• 4 Steps to Selling Healthy Products in China

• Stay or Go? Export: Which Market, How & Why

• Who’s Who in the Zoo: Hong Kong Retailers

• Who You Know: Connecting with Your Tribe

• In-Market Partnerships• Further Reading

Every day new opportunities arise for Australian businesses to growthrough export. Yet the route to market is not always clearly marked, andthere are as many risks as there are favourable circumstances.

We are privileged in our work to be able to help such companies expandand realise their potential in overseas markets. Whether through forums,workshops, inbound buyer missions, private consultations or curatedmarket visits; we’re striving to create a thriving Australian export industry.

We believe that with so much opportunity out there, the best chance ourindustry has is to connect and share our knowledge collaboratively.

Here, we share a select sample of the insights arising from our work in thehope that it might help stimulate discussion; inform and energiseAustralian companies, Associations and Government bodies to continuetheir good work.

4 Steps to Selling Healthy Products in China

For many SMEs the Chinese market can seem like an ever-changing horizon. It’s hard to know if you’re going in the right direction and whether you’ll ever make it to the other side. We sat down with experienced stakeholders in the supply chain to map out a clear path.

1. Is this the right market for me?

With a population nearing 1.5 billion, China’s is a necessarily complex economy. It is not, most would say, the right selection for the faint of heart. However, for those willing to go in well-prepared (perhaps with a few other export markets under their belt), it is also full of opportunity. We know that Chinese consumers are buying more imported and higher quality products, and more frequently. They’re looking for natural, free-from, healthy and luxury products. Australia is also in the top five for countries that Chinese consumers turn to online to source their food and beauty products. And this is no small number: by 2020, there will be approximately 292 million online shoppers, and 50% of these will have bought an item from cross-border e-commerce.

“We call it a power period,” says Keiko Li, Senior Business Development Specialist at the Chinese multinational e-commerce conglomerate Alibaba Group. “Consumers are trending more and more towards overseas products; they’re mindful of provenance, and also seeking functional foods.” In the last two years, she said, healthy supplements have also seen a rise in the Chinese population. “Customers are seeking to remove toxins, improve immunity and target specific health problems, and they like to try new things.” This is an impressive combination of growth, within the right sector, for many Australian FMCGs looking to export.

2. How do I get the product in? Where am I actually going to sell it?

There are many retailers looking to source Australian products and resell them, both online and offline. One such online retailer is the popular JD.com. “We’re retailers, a purchaser and reseller of stock,” says Patrick Nestel, JD.com’s ANZ Regional Manager. But how does it work? “Online or offline, JD is now one of the biggest retailers in China, because purchasing is a key part of our business. And what that enables us to do is bring stock within our network.” The ability to deliver on-demand is key to success in this market, he says. “The statistic I always like to give, to bring this back to Australia, is that Coles Supermarket turns over $33 billion for the year. During one of the most important shopping festivals in China, we turn over $25 billion, and we deliver 75% of that within 24 hours.” Not only that, using the retail model allows manufacturers to be paid before the product leaves, which provides more assurance. It is by no means the only assurance you’ll need, though. A connection with a mega-retailer such as JD may seem like a simple path to growth, but China is challenging by nature. “It’s a completely different world to do business; there’s a lot to learn,” said Nestel.

3. What about China’s regulations and other unexpected expenses?

Picture this: You have the market opportunity. You have the channel. You’re going to get the supply chain happening, you might need some vertical integration…but you’re getting stuck at CIQ. What to do? Panellist Tom Ellis, Investment Director of the Australian-based investment firm MAI Capital, shared his experiences. Helping Australian products manage Chinese regulations, he has come to see that “CIQ, clearance, logistics procurement, purchasing, labeling, brand promises, and the product being pulled, not pushed, into the market, are all components of being successful in the health sector, but also in any sector within China.” You might have aproduct on the water that, after a regulation changes, is now unable to be sold without being relabeled, for example. However, “there’s approaches to everything,” he said, “and it’s about pricing your risk and making sure you work with people who have

integrity, who will champion your brand.”

At this stage, it’s important to analyse every aspect of your business and where your connections can add value, to make sure the price onshelf is as cost comparable as it is in Australia. “How that’s done is really getting every single dollar of logistics understood,”said Ellis. This applies right down to demographics. “A lot of people will try to target a tier one city. But there’s a huge market that sits outside of that. A rising middle class in China is creating an appeal for premium products, and it means that you might have less competition in a tier four city, because you might be the premium product.” Whereas, in a tier one city such as Shanghai, he says, a consumer can buy from anywhere in the world.

4. How do I get the message out, to build credibility and trust for my product?

You’ve got the market, you’ve got the channel, you’ve got all bases covered. Let’s say you now have 20 amazing SKUs to sell amongst millions of SKUs that are sold out there. While Australian companies tend to have a natural advantage in this market because of our good reputation, in such a vast economic landscape, how will you make sure your message is heard? COO and Founder of China-focused digital marketing platform Sinorbis, Dandan Cheng, says a multifaceted digital strategy is required. “Nowadays, there are so many different choices. Why would people pick up your product particularly, and proceed to finish payment?” For smart growth,you’ll need to not just create a presence in the channel, but promote the product and leverage various voices in the market. “Not just from official sources,” she says, “but also word-of-mouth, digital. Influencers. Don’t just attract, but further engage, and then convert.”

This growth strategy is important in China not just because of its enormity, but its culture. “Chinese people typically lack trust in a lot

of things because of historical reasons such as air pollution, food poisoning, oil spills, those types of things. Because of this, coming from Australia doesn’t give you a natural guarantee that people will trust you,” she said. “Particularly when it comes to a health product, or a baby product, skincare etc, people pay a lot of attention to whether it’s natural. So before you get to the selling, you need to know how to talk about health products.” The best way, she says, is to leverage word of mouth with authentic user reviews spread throughout your social media channels, paired with your official language and digital presence, so that people see your own confidence in your product.

This may seem like a big feat – and it is. “You really need to surround yourself with people who have done it before, been there and experienced it. You can learn yourself, but it takes a lot of time to build up the knowledge to sell in China,” said Jamie Thurin, International Sales Director of Slim Secrets, a company with a strong growth strategy in the Chinese market. “You need to know where to spend your money, when to invest your time. Do your research, because you learn pretty quickly that it takes persistence, patience, and a lot of hard work. You’ve gotta be prepared.”

If selecting the China market is part of your overall export growth strategy, connect with us to help set you on that journey.

Stay or Go? Export: Which Market, How & Why

When it comes to selecting the right export market, there are many ins and outs, and it can be tough to decipher which considerations apply. At the recent Food & Beverage Exporters Forum we held in Sydney, three international buyers from three distinctly different markets shared how, why and when to stock in their stores.

United Kingdom

“We’re a small retailer,” said Buying Director, Planet Organic UK, Al Overton. “Our role is a first-to-market retailer; I’ve got seven stores. Our advantage for a supplier is to be a launch partner for a brand that wants to enter the UK market. I spend a lot of my time at new brand incubator events. I like to work with these companies when they’re young because then in two and a half years when

they’re ready to launch, we will be their partner of choice.

“For a new brand entering the UK market for the first time, we are the retailer of choice for most of those new brands because we are ahead of the curve. Suppliers will go to independent health stores across the country and they’ll say, ‘Well, it’s stocked by Planet Organic,’ as being an assurance of quality. There is essentially a three way conversation between the brand, the retailer (Planet Organic), and the UK wholesaler. We don’t import directly. I’m not in a position to say, ‘Love the product, send me a pallet.’ I have no central warehouse or backstock space. Rent in central London is expensive, and so all the stock we own is on the shelf, and our supply base relies on singles delivered daily from our main wholesalers. So even though we have huge numbers of supplies and fresh foods etc, in terms of

ambient grocery products or supplements, it’s coming from UK-based wholesalers.

“So, as Australian suppliers, you need to want to be there, and if you want to be there, then I can help. I’m looking for products that I don’t already sell. You might be a market leader here, but I’ve probably already got a market leader in the UK. Unless there is a unique USP to the product, which doesn’t currently exist within the UK, then we’re probably not interested. If it is a unique product that doesn’t exist anywhere else in the world, apart from Australia, then I’m definitely interested.

“The challenge is, how much is it going to retail for by the time it gets there? The best recent example of that is our work with Loving Earth chocolate; the raw chocolate brand, love it. We launched it in our stores two years ago; they’re now doing pretty big business within the UK generally, and it’s our second biggest chocolate brand. They came with a willingness to be in the UK; they worked with us well in terms of launching their product within the UK; and then broadened out through other retailers. We helped them with the right wholesalers, and the right way to market, and the right pricing structure, and all the rest of it.

“Some of the UK wholesalers import, and some of the wholesalers would look to buy from a UK based importer. For us, we are retailers – that’s what we’re good at. Give us a good product and we will sell it well.”

Malaysia

“I love importing,” shared Senior Manager of Grocery, Euniece Quek, from Ben’s Independent Grocer & Village Grocer Malaysia. “We try to import every two months from Australia, and we usually go through consolidators. I do have a few on hand which I use to compare prices because there’s always a price war when it comes to things like this.

“While we are a premium supermarket; we want to get that value and give it back to our consumers. We don’t like any Minimum Order Quantities (MOQs) because we like to trial many products, and some of these are so new to our market that they don’t movequickly off the shelf at first. And if these new products are well-received by our customers, we’d be happy to order in pallet -quantities, as long as the product is a fast-moving item.

“Generally in Malaysia, we prefer products that have a longer shelf life. Although, I know Australia and the UK prefer a shorter shelf life as it gives the perception of being a more natural product. We do things differently. While we prefer the product to have a longer shelf life, we’ll also order more regularly so that the product is always fresh. We like that kind of flexibility in Malaysia.”

United Arab Emirates

“In the UAE,” said Kirti Meghnani, Group Procurement Manager at Choithrams UAE, “we have been in this business for 25 years. We have a lot of SKUs that are from Australia. The challenge is how do we get even more new products from Australia, when many suppliers are reluctant to meet the labeling requirements, date coding requirements, and lower MOQs.

“On the MOQ point, many suppliers say that 200 cases is the minimum because they need to transport it from Brisbane to Melbourneor Sydney – and unfortunately, that’s where many of the discussions end.

“Another consideration is that oil prices are at a low at the moment. Most of the GDP in our region actually depends on oil prices, meaning disposable income has now tightened, and so we’re having to be very competitive with our pricing.

“A challenge that many niche Australian brands face is how to compete against multinational brands. Just to give you an example in relation to chocolates: Mars and Nestle highly incentivise Choithrams with rebates and display agreements. As a result, they demand more space, displays and sampling opportunities. So if I’m going to sell a new chocolate brand, I have to review the benefit of having diversity in our store, with profits potentially lost. We are confident that Australian products don’t have all those nasty E-colors, because you are known to make more natural and cleaner products. Yet we still have to go through that process.”

The route to market is complex and varied, and without these kinds of discussions many suppliers would be left in the dark. It’simportant to connect with the right buyers in each market. Export Connect always engages our buyer network when working on client projects, because this is the best way to know whether to stay or go.

Who’s Who in the Zoo: Hong Kong Retailers

Why should I consider stocking with this retailer?

Starting out as a local retailer in 1973, PARKnSHOP began its expansion in the mid-1980’s and has since grown vastly.

PARKnSHOP is a member of the A.S. Watson Group, a subsidiary of CK Hutchison Holdings Limited. A.S. Watson Group is the world’s largest international health and beauty retailer with over 14,000 stores in 24 markets. Every year, over 4 billion customers andmembers shopped with our 13 retail brands in stores and online. With over 130,000 employees worldwide, including 12,900 in Hong Kong, A.S. Watson Group is also a member of the world renowned multinational conglomerate CK Hutchison Holdings Limited, which has five core businesses – ports and related services, retail, infrastructure, energy and telecommunications in over 50 countries.

PARKnSHOP also boasts an e-commerce website, offering an extensive selection of products, from pet care to fresh food. The website is well categorised with an excellent search capability and online promotions, making it an accessible and convenient way to shop.

How much of the market do they cover?

PARKnSHOP is one of the two largest supermarket chains in Hong Kong, and operates over 300 outlets across Hong Kong, Macau and Mainland China.

What kinds of products do they stock in the health food / niche categories?

This retailer operates alongside a number of different brand names that target high-income consumers and which are presented as “lifestyle” food stores. They stock a large variety of imported goods, fresh fruit and vegetables and many non-food items. Some of these stores include Fusion by PARKnSHOP, Taste, International by PARKnSHOP, Food Le Parc, Gourmet, GrEAT, Su Pa De Pa and Express.

Fusion, Taste and International are the associated high-end supermarket brands of PARKnSHOP, and they stock a broad selection of imported foreign brands catering for Asian and Western customer segments.

Supply chain

Depending on volume, this retailer will deal directly with overseas suppliers, local import agents, or will nominate an Australian-based consolidator that aggregates their shipments for them. Your best bet may thus be to contact the consolidators they work with in Australia: Australian Fine Foods, Easychef and Lawand Trade.

Why should I consider stocking with this retailer?

Wellcome has set the standard for grocery stores in Hong Kong, as the first to establish a home delivery service and a self-service retailing concept. This format is trending; with modern grocery retailers accounting for 62% of value sales in grocery retailers in Hong Kong in 2016, compared to traditional grocery retailers such as street hawkers.

While online grocery retailing is still growing and in its infancy in Hong Kong (in terms of consumer spending), the trend of online grocery shopping advanced tremendously in 2016 as millennials and generation X consumers became more mature in their use of digital technology. Engaging digital technology since their youth, these consumers are increasingly displaying enthusiasm andconfidence when it comes to online payments and platforms. Modern hectic lifestyles are also a major motivation for shoppers of regular grocery items, now selected on-the-go via mobile devices – and so this trend looks set to grow.

How much of the market do they cover?

Founded in 1945, Wellcome supermarket is the other largest supermarket chain in Hong Kong alongside PARKnSHOP. Since 1964, Wellcome has been wholly owned by The Dairy Farm Group. With a network of over 280 stores and over 8,000 employees, Wellcomeservices over 16 million customers every month.

What kinds of products do they stock in the health food/niche categories?

Wellcome specializes in imported products, including wine, biscuits, canned food and beverages. Oliver’s the Delicatessen, ThreeSixtyand Market Place by Jasons, operated by The Dairy Farm Group, are upmarket supermarkets and offer great selections of imported goods appealing to high-income customers.

Supply chain

Like PARKnSHOP, depending on volume, this retailer will deal directly with overseas suppliers, local import agents, or will nominate their Australian-based consolidator that aggregates their shipments for them. Unlike PARKnSHOP, they work with only one Australian consolidator, Bemco. We suggest you reach out to them to begin the discussion.

Why should I consider stocking with this retailer?

Established in Hong Kong in 1996, City’Super is an upscale “Mega Lifestyle Specialty Store”. The food & lifestyle retailing arm of Fenix Group a network of 30 companies and 14 factories across 7 countries, City’Super offers a premium selection of products ranging from upmarket fresh produce and groceries to household goods, stationery and cosmetics.

Due to its imported and sophisticated products, City’Super is known for having more expensive prices. In concordance with this, City’Super products are directed at upmarket, high-income and international consumers. City’Super’s e-commerce website draws customers in with event information, e-magazine subscriptions, recipes, blogs and shopping capabilities.

How much of the market do they cover?

The Group currently holds over 30 stores across Hong Kong (20 stores), Shanghai (6 stores) and Taiwan (7 stores) under the three store brands, namely, City’Super, LOG-ON and cookedDeli. As an indication of their size, the chain employs more than 1,200 people across their three retail brands. Previously owned by Wheelock and Company Limited, City’Super is now majority-owned by Wheelock and Company Limited’s subsidiary The Wharf (Holdings) Limited, and partly by Peter Woo Kwong-Ching. At the time of the sale of the minority stake to Woo in 2004, the company was valued at HKD 38.9 million.

What kinds of products do they stock in the health food categories?

City’Super specialises in upmarket products and luxury imported groceries, differentiating itself from its competitors and establishing itself as a specialist supermarket. Many City’Super retail outlets are also accompanied by adjoining cafes and restaurants, which helps with this image. Founded by a Japanese retail manager, City’Super also often holds promotional events for popular imported goods, which are otherwise unknown or unavailable in Hong Kong, Shanghai and Taiwan, contributing to a growing reputation for selectgoods.

Supply chain

This retailer treats Australian imports in much the same way as the other major retailers, dealing directly with overseas suppliers, local import agents, or nominating an Australian-based consolidator. In this instance, the Australian-based consolidator is Alex Reid.

To learn more about how your specific product/s may fit in this market; get in touch, as we can ensure you’ve made the right selection; connect with the right pre-qualified buyers in this market; and grow your export strategy.

Who You Know: Connecting with Your Tribe

It has been said that it’s not what you know, but who you know – and in the world of export, it is true that it is impossible for any single person to know it all. We spoke with three Australian businesses about creating supportive networks for export success. From cold calling to collective collaborations; packaging fiascoes to trade shows; and industry associations to instant messaging international buyers – this adage held true. It’s not always what you know, but what your tribe knows, that goes.

Craig Smith | Gourmet Garden | Head of International Trade, Asia

“For us, building a solid network was really important. The Sunshine Coast has developed a unique collaborative network known asthe Food and Agribusiness Network, which brings people from all different parts of the food and agribusiness community together to

talk about the various issues they’re having,” said Craig Smith, Gourmet Garden’s Head of International Trade with Asia. “In this way we share experiences, successes, and understand together about how different markets, opportunities, and retailers work. So it really is a great opportunity. Working with the Sunshine Coast Council as part of this, it all comes together nicely as a portfolio. It’s a great mix of different businesses from different walks of life coming together and acting as one – not necessarily having one voice, but having a lot of different voices that all say the same thing. It’s very important. It really works, and it’s a movement that is going to continue to build and grow in momentum.

“As a business connecting into various markets, the most important thing was to understand what the market was really like, either through the experiences we ourselves had, or connecting with other

people who have actually had experiences in those markets.

“We hired consultants who actually had the specific detail, the experience and expertise in a particular market; whether that be China, the US or the UK. We made sure we found people that actually knew the market and understood these markets.

“But we went one step further, in working with Local Governments and the State Government. Trade and Investment Queensland isexcellent in most markets, but they can only go so far; Austrade are excellent in a lot of markets, but they can only go so far. I think it really comes down to connecting with all of them, and working with them all so that each stakeholder can present its own expertise. If you can capitalize on the expertise these people have and what they can offer you and your business, it will give you that extra leap forward in understanding the core wants and needs of your business.

“Going into a marketplace, you have aspirations of what it’s going to be like, about how large the business is going to grow. You really need to take the steps to understand how long it might take by hiring the right people with expertise in those marketplaces. I think you need to have a team of people around you. It’s almost impossible to do it on your own. No one has that experience. No one has that knowledge of individual markets. Reach out. Pay a little bit more money. It’s safer to pay a little bit of money and get the right expertise to give you the right information and move forward on that. You’re not going to get it right all the time, but when you do get it right: success.”

Samea Maakrun | Sasy n Savy | Managing Director

“We mainly connect with buyers at expos,” said Samea Maakrun, Managing Director of Sasy n Savy. “Nineteen years ago I made my

first trip to Asia, because I realized there weren’t many Australian companies exporting overseas.

“When I came home three years later and had brands approaching me to do private label for them, I selected 3-4 companies per year, and focused on attending CosmoProf, a major beauty expo held all around the world – they’re in Hong Kong, Bologna (in Italy), and also in Las Vegas.

“Over the years, I have exhibited at these expos, and allowed my customers to exhibit with me. We always do a huge press release to all the media and buyers connected with each show. This has allowed other Australian companies to get into the market, and created a bit of a tribe too. Expos are quite successful. When we do expos now, there is demand from international companies to make themeetings for us – the hard work has paid off. The first couple of years, there was a lot of investment, with little return. But after the fifth and sixth year, we started to see the return.

“We also find through these expos that you can understand a lot more about countries than you’d think. Recently, we found outabout trade embargoes in Qatar making it difficult to import brands. Most of the brands are coming from Dubai and Saudi Arabia. A lot of new companies are out there though, and if you need a market, you can approach the Qatar distributors because they’re desperate for product at the moment. So much so that a lot of the big distributors are employing people from all around the world to start bringing in brands from every corner of the globe.

“On top of expos, we’ve also found cold calling works well. Everyone says, ‘Yes, China is a big market,’ but it’s a very risky market. There’s a lot of fraud. There’s a lot of corruption. There’s a lot of loss-of-money that can be had as well. We’ve gone through all that over the last ten years, registering our products in the China market.

“There are so many other countries, if you do your research. Russia, Mexico… Find out if there’s demand for your products in each of these markets. Keep an eye out for the trade embargoes, what’s happening in each market, and attend expos.

“In regard to stakeholders: everyone’s a stakeholder within our company. From the suppliers who make sure the raw material isalways fresh, to developing connections with Federal, State and Local Government. We also have strong relationships with our lawyers and accountants as well, not only here in Australia, but also overseas, to protect our trademarks all around the world. Before we entered into any country, we had to get our trademark covered in black and white, in English, and also in the spoken language of each country. We were copied in so many countries in such a short period of time.

“Regulations are also changing all around the world. For skincare, there are a lot of ingredients you can’t use in the various markets. You’ve really got to understand your customers. They’re also an important stakeholder, because the requirements in each country for skincare vary. In the Middle East, they prefer aromas that are very strong, whereas in Asia, they’re after floral aromas. Thesecustomers are also very important, and we consider them our stakeholders. They feed through information.

“We’ve experienced a lot of lessons in regard to the colouring of our packaging in certain countries. Even when we had invested a lot of money on packaging which we thought would go well in the China market; the Chinese all said ‘Yes’ in the meetings that we went to, but the orders never came in. It took us a year and a half, and no one told us this – not even our Chinese customers. Eventually, one of our staff members who was Taiwanese picked it up, and said, ‘I think the colour red that you’ve used means “stable-and-half-unstable” in the China market.’ The minute we changed it to a solid red, the orders came in.

“There are a lot of lessons that you learn along the way. Some countries don’t like plastic packaging. We’ve got a shipment trying to get to Albania this week, and we found out that it’s urgent. However, we found out that once we ship it into Albania, we can’t get it properly into the country because they can’t be more than 90 kg, because of the trade sanctions there. We do shipments into Colombia, but have found that we can’t ship our labels there because the product gets stolen off the wall. Where does it end? Every day is a different lesson, and that’s why everyone is a stakeholder in our business – from the logistics, to the suppliers, to everyone.”

Jacqueline Donoghue | Lively Linseed Products | CEO

“There are a lot of startup costs when you go straight from the raw material in the paddock to a saleable product which is 99.9%pure,” said Jacqueline Donoghue, CEO of Lively Linseed Products. “There are a lot of startup costs involved. I didn’t have a lot of money, so I used what I did have to partner with Austrade and NSW Trade and Investment. I attended an expo on an Australian stand; it was done very well. There is a cost involved, but far less than if I had set up my own stand at these export trade shows. Because Australia is the flavor of the month at the moment, we got lots and lots of buyers. I also use the TradeStart Advisor for our region, Rob Harrison, as a sounding board for all things export. He is very much a part of our export team.

“I use daigos here in Australia. They’re a wonderful source to use to communicate about products to customers. They educate their customers about your product, so that’s been a great channel for us. We also communicate with our customers on social media. We do it with WeChat. Chinese customers don’t get Facebook, YouTube, or any of that, so we do it all on WeChat. That’s how we get direct feedback. They post on their own WeChat channels about how they’re using our product, and it gives us insight into how wecan change and adapt and be agile in that market.

“One of the things we learned from this feedback was about a product that sells here in Australia in a 400g pouch. We resized it down to something that they preferred – a 250g pouch, and sales have gone up. We also changed the packaging a little, to make it moreobvious that it was from Australia. These were key feedback gained from our international buyers.

“You need to constantly chat with your buyers, ask what other products are selling in your category, which countries they are from, about their selling points compared with yours. It’s a two-way exchange. You have to put an effort into asking your buyers and then respond to that feedback, to get the best result; both for the business and for them, because they sell more that way, too.”

One of the quickest ways to create a network is to join one – and sometimes it’s as simple as making one single connection. Finding one person with key relationships that they’re willing to share with you can save you a lot of heartache – and cold calling! To find out more about how to select the right markets, connect with pre-qualified buyers and grow your export strategies, reach out. We’d be glad to connect, and to be a valuable part of your tribe.

Picture credit: Food and Agribusiness Network (FAN), Instagram. A meeting of the minds; Emma Greenhatch of FAN and other suppliers and stakeholders gather together at Sunshine Coast Foodie’s event, Meet the Maker.

In-Market Partnerships

‘There are regulations for everything.’ Craig Salkeld, Managing Director at Tetra Pak Oceania. When it comes to international trade and especially with certain countries with variable import procedures such as China, it may not be as simple as checking the specifications, shipping your product and hoping for the best.

‘For trade with China, it might as well be multiple countries that you’re dealing with.’ Craig’s years of experience suggest a valuable strategy in combating the changing regulations and procedures in some countries is to form partnerships with people on the ground in those countries. These partnerships, whether it be an agent, importer, distributor etc can be used to check your products on the ground in the country where they arrive before they hit the shelves.

Of course, engaging in such partnerships will affect your margins, and that is a consideration. However, Craig says that these partnerships can be more beneficial in the long term because a local contact can help to protect your IP much better than you ever could from afar. ‘It’s very difficult to protect your IP in a foreign country,’ he said.

‘Having knowledgeable partners is paramount, so try to get ahead of all the specifications before you have terrible shipments where you lose product along the way. The more things you know, the less the loss will be.’

These are just some of the insights garnered from our recent Food and Beverage Exporters Forum at the Sydney Fine Food Fair. To learn more, contact us at www.exportconnect.com.au