How automation can support cross-border growth

In a $1 trillion dollar market, shipping cross-border requires three crucial elements for successful growth: 

• Effectively managing transactions
• Compliance
• Customer delight

While the growth rate of cross-border trade is expected to outpace ecommerce twice over, making sure all three are aligned is one of the biggest pain points facing ambitious businesses today.

Speaking at eTail Germany, one of Europe’s largest conferences dedicated to businesses seeking global expansion, Patrick Frith, Director of Cross-border Global Trade, Avalara said: “For any business thinking about selling anywhere in the world, the single biggest headache they face is how they can move their products from one place to another in a way that keeps them compliant with the financial obligations of each market. It’s no surprise that despite the desire to grow, the complexities of international expansion can cause a lot of uncertainty.”.

A surge of changes across the global compliance sector has seen a seismic shift in new compliance codes and reporting requirements. One notably is the update to the Harmonised System (HS) tariff codes which came into play at the start of 2022 resulting in the removal of 870 codes and an addition of 940. Country specific, HS Codes are a system to classify globally traded products. Used to calculate customs duty, each country has a unique code for the same product – so getting it wrong will impact your business and your bottom line.  

Frith continues: “Given the growth rate of the market, if you’re not already shipping internationally, now is the time to consider cross-border trade. The opportunity for expansion is enormous. If the notion of navigating some of these known challenges feels overwhelming, please be assured that there are solutions to help. Technology has developed enormously over the last decade – utilised by thousands of businesses across the globe, it’s a proven means to help navigate around potential pitfalls – meaning you can keep focused on growing your business.”.

Partners such as Avalara can provide you with real-time calculations, support, and advice on everything you need to keep your goods moving across the globe.

If you’re ready to find out more, contact us to speak to one of our experts for a no-obligation discussion on how we can help.