Advice on Exporting From the UK to US States

Even without a free trade deal between the UK and the United States, there is plenty of opportunity for British exporters who would like to trade with customers in many US states. For example, the states on the eastern seaboard of the USA are relatively easy to ship goods to. Delaware, New York, Massachusetts, New Jersey, South Carolina, Florida and Georgia all have ready-made seaports just waiting for containers to arrive from Europe, for example. Even if you would like to sell goods to customers further in the South or West, ports like San Diego, Los Angeles and New Orleans all offer convenient access.

There again, air freight services criss-cross the United States, something that is worth bearing in mind for the most urgent of orders. That said, air freight is often not the most cost-effective way of sending goods directly to customers in states like Colorado, Iowa, Arizona or Oregon despite the extra distances involved. Instead, you should be looking at sending your goods by shipping container. Why? The international shipping container system is right for nearly all classes of goods, offering protection and security even for valuable or perishable items. Equally, US logistics firms are geared up to handle them on your behalf as soon as they make landfall in an American seaport, ready for their onward journey. Also, you can prefer the shipping container that helps to manage your business more efficiently.

Note that it is not always a bright idea to try and negotiate with US haulage firms directly from the UK, however. Unless you already do a significant amount of business with freight companies in the USA, you are going to end up paying top dollar to get your exports out of a US seaport and on to wherever it is your customer needs them. According to Barrington Freight, a British-based freight forwarding firm, you need local expertise which can differ depending on which state you happen to be talking about. 

By appointing a freight forwarding firm to manage your shipments, you should be able to get better delivery prices to convey goods from coastal ports to centrally located states like Missouri, Kansas or Nebraska, for instance. It shouldn’t just be cheaper this way, either. When you turn to an expert who places repeat business in the USA all the time, it will be more likely that you’ll get a more reliable service, too, one that means your deliveries arrive without any unwanted incidents en route.

Shipping commercial items to the US also means having to comply with customs officials. Certain classes of goods may need to be accompanied by forms and other types of paperwork, for example. For this, you should either build up your own administrative team with the required skills or look for a logistical firm with the international licenses required to process export paperwork for US-bound consignments. Without such skills to back up your delivery service, your customer’s order might be delayed for some time before it can be cleared for its onward journey. That’s no way to win repeat custom, of course, so getting it right the first time is essential.