Since many of us are looking to establish multiple sources of income, there are unlimited avenues that are waiting to be explored. One of the easiest ways to get the ball rolling is by hopping on to the import/export business bandwagon. Today, thousands of entrepreneurs made a great earning out of importing and exporting luxury goods, machinery parts, raw materials, and others. However, there definitely is a route you need to take while dealing with imported and exported goods since it involves multiple countries, freight, customs, and other legal entanglements. To ensure that you’re always on the right side of the record and legally continue to conduct this business, we’re going to help you with 5 particulars you need to pay attention to. This blog will assist you in opening and running an import-export business legally, so let’s take a look at these factors!
1) Register your business: Registering your import and export business can take quite a while with the amount of paperwork it requires. However, you can get this done easily by contacting the right legal representatives. While a business lawyer may be able to set up your company, a customs broker that simplifies the process of creating a freight passage is a lifesaver. There are several independent professionals or agencies that can assist you with registering your business and establishing your freight passage in a shorter time span than if you were to do it alone. This will also help you avoid costly errors and mistakes that you could make if you were to do it by yourself.
2) Find the permissible exportable items in your country: There are several goods and items that are produced in a country that may be in high demand in other nations. From organic produce, textile, medicines, and herbs to heritage items, artifacts, works of art, and other such items. On the other hand, there are several items that may be prohibited from being exported, which may lead you into legal trouble. To avoid such problems from happening, make sure that you keep a thorough watch on the government’s statements regarding exporting goods and the permissible limits.
3) Find legally importable goods to your country: Once you go through the lists of items you can export, it is time to understand what you can import from other countries. Please keep in mind that the same rules apply to other countries'' personal exporting rules, so while some items may be permissible for imports in your homeland, they may not be legally exported from other countries. Based on the country of origin, your business could land into trouble with international authorities as well as the customs officers, inviting heavy penalties or legal action. To ensure that your business busing thrives without a hiccup, ensure that you check the socio-political and economic relations between such countries since import-export laws may change as per the circumstances.
4) Find the target markets: What do we mean when we use the term target markets? It is any buying pool that shows great interest in becoming your potential customer. I’m context of export businesses, this could be another manufacturing unit that is interested in sourcing its raw materials from your country, or a superstore wanting to import fruits and exotic vegetables from other countries. For importers, this refers to countries, wholesalers, and marketplaces from where you can source your goods and materials to sell in your home country. It is highly crucial that you pick a stable target market since establishing the right networks and freight channels can take a long time, especially with the legal procedures and paperwork.
5) Find your niche: Many importers and exporters prefer to do business in multiple commodities. However, to have a seamless transaction, it is better to create a specialty niche that you deal in, which can comprise an umbrella of items. This also simplifies the entire process of starting your business because different categories of goods have varying permissions. Or, you could create different subdivisions in your business to segregate the transactions and keep better control of expansion. It is highly necessary to have a cash cow side and a high return side so that your income never stops if a high-value commodity slows in demand or supply.
Wrapping Up: Both importing and exporting goods can require a lot of arrangements. It is vital that you have established the operation costs for your business before you start dealing with your target market clients so that you can set the pricing right. This may include acquisition costs, warehousing charges, shipping and freight costs, legal counsel fees, import and export duty, any government relief, or potential fines. Having a business outline with the steps above will help you streamline your operations to give the most competitive and efficient tariff to your clients.