Through overseas warehouses, bulky, damaged, and fragile goods can also be traded across borders and shipped locally. However, overseas warehouses are not perfect. Many people mistakenly believe that overseas warehouses are just a matter of renting a warehouse overseas and managing it with Excel, ignoring related issues such as subsequent inventory, capital occupation, local regulations, and tail goods.
Warehouses are very important assets. If you want to build your own overseas warehouse, it will require huge initial investment and refined management. The quality, efficiency and system support of warehouse management personnel are all critical. There is still a long way to go before we can achieve the efficiency of an FBA warehouse operation center. Things to pay attention to in overseas warehouses are as follows.
First, regarding the cost, the overall cost of overseas warehouses will be low only if the product selection is appropriate and the operation is smooth. If you make the wrong product selection, it will be very costly. There are too few orders, and the average warehouse rent burden is high. Products that are small and cheap are not as good as direct mail. Once there is unsaleable product, you will be charged daily. Warehousing and distribution costs vary in different countries and regions, so you can compare different delivery methods. In addition, segmented cost accounting must be precise, including first-leg freight, customs clearance and delivery fees, etc. We cannot simply look at warehouse rental discounts.
The second is inventory issues. Goods must have a certain amount of stock in overseas warehouses. Once the goods are sent out, they become invisible and intangible inventory. Excessive inventory will occupy a large amount of cash flow of the company, which will put financial pressure on the seller. Therefore, sellers must do a good job in inventory analysis and grasp the sales cycle, try to control the delivery rhythm and safety inventory, and replenish goods according to sales volume to avoid unsaleable or out-of-stock products. For example, for clothing, footwear and other highly seasonal consumer goods, small and medium-sized sellers must consider stocking strategies during off-peak and peak seasons.
The third is operational risk. Because it is trade export + overseas local operation, overseas warehouses have their own specific cross-border risks. First of all, whether the product meets the local quality standards of the importing country and whether there is any infringement, it is easy to be seized by the customs; and if product quality problems cause customer complaints, the warehouse may be seized, and you will lose all your money, or even Disaster affects the fish pond. Secondly, entry tariffs and online sales tax VAT are also unavoidable issues.
In addition, in addition to FBA and self-built warehouses, remote management, the key to using overseas warehouses is to choose a reputable service provider, because all the goods must be sent to the other party, but cross-time zone information communication is inconvenient, cargo damage, settlement and For abnormal coordination such as returns, be careful not to close the door and run away without a trace.