These range from outright prohibitions, which apply to things like chemicals or medicines, to restrictions on particular products or items from particular countries.
You might need consent from the New Zealand Customs Service or the Ministry for Primary Industries, which deals with biosecurity concerns, to import some products.
There are also special rules that apply to importing cars, which involve the New Zealand Transport Agency. Importing and exporting laws. These costs could include:. Importing is cash intensive for two reasons. The first is that given the high shipping or transport costs, it's more cost effective to place a few larger orders rather than a number of smaller orders — so import orders are often large, and therefore expensive.
The second reason is that importing ties up working capital. Run a cash flow forecast to make sure you can still afford to run your business effectively while you have money tied up for import orders. Cash flow forecasting. There are more risks associated with importing than buying locally, and you need to be aware of these to manage them effectively.
These include the following quality and delivery concerns:. It also pays to have alternative suppliers so you have a back-up if you need it. Exchange rate fluctuations are another potential risk you could be exposed to as an importer. The rate could move in your favour or against you. The cheapest supplier is not necessarily the best supplier to deal with for imports. It's more important to find a reputable supplier. Ask to see a list of customers that your potential supplier supplies and contact them for references.
Do a credit check on the company, and if you can, spend the money to physically visit them and inspect their premises, plant, and the quality of their output. Dealing with suppliers in a foreign country often involves a steep learning curve. You might be dealing with people who don't speak the same language as you, and whose culture and values differ from yours. The potential for misunderstanding and miscommunication is much greater than when dealing with local suppliers.
Find out all you can about doing business in the country you plan to import from. Department of Commerce. Exporting is just as big. Everything from beverages to commodes--and a staggering list of other products you might never imagine as global merchandise--are fair game for the savvy trader. And these products are bought, sold, represented and distributed somewhere in the world on a daily basis.
Department of Commerce, the big guys make up only about 4 percent of all exporters. Which means that the other 96 percent of exporters--the lion's share are small outfits like yours wil be--when you're new, at least.
Why are imports such big business in the United States and around the world? There are lots of reasons, but the three main ones boil down to:. Aside from cachet items, countries typically export goods and services that they can produce inexpensively and import those that are produced more efficiently somewhere else. What makes one product less expensive for a nation to manufacture than another? Two factors: resources and technology.
A country with extensive oil resources and the technology of a refinery, for example, will export oil but may need to import clothing. First off, let's take a look at the players. While you've got your importers and your exporters, there are many variations on the main theme:.
Now that you're familiar with the players, you'll need to take a swim in the trade channel, the means by which the merchandise travels from manufacturer to end user. A manufacturer who uses a middleman who resells to the consumer is paddling around in a three-level channel of distribution. The middleman can be a merchant who purchases the goods and then resells them, or he can be an agent who acts as a broker but doesn't take title to the stuff. Who your fellow swimmers are will depend on how you configure your trade channel, but they could include any of the following:.
Not everybody is cut out to be an international trader. This is not, for example, a career for the sales-phobic. This is also not a career for the organizationally challenged. If you're one of those let-the-devil-handle-the-details types whose idea of follow-up is waiting to see what happens next, you should think twice about international trading.
If, on the other hand, you're an enthusiastic salesperson, a dynamo at tracking things like invoices and shipping receipts, and your idea of heaven is seeing where new ideas and new products will take you, and if, to top it off, you love the excitement of dealing with people from different cultures, then this is the career for you.
Most of the traders we talked with were well-versed in the industry before launching their own businesses. Peter P. I took Russian as a minor in college, initially as an easy grade. Little did I know when I graduated back in '89 that Russia would open up to the West shortly thereafter. According to the U. Census Bureau, the top 10 countries with which America trades in order of largest import and export dollars to smallest are:.
You needn't, of course, confine yourself to trade deals with importers and exporters in these countries--there are scads of other intriguing possibilities available, including the member countries of the Caribbean Basin and Andean pacts and the new kids on the Eastern Bloc, the former Soviet Union countries.
But as a newbie on the international scene, you should familiarize yourself with our biggest trading partners and see what they have to offer. Then take your best shot, with them or with another country. Every business needs consumers for its products and services to, as the Vulcans so eloquently put it, live long and prosper. This is a very important phase in the mega-trader building project. The proper market research can help boost your trading company into a true profit center, and the more research you do, the better prepared you are before you officially open your doors, the less floundering you're likely to do.
Any manufacturer, supplier, crafter, artisan, importer, exporter or retailer is fair game. You can go after companies that deal in heavy construction equipment or delicate jewelry, gourmet goodies or pet food, telecommunications or toys.
The only essential requirement is that they want to sell their merchandise or buy someone else's. This doesn't mean, however, that your best technique is standing at manufacturers' gates, tripping them as they walk to their cars after work each evening. Targeting by definition means homing in on a specific group. If you have previous experience in a particular field, for example, you should seriously consider targeting that market first. You'll feel comfortable with the jargon and procedures so your sales pitch--and your initial sales--will go smoother and easier.
As an added bonus, you may already have contacts in the field who can either become your first clients or steer you to colleagues in that area. Dan S. He knows the field and feels comfortable in it.
Wahib W. You've narrowed the list of products you'll target. Now you'll want to find your niche, the unique angle that will set your business apart from--and above--the competition.
This is where you can really let your creativity shine through. You may decide to start as an export management company EMC, remember? In Florida, Lloyd D. Under its ETC hat, Lloyd says, "[my company] performs in a fashion similar to that previously described, except for a diminished principal relationship, and business is typically conducted on a case-by-case or ad-hoc basis.
It is more a sourcing function for the buyer and the seller. In Germany, Michael R. Here's a rapid-fire overview of your market research tasks.
You'll want to do some in-depth investigation into each of these areas:. One of the catchs of being in business for yourself is that you need money to make money--in other words, you need startup funds.
You can start out homebased, which means you won't need to worry about leasing office space. You don't need to purchase a lot of inventory, and you probably won't need employees.
Your basic necessities will be a computer, printer, fax machine and modem. If you already have these items, then you're off and running. Several of the traders we talked with started from ground zero. What they did have was a carefully built relationship with suppliers, and this valuable asset the company was able to get up and running.
You have the advantage of homebased-ability, which cuts office lease expenses down to nothing. Unless you're starting as a distributor, you can get away with purchasing no inventory, which means no outlay of funds for pretty doodads to grace display spaces you have no display spaces!
Your major financial outlay will go toward office equipment and market research expenses--and if you're like many moderns, you already have the most expensive piece of office equipment: a computer system. But let's take it from the top. The following is a breakdown of everything--from heavy investment pieces to flyweight items--you'll need to get up and running:. You can add all kinds of goodies of varying degrees of necessity to this list. The International Trade Administration provides tools, assistance, and expert knowledge to help your company grow in the global marketplace.
Depending on the good or service, you may need a license or permit to export it from the U. In most cases, you will not need a license to import goods into the U. But, for certain goods being imported, some agencies may require a license, permit, or other certification. Check the requirements of federal agencies. These guidelines from U. Even if you do not need an import license, you must fill out CBP entry forms within 15 calendar days of the date that your shipment arrives at a U.
Make sure to provide your importer number on all these forms.
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