The world of import and export can be challenging, but when a client urgently required a quick solution to find storage and a route to market, we had the expertise.
THE BACKGROUND
The global COVID-19 pandemic brought a huge demand increase worldwide for anti-bacterial products. One KC Group Shipping customer shipped ten containers from Ningbo to Miami of anti-bacterial wipes to supply hotels throughout the United States.
As many countries went into full lockdown state, the customer had a new challenge, one that he turned to us for support.
THE CHALLENGE
Unfortunately, as the US was one of the countries experiencing lockdown restrictions when the goods arrived, hotels in the hospitality industry were closed, and they could not complete the sale of the wipes.
Covid lockdown put many suppliers, including our customer, in a complicated situation as port closures, congestion, and rocketing rates made it unfeasible to return the goods to China.
We had to quickly find a solution for the customer to take these off the quay without delay.
THE SOLUTION
KC Group Shipping has strong relationships with agents worldwide, including Miami. We quickly got in touch to arrange meetings with KC and our US agents and included the customer to ensure complete transparency on the situation and how we would proceed.
Our US colleagues worked efficiently to remove the containers off the quay and into a bonded warehouse to keep costs down as much as possible for the customer whilst they explored their options for a new buyer for the goods.
We set up a process, connecting our customer directly with the US agent to allow them to quickly arrange the sale of individual cartons as and when required, as the need for countrywide anti-bacterial was a growing demand. In 2021 the US Government announced they would be taking the duty discount off PPE.
We advised the customer of this development and then proceeded clearing the goods to allow the duty payment at the lower rate. We have kept the containers at their original location, and the number of cartons has dramatically reduced over the past two years.
THE RESULTS
From our initial interaction with our customer to our discussions and planning with the US agents, the KC Group Shipping team guided each stage-gate process for a positive outcome. We presented the customer with a detailed, streamlined method of how we would handle this very challenging issue for them. We dedicated an operator to manage the process to ensure we could promptly answer questions regarding any changes with US Customs. We have significantly strengthened our relationship with our customer and the US agent throughout our operations.
Good logistics and supply chain management ensure that consignments are delivered end-to-end effectively and safely. Still, when challenges occur, it’s critical to have the ability to bring new solutions, with the experience to resolve problems, even during a worldwide pandemic.
