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INVADING EUROPE:Selling In France, Germany, Italy & Spain
About The Amazon Seller
The Amazon Seller (UK)
The Amazon Seller (SoCal)
>2,250 members
>1,350 members
>350 LA members
Meetups - Webinars Country Date TopicUSA Meetup 22 Sept Mastermind Mashup
UK Meetup 20 & 27 Sept PPC (Pay Per Click)
USA Meetup 27 Oct PPC (Pay Per Click)
Online Webinar 14 Sept Will Tjernlund
Online Webinar 5 October Amazon Ranking Factors
The NewsRead all about it
How a Chinese seller works out what Western online shoppers want – internetretailer.com
Is it the end of the road for hijackers? – Amazon
"Dear FBA seller,Please read this email carefully. The listing information described below may affect your ability to sell certain products on Amazon.com.As part of our ongoing efforts to provide the best possible customer experience, we are implementing approval requirements for brands listed at the bottom of this email.What does this mean for me? Effective on 8/23, you will need approval to list the affected products onAmazon.com. If you do not obtain approval to sell these products prior to 8/30, your listings for these products will be removed.Why am I receiving this message? You are receiving this message because you have sold affected products in the past. There is no penalty associated with this action.How do I seek approval to sell the affected products? If you would like to seek approval to sell the affected products, complete the following steps to start the application process: 1. In Seller Central, click the Inventory menu, and then select Add a Product.2. Search for the ASIN you want to sell. 3. In the search results, click the Listing limitations apply link next to the ASIN. 4. Click the Request Approval button to start the application process. * Three invoices for affected branded products that combined reflect your acquisition of at least 30 units in the past 90 days; or* A letter of authorization from the brand owner confirming that you are authorized to sell affected branded products.Can I still use FBA? Effective on 8/23, only sellers approved to sell the affected products may send shipments of those products to fulfillment centers.How will this affect my existing FBA inventory? Effective immediately, you either need to (i) obtain approval to continue to sell your FBA inventory of the affected products or (ii) create a Removal Order for return or disposal of your remaining FBA inventory.Standard FBA Return Fees and FBA Disposal Fees will apply.If you do not submit a Removal Order for impacted inventory by 12/20, we may dispose of this unsellable inventory in accordance with the FBA Service Terms and policies."
Trading in EuropeInvading Europe
Ways to get listed – Amazon International Listings ToolClick to start it from UK
Assuming you have UK listings:
Set rules on pricing – under/over/percentage or amount
Wait a few hours and you’re in business
You then add sales price and other details (care as this breaks the link)
Essentially a useless tool (unless you sell without ‘sales’ on)
Fast tracks creating the listing without manual from your side
Ways to get listed – Amazon International Listings Tool (PLUS)Amazon listings created
You’ve updated the parts you can
Note – Use Chrome browser as auto translates to make it easier
Now add professional translations
And professional PPC campaigns (don’t just rely on google translate for this)
Ways to get listed translationsInvading Europe
Checklist Title Bullets Description Keywords Infographics Image (over lay text) Email sequences (copy)Finding translators that can understand language / dialect, conversion copy (sales), keyword research and implementation is near impossible
AgendaGhetto FabulousHere are some guys we have used on Fiverr.com in the past…
Search by username
Iam_toby DE leannam FR
sverazzo ITthespanishteam
SE
Product reviewsInvading Europe
Product Reviews
Each EU country you start from Zero reviews
EU customers well known to be tough reviewers
Angry reviews often written
Even from review group reviewers
Less reviews required to stand out from the rest (10-15, average rating 4.2)
Your FBA stockInvading Europe
Your FBA Stock in UK
Your UK stored products get offered to EU customers asPrime + 1
EU orders get sent EU customers from UK warehouse
Takes a day longer than if stored in EU (EU customers know and accept this)
There can be delays but Amazon handle the queries
Your FBA Stock in UK (returns)
EU returns go to Czech Republic FBA warehouse
They are examined and sold (or not) from there
Customer’s don’t know this
This stock is sold first so no EU fee charged twice
Some weird messages from EU as their systems think you are almost OOS
Your FBA Stock in UK (fees)
You only pay the sales fee (usually 15%) in the EU country of purchase
You also pay the EFN European Fulfillment Fee for the sale and shipping
NO UK fulfillment fees
To manage you can excel the hell out of it or
Just know it is usually £2 a sale more and price in EU accordingly (standard size)
Your FBA Stock in EU
You can ship bulk to EU warehouses
Shipping plan same as for UK
Direct from manufacturer into EU country
Direct from manufacturer to UK and on to EU country (Shipper splits)
Direct from Amazon (at their discretion) via Pan European Inventory
Pan European InventoryInvading Europe
Pan European InventoryCynic – Amazon’s latest attempt to get ES, IT and even FR to fly
Not cynic – You switch on and Amazon treats all EU warehouses as one country
Amazon ships your inventory all over EU to suits its needs (for its customer)
You don’t pay any EFN fees or other fees, all local sales essentially
Sounds great however serious VAT considerations:
You would need to register for VAT in all countries (some with monthly returns)
Other EU ConsiderationsInvading Europe
Other EU Considerations (1)
English packaging – does it matter?
Two camps here:They appreciate British stuff (less since Brexit maybe)They want it to be in their language
Advice – make EU a win before investing
Product research – who cares, suck it and see with a listing
If it sells better in EU then bring more stock in
Unlikely to start in EU so research not essential
Other EU Considerations (2)
They love to ask for an invoice
Use excel template
Send it in English, no complaints
Customer questions, messages etc.
Lite – write in English and apologise
Posh – use a translator
Living Outside The UK & Trading on Amazon.co.uk Invading Europe
Establish a UK Company
UK company establishment is cheap to set up
It is £15 online on the government website to do it yourself
UK accountant can also do this for you, he will use a trusted partner for this and it will cost you more £100-200
Here’s the link: www.gov.uk/register-a-company-online
Enlist a UK Accountant
Accountant best person to file various papers for you
Once identified your company can use their offices as registered office
Makes all company administration (including VAT) easier
UK Entity Vs. US Entity
If you use a US company or other non-UK trading entity you will need to register for VAT within 4 weeks of your first import or trade
Trading from a UK company means you may not need to register for VAT initially
This may be huge cost saving, but will depend on your expected turnover
There are also other schemes which can mitigate the VAT (Accountant can discuss those with you)
Raw Costs
For your company you will have to file an annual UK company tax return
Accounting costs vary based on the size of your business and complexity
£1,000,000 turnover I would budget £3,000 for accounting fees
Budget a minimum spend of £1,000 for up to £300,000 of turnover
UK Bank AccountsInvading Europe
Do not try to set up a UK Bank Account You are not able to open a UK business bank account remotely
Open a Currencies Direct Etailer account. This is a free account (in UK Pounds or Euros depending on which markets you are trading in)
Amazon in Europe will allow you to add your USA bank account into their system and they will pay your Pounds and Euros to you directly to the USA in Dollars
Amazon charges 4%
charges 1-2% your rate will depend on the volume
Collection Accounts
How it works!
UK Vat – Understanding it!Invading Europe
Understanding VAT: Retail Sales
VAT is UK sales tax – currently at 20%
Retail prices INCLUDE VAT (some categories VAT Free eg. Baby clothes)
As the seller you collect this VAT from your sales for the government
You have to pay the VAT to the government (usually every 3 months)
Tools such as Jungle Scout should show the net amount as retail price deceiving
Understanding VAT: Imports into the UK
Importing goods from outside the EU into the UK attracts VAT
VAT also due against your shipping costs & insurance
These are paid in full by you at the time of the IMPORT
You pay your freight forwarder/Courier, they pay the taxman
Effectively this makes all UK goods VAT inclusive
UK Vat: Thresholds & SchemesInvading Europe
Understanding VAT: Thresholds
As a UK company you may not immediately need to worry about VAT registration
You do not need to register for VAT unless your turnover exceeds £83,000(rolling 12 months)
You can register for VAT irrespective of your turnover
Then you can apply for a VAT scheme that best suits your business
However Amazon charges VAT on their fees to you until you are registered
Scheme 1:UK 12 month rolling turnover over £83,000
Projected turnover for next 12 months won’t exceed £150,000
You can apply for this scheme where you only pay a flat fee of 7.5% (discounted to 6.5% for the first year) against all of your EU turnover
You cannot deduct or set off any amount of VAT you may have paid(you can deduct VAT paid on stock on hand)
On scheme you forecast turnover annually & unless your turnover is forecast to pass £230,000 in the following 12 months you can stay on this scheme
Excellent scheme as cost effective
Understanding VAT: Thresholds
Scheme 2:
Can join with UK turnover at any level
Scheme mandatory if your projected turnover for next 12 months will exceed £150,000 (or £230,000 if on scheme 1)
You collect VAT from within your sales price and pay to government
You CAN deduct any amount of VAT you may have paid (eg. Imports)
Understanding VAT: Thresholds
Customs or import duty is also payable in advance at the time of importing Calculated as a percentage (varies depending on the category of goods and country)
There’s a look up for that to determine that percentage www.gov.uk/trade-tariff
You are responsible for this code and customs at point of entry may disagree with you and levy a fee against a different code
Your manufacturer prints this code on your shipping cartons for customs inspection
Your freight forwarder handles payment here, you pay them
Customs
Trading in Europe: Summary
UK & EU markets too big to ignore
Getting established is straightforward and easy (KISS & Bite Size Chunks)
More steps than starting in the USA
A different spreadsheet to work out profits is required (and cash-flow too as larger upfront costs on import)
You could increase your USA sales for example by 50%
meetup.com/theamazonseller_SoCal
facebook.com/groups/Amsters/
theamazonseller.com
meetup.com/theamazonSeller_UK
