you won’t be able to score an apparel shipping contract from a European buyer if you are careless with compliance measures.
You also need to be proactive in this regard. This means you must work with relevant regulatory and auditing bodies to demonstrate your fully compliant working model. Being linked to these compliance monitoring bodies can act as a good promotional tool for your business in the European apparel landscape.
For starters, you can adopt the initiatives regarding chemical safety and implement them in your manufacturing facility. Moreover, having a comprehensively laid-out Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) development plan can be very helpful in making your business more compliant with European standards in the long run.
The Need for Expert Apparel Shipping Service
Every importing/exporting commodity involves a unique set of shipping requirements for every region. The European ports have their requirements (largely transcribed in the EU laws) for apparel shipping making its way to the European market. Therefore, you need to have garment shipping experts on your team who can iron out all the possible kinks in your apparel shipping.
You don’t have to hire full-time professionals for this. There are expert garment shipping services that can take care of every little detail of consignments comprising clothes. They also take care of all the paperwork related to garment shipments. You just need to furnish those documents (IEC certificates, Wearing Apparel sheets, etc.) to these experts, and they take care of the rest.
Moreover, they can also facilitate you with the particular packaging you need for your apparel shipping to European destinations. They offer regular box shipping for apparel items that fold flat and also GOH (Garment on Hanger) shipping for particular items.
Lastly, they also offer apparel shipping via both air and ocean freight. You can choose either of them, depending on your budget, client’s demands, and deadlines. For example, you can opt for air freight to make sure you can deliver an order on time. Similarly, sea freight offers you a more economical and sustainable means to establish a supply chain to the European market.
By mulling over all the above-discussed things, you will be able to better strategize your entry into the European apparel landscape as a garment producer from the MENA region.
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How to Successfully Sell on Amazon UAE as an Overseas Seller
Barring the occasional setbacks, the UAE is one of the strongest economies in the MENA/GCC region. Emirati consumers have a high purchasing power and are willing to splurge on luxury goods. Even the buyers who are looking for reasonable price tags don’t compromise on the quality just because of high rates. This makes the UAE the most suitable place to get into for e-commerce ventures operating anywhere in the world like Amazon UAE.
If you are managing a local e-commerce enterprise and looking for new markets to explore, but without undergoing logistical and operational hardships and resources overspent, then you should consider selling your products in the UAE. Yes, you can sell in the UAE without the hassle of establishing any infrastructure on the ground hiring local representatives, or registering your business there. This is possible if you are working with an e-commerce Importer of Record such as Amazon UAE that is also working as an Amazon IOR.
To sell your products in the UAE, you can use the Amazon UAE marketplace via a seller IOR. This is the most hassle-free route you can take to reach Emirati buyers. Here, we are going to discuss different things that you need to take into account to execute your plan of selling in the Emirati e-commerce sphere.
Don’t Just Barge Into the Market
The prospect of selling to an affluent consumer base is exciting. And in that excitement, many sellers forget to do the due preparation. For instance, you can’t just ship whatever you sell to Emirati ports through an e-commerce IOR and then get it on Amazon FBA. First, you need to assess what items from your product catalog are in more demand among Emirati buyers.
Look at the best sellers on Amazon’s local marketplace in the product category you want to sell in. It will give you a rough idea of the sellers and products you are up against. To refine your product search, you can use Amazon seller extensions (AMZScout, JungleScout, etc.) that can give you more meaningful details regarding an enlisted product.
Factor in Sales Rank and See How it Suits You through Amazon UAE
This is the most important part of the selection of the products you want the e-commerce Importer of Record to deliver at an Emirati port. You need to see the sales rank of the type of product you want to sell. If the product ranks high, it means it experiences healthy sales but with the caveat of tough competition.
On the other hand, if a product ranks low, it means it doesn’t sell that well, but here you can build your unique seller profile. However, you need to factor in the cost of storage because these products will spend a lot of time in Amazon’s inventory.
In short, you can select your item of shipment more wisely by looking at the ranking of products you want to market in the UAE in their respective Amazon UAE categories.
Be Ready for High Rates of Product Returns
You need to mentally, operationally, and financially prepare yourself to experience high rates of product returns. While offering you a lot of benefits as a seller, Amazon FBA also favors the buyers in some domains. For instance, it is quite easy for them to return a product. So, don’t get jittery by experiencing a high rate of product returns in the beginning.
It will smooth out as you make inroads in the Emirati market with more sales through the help of an experienced Amazon IOR Importer of Record.
Try to Win the Buy Box
It is important to understand that getting your products listed on Amazon UAE via an approved Amazon Importer of Record (IOR) service or Amazon IOR provider is not enough to make sales. Amazon is a tricky playground for sellers, and they need to outplay each other to earn maximum profits. The one thing you need to work on immediately after putting your products on Amazon FBA is to earn a place in the Buy Box.
It has been estimated that more than 80% of sales on Amazon go through the Buy Box. It is more than a good reason to strive to get a spot in the Buy Box on the pages of related products. Even though there is no sure-shot way to get into the Buy Box, the following are the basic requirements that you need to fulfill to be a contender.
You Must Have a Professional Seller Account at Amazon UAE
If you want to win a spot in the Buy Box for your products in Amazon’s UAE marketplace, then you must be registered on its Seller Central. It is not an issue if you are operating from within the UAE. However, an overseas seller reaching out to consumers in the UAE through Seller Central must be registered with the country’s relevant authorities.
For this very reason, many online merchants back out of the plan of selling on Amazon UAE because they don’t want to get into bureaucratic red-tapping and delays that consume a lot of time and effort and are simply not worth it. If you are working through a seller IOR that also acts as an Amazon IOR in the UAE, you just don’t get around all the governmental holdups but also get an approved seller status in the local Amazon market that increases your chances of getting the Buy Box spot.
You Must Be Selling a Brand New Product
You have to deal with new products to fight for Buy Box. Reconditioned and refurbished items are not eligible for this esteemed spot.
The Product Must Be in Stock through Amazon UAE
The availability of a product is another criterion to earn a spot in the Buy Box. Here, the role of your Amazon Importer of Record is really important. It must maintain a steady supply chain of your products to the Amazon fulfillment centers in the region, so your products always remain “in stock.”
Pro Tip:
Even if you are working with an approved Amazon Importer of Record that is seamlessly delivering importing and selling services, sometimes getting a spot in the Buy Box remains an unlikely prospect. You can get around this constraint by bundling your product. For instance, if you are selling shampoo, you can bundle it with a conditioner or hair oil to make your unique listing.
Focus on Your Unique Brand
Carving out your unique identity among multitudes of sellers on Amazon is no mean feat. However, you must work on it if you are in it for the long haul. Upon searching, you will find many sellers on Amazon who are not full-fledged LLCs but still hold their unique brand on Amazon.
You can take many measures in this regard. For instance, make sure you are uploading unique and customized product shots instead of using stock images and blurred photos. Similarly, write product descriptions that can extend the stay of visitors on the page.
Besides, dolling up the product pages, you need to do value addition to your products to become an Amazon brand in the Emirates. For instance, you can add lavish packaging to products before handing them over to your Amazon IOR. Similarly, add some complimentary items to the package. These measures will certainly cut back on your profit on a single sale, but overall it will improve your seller profile on Amazon UAE.
Keep Your Product Pages Buzzing with Activity
A product page devoid of any activity is not going to get any traction. You need to gather as much as reviews on the product. Similarly, the Q/A box on the listing page is another thing that attracts visitors. While reviews are dependent on the sales, you can take charge and start FAQs on the Q&A box on your own. Friends and family can help you a lot in filling up this section.
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4 Compelling Reasons to Join Noon Seller Lab and Noon Partners
To scale your online business, you can either expand in your current market or explore new ones. While sticking with your current market has benefits, significant gains often require exploring new opportunities like Noon Seller Lab or Noon Partners.
On the other hand, going into a new market is simultaneously a risky and exciting prospect. But if rightly pulled off, it can truly pay off. If you have decided to go big with foraying into a new marketplace, then the Middle East is an option worth considering. To begin with, it is one of the biggest consolidated marketplaces on the continent.
Moreover, consumer buying power in the region is also one of the highest, even in the global index. Lastly, the Middle East is not brimming with the e-commerce competition you experience at home. No matter if you are new and inexperienced, the odds are in your favor if you enter the market while taking the right steps (in which Importers of Record are going to play a significant role).
Let’s pick the UAE as your destination in the Middle Eastern region. You can sell directly to consumers in the Emirates. Managing expansion can overwhelm small and medium-sized stores due to limited resources. To enter the UAE market without stretching your budget or exhausting your team, consider using Noon Seller Lab or Noon Partners.
Noon is a large e-commerce platform like Amazon. It won’t be wrong to call it the Middle Eastern Amazon. There are various reasons why you should enter your prospective Middle Eastern Market through Noon Seller Lab / Noon Partners instead of taking a solo flight.
1) Good Market Reputation and Online Footprint
To succeed in a new market, an online store needs a strong reputation and customer trust. Middle Eastern customers are particularly cautious and prefer established vendors. To avoid the struggle of building a reputation from scratch, start with Noon Seller Lab or Noon Partners.
Noon ranks 14 in the UAE. It falls in the top 50 most visited websites all across the Middle East. This shows that it has become a household name among consumers in the region. On the other hand, the website of your online retail store can’t get into the top 500 even if you can pull off a successful online marketing stint.
So, Noon Seller Lab / Noon Partners—a $1-billion e-commerce platform— can give you the kickstart you need. Importers of Record can help you in entering the Noon Seller Lab / Noon Partners. How? We will discuss this in the later section of the blog.
2) No Infrastructure, No On-Ground Staff Needed
Gone are the days when businesses needed to establish a whole setup for entering a new nationwide market. From establishing offices and warehouses to hiring local staff and sending your managers and supervisors to the region, adding a new country to your market is no mean task. That’s the reason why it was always large conglomerates and state-owned companies that dared to go overseas.
Internet and e-commerce have changed these dynamics altogether. Now you don’t need to be Fortune 500 to start your operations in new countries. You can do it without spending a single buck on establishing any infrastructure or investing in human resources.
Let’s take the example of Noon.com, it allows you to use its warehouses and extensive operational setup to scale up your business. You don’t need to pay hefty depot rants in Emirates if you are using Fulfilled by Noon. It works similarly to FBA, where you need to send your products to Amazon, and it takes care of the rest— from packing to shipping.
Similarly, you also don’t need to hire country representatives to work on Noon Sellers Lab. If you are working with any good e-commerce IOR Importer of Record, you don’t need to worry about communication with Noon representatives.
You can access the Middle Eastern market without a physical presence by selling through Noon and using an experienced seller IOR. The costs for Noon Seller Lab / Noon Partners and IORs are much lower than setting up your supply chain.
3) More Effective and Streamlined Promotions Through Noon Seller Lab / Noon Partners
Marketing in a new market often yields minimal results if you use the same budget as in your home market. Noon Seller Lab / Noon Partners can help by providing significant exposure at a fraction of the cost. Your products will be listed in the relevant category and gain additional visibility through related product recommendations on the site.
Reaching out to potential consumers this way is better than spending money on aggressive and counterproductive marketing like pop-up ads.
4) Ease of Use for Noon Seller Lab / Noon Partners
Selling your products through Noon Seller Lab / Noon Partners is as easy as it gets. The e-commerce platform has made sure that you don’t snub their services because of its complexity and red-tapping. Anyone can become a seller on Noon within 48 hours no matter where they are originally operating from. Similarly, the payment process is also quite hassle-free. You can receive your revenue every week without any delays and deferred payments.
With such smooth sailing on Noon Seller Lab / Noon Partners, you don’t need to hire even a single person to deal with the matters at Noon Seller Lab / Noon Partners’s end. You can easily blend that into your multitasking.
All things considered, selling and scaling through Noon Sellers lab only entail benefits for any small and medium online enterprise. You can churn profits in places where you don’t have any physical presence or earlier business connections. But to have a winning liaison between your business and Noon Seller Lab / Noon Partners, you need to take in the proficiency of an expert e-commerce IOR Importer of Record. Keep in mind that all the benefits of operating through Noon Seller Lab / Noon Partners are valid as long as you are working with a seasoned Importer of Record. There are multiple reasons why such is the case.
The Lift up the Entire Burden of Import
Yes, Fulfillment by Noon ensures great inventory management and delivery systems. But to avail of this facility, you need to make sure that your products are present in Noon’s warehouses. In other words, importing products that you sell and delivering them to Noon fulfillment centers is your job. A seasoned Importer of Record can do this job for you.
Work with an Importer of Record who has ample experience working on the ports located in the Middle East. This way, you can rule out all the possible shipment delays.
They Can Act as a Seller on Your Behalf Through Noon IOR Importer of Record
Noon wants companies to be registered in the UAE, the KSA, or Egypt with a valid trade license to avail of its Seller Lab’s services. Similarly, there are many requirements that you need to fulfill concerning the country (Egypt, Jordan, etc.) you want to work in. You can certainly register your business in Middle Eastern countries. However, you can’t avoid the long-drawn-out red-tapping it entails.
If you want to focus on your core business with undivided attention, then you can work with Seller IORs. You can even find a specialist Noon IOR Importer of Record that has seller access on the platform and can sell products on your behalf. In other words, you won’t have to get into any documentation process to operate through the Seller Lab if you are working with a Noon IOR Importer of Record.
To sum it all up, a seller IOR can facilitate your entry into the Noon Seller Lab / Noon Partners, and from there, you can scale up your business across the length and breadth of the Middle Eastern e-commerce market.
How E-Commerce IOR Importer of Record Help to Scale Up
The Internet has enabled businesses and entrepreneurs to explore uncharted market territories. Globally, we have the example of Amazon which has been ruling the e-commerce landscape for quite some time now. Similarly, Noon is the leading e-commerce platform in the Middle East. That would hire something called Amazon IOR Importer of Record or Noon IOR Importer of Record. And if we look closer to the ground, hundreds and thousands of e-commerce ventures exist only because their respective target markets are connected and online.
Few e-commerce businesses expand globally, often avoiding international markets due to the complexities of importing. To navigate these challenges, they should hire specialists like Amazon IOR or Noon IOR Importer of Record.
You can swiftly reach out to potential customers online. They can place their orders and can pay you digitally. But, in the end, you still need the conventional import mechanism to deliver the products to an overseas consumer base. This is where Importer of Record IOR services come into play which can also help you in scaling up your business if it involves going overseas. If you are working with an expert e-commerce Importer of Record, it will pay you a dividend in many ways.
Let’s see how working with a seasoned e-commerce IOR Importer of Record can prove to be a catalyst for your scaling-up work.
An Expert E-commerce IOR Importer of Record Will Cut Down the Turnaround Time
It won’t be an exaggeration to say that turnaround and downtime are a matter of life and death for businesses. A higher client attrition rate is waiting for you if you are not able to increase turnaround time. If we particularly look at this in the context of e-commerce business, then a venture that takes 3 weeks to deliver a particular consignment overseas can’t compete with a contender that promises to deliver the same cargo within two weeks.
For Amazon IOR and Noon IOR, quick delivery often outweighs product quality. Clients prefer faster delivery, even if it slightly impacts quality.
Now, if you are scaling up your business overseas, you need to be quite efficient with your supply chain. The first impression is the last. If you are failing to fulfill the promises you have made with your initial clients in a new overseas market, you should forget about building a meaningful clientele from there.
Handling imports on your own can lead to a bumpy process if it’s not your expertise. E-commerce Importers of Record (Amazon IOR or Noon IOR) are there to streamline this process for you. They can make sure your imports reach their destination within the prescribed deadline. There are two major reasons why seasoned e-commerce IOR Importer of Records can promise quick turnaround times.
1) E-commerce IOR Importer of Record, Are Not New Importer
Experienced IORs don’t experience the bureaucratic cold shoulder that is reserved for new importers. It is now a set norm in many countries where new importers are actively discouraged. By opting to be your shipper and consignee in a foreign land, you can fall into a spiral of red-tapping and compliance measures. It will affect your productivity, especially if you are working with a small team (as many e-commerce ventures do) but will also result in inevitable delays.
2) E-commerce IOR Importer of Record Know the Hacks
Sometimes it feels like customs officials, no matter what’s their destination port, are stationed to delay the consignments. While it’s true that many times customs officials are the reason behind delayed shipments, putting the entire blame on them would also be not right. They are also bound by the rules and regulations and the “fine print” of the relevant legislation. As a new and amateur importer, likely, you won’t be able to go past the customs-related blocks in a timely fashion.
Expert e-commerce Importers of Record that oversee global import footprint, really know how to get around the customs landmines. Moreover, customs officials also get familiar with recurrent importers (IOR service providers). This familiarity also turns into leniency that eventually works in your favor.
An Expert E-commerce IOR Importer of Record Will Save You in Taxation and Duties
It is no secret that governments heavily tax importers in the name of many different levies. If, on the one hand, you are scaling up your business, on the other hand, you also need to streamline or rather control your expenses. It is an economics 101 that if business scale-up is using up a lot of capital, then it will offset any potential gains. In short, scaling up your e-commerce venture is not going to yield the desired results if you are not keeping the expenses in check.
Importer of Record knows the respective tax and duties applicable at different ports of destination. They also know all the instances and clauses where a business can get a cutback on the payments it has to make in the name of taxes. Moreover, e-commerce sellers often have to tax their imported goods from a different matrix. For instance, European VAT rules are slightly different for e-commerce sellers and goods in comparison to other importers.
An expert e-commerce IOR (Amazon IOR or Noon IOR) knows how to clear goods with minimal tax. Paying IORs a reasonable fee can be more cost-effective than dealing with high duties due to a lack of expertise. This tradeoff is crucial for scaling your business and maintaining a long-term presence in international markets.
An expert e-commerce IOR Importer of Record not only directly aids in scaling your business but also indirectly supports your expansion into new markets.
The Peace of Mind
Scaling up has its frenzy. When coupled with the work and worry of imports, it becomes a double whammy. And when you are managing imports from your own office, you have to supervise it no matter who is designated in charge of that work. By handing it over to expert e-commerce Importers of Records, you can sit back and relax, at least regarding the imports.
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All You Need to Know About Third-Party Exports
Third-Party Exporter
When we look at imports and exports in their most basic sense, they appear pretty uncomplicated and simple. In logistics and shipping, the complexities of imports and exports can overwhelm newcomers.
EOR Exporter of Record and IOR Importer of Record services are there to help all such people who don’t want to deal with exports and imports on their own. Nevertheless, one must be aware of some of the elemental concepts of this domain.
For that matter, here we are going to discuss what third-party exports are. We’ll also cover how Exporter of Record (EOR) services can help.
What Is Third-Party Export?
A 3rd exporter occurs when an exporter handles shipments on behalf of another individual or entity.
Addresses of Both Entities Go into the Shipping Bill
The shipping bill needs to have the addresses of both the manufacturer and the third-party exporter (EOR in some cases). This legal compliance is more or less the same in the customs laws of every country.
3rd-Party Exporter Obtains the Export Order
This is the most important aspect of third-party export. He is responsible for obtaining export or purchase orders even when he doesn’t have any of the items listed in the order. After securing an export order from the foreign consignee, they place the local purchase order.
FIRC Goes in the Name of the Third-Party Exporter
A Foreign Inward Remittance Certificate (FIRC) is a legal document that shows that a certain individual or entity has received a remittance from outside the country. During third-party exports, the FIRC is furnished in the name of the said exporter (or EOR services) instead of the actual manufacturer/exporter of the shipment.
Third-Party Exporter and Manufacture Transact in Local Currency
Third-party exporters or EORs Exporter of Record and manufacturers usually deal in local currency.
EOR Services as Third-Party Exporters
Yes, EOR services can assume the role of a 3rd exporter. This usually happens when an exporting manufacturer doesn’t want to embroil in the intricacies and red-tapping of customs and other regulatory bodies that are associated with exports.
Deepen Your Knowledge and read:
- Benefits of Non-Resident IOR NRI Of Importers of Records
- Keys to Effective Collaboration with 3PL Providers
If you are looking for an entity that can procure an export order for you and can deal with all the phases of exportation, then get in touch with any experienced Exporter of Record (EOR) services. or you can connect with us so we can help you out.
Importer Of Record IOR Service in India
With rapid industrial growth in the last few years, India has also made its importing laws more lenient. The overall process is now more de-regularized and there are fewer red tapes in the overall importing procedure. This means it has become relatively easy for Importer of Record IOR to offer their services for India. Besides IOR service in India, the country’s EXIM Policy Regulation has made it easy for individual importers to work with more ease.
For instance, the majority of imported goods can be handled on an Open General License (OGL). In other words, shipping goods are freely importable as long as they are under the prescribed policy and do not breach any other local customs laws.
India’s Import Landscape: Open General License (OGL) and Restrictions
While Importer of Record (IOR) services can handle most items under an OGL, some require additional licensing. Then some goods are entirely out of the scope of Importer of Record IOR services. For instance, there is a list of shipping items that are only importable through monopolies supported by the government. Today All these items and the sensitive import items are monitored by the Directorate General of Commercial Intelligence and Statistics (DGCI&S), Kolkata, without the need for a separate license.
Capital Goods Imports in India: Tax Benefits and Requirements
If you want to import any capital goods into India through Importer of Record IOR services, then there is good news. You can have this transaction performed at reduced tax rates under the Export Promotion Capital Good Plan.
Advanced Licenses for Duty-Free Imports in India
The heading is not complete information. Indian customs authorities waive import taxes for IOR services bearing advanced licenses. However, these advanced licenses are only issued for the importation of products that are going to be used in the export goods.
IOR services receive advanced licenses only for importing items that enhance the country’s exportation landscape.
Essential Requirements for IOR Services in India
There are three general requirements to work as an Importer of Record IOR in India.
- IOR services need to produce an import declaration that discloses full details of the value of the shipping items.
- An import license must also be part of the paperwork that has to be furnished in front of customs officials.
- Importer of Record (IOR) services must provide a Letter of Credit to confirm that payment for the import is completed.
A Letter of Credit is crucial for verifying foreign exchange outflows with the issuing financial institution.
You Can Get Your Free Importer of Record IOR Quote and Get Professional Consultancy from our IOR Consultants in Asia.
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