No matter what type of business you have, being able to expand your business and reach more customers is always a positive. Being the owner of a grocery business means you have to work a little harder to get your consumable products online and available internationally.
Having a physical store is a huge achievement in itself, but opening up your business to international markets can have an immeasurable impact on your profit margins.
But just how do I ship groceries internationally?
Fulfilment by Amazon (FBA) enables smaller businesses to expand their business overseas by allowing third party sellers to store their products in Fulfilment Centres throughout the UK and Europe, before picking, packing, distributing and delivering the products to waiting customers.
Opting for FBA means your customers can take advantage of Amazon’s own delivery options and policies, tracking options, estimated dispatch anddelivery dates, as well as Amazon’s Super Saver Delivery service.
So, I can ship Groceries Through that Service?
Shipping groceries is somewhat more complicated than shipping, for example, note books, however that doesn’t mean it is impossible – in fact it is still relatively easy to do.
When you list your business with FBA, you will find that once you list your products under “groceries” there are a lot more rules in place, when compared to other categories. The reason for this is the fact that someone will be consuming the product.
One of the biggest obstacles is expiration dates as Amazon will only put items on their site that have a certain expiration period, and must have a certain amount of days before the expiration date just to be able to send them to a fulfilment centre (find more information about expiration dates here).
They also have restrictions on products that might melt – such as chocolate – so it is important to follow their rules and guidelines to a T, otherwise you might find your product being disposed of upon their arrival to a fulfilment centre.
After you have done a great deal of research into FBA and its guidelines and regulations for your product, it is time to register your business and your product for sale on Amazon.
How do I Get my Products to an Amazon Fulfilment Centre?
Once you have registered with FBA you will need to get your products to their fulfilment centres in order for them to ship on your behalf. Choosing a freight or delivery company to get your products from your location to the fulfilment centre needn’t be difficult. Choosing a company, like National Pallets, who have experience working with FBA and understand the industry jargon and delivery regulations can help make your experience easier by taking you through step by step.
National Pallets
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