The differences between self-operated export and agency export are astonishing! Did you know?

On the big stage of international trade, export business is a crucial part! Among them, self-operated export and agency export are two common methods. Today, let's take a good look at the differences between them, so that everyone can have a clearer understanding of export business.

Self-operated export means that an enterprise itself has the right to engage in import and export business, directly signs trade contracts with foreign customers, and is responsible for a series of export operations from product production, procurement, to transportation, customs declaration, etc. For example, the enterprise where Mr. Zhang works has strong strength and a professional foreign trade team, so they can choose self-operated export to control the entire export process by themselves and promote their products to the international market.

Agency export is that an enterprise itself does not have the right to engage in import and export business, or although it has it, for some reasons, such as wanting to save energy, using the resources of the agency company, etc., it entrusts an agency company with the right to engage in import and export business to handle the export business. Just like Ms. Li's small company, the volume of foreign trade business is not large, and it is rather troublesome for her to handle export matters by herself, so she found a professional agency company to let them handle a series of complicated things such as customs declaration and tax refund.

In self-operated export, an enterprise has to do many things by itself. From looking for foreign customers, negotiating orders, to arranging production, quality inspection, and then handling transportation, customs declaration, foreign exchange collection, etc., it has to keep an eye on each link. This requires the enterprise to have a perfect foreign trade department and be familiar with various foreign trade processes and relevant policies and regulations.

• For example, in the customs declaration link, the enterprise has to prepare all kinds of customs declaration documents by itself, accurately fill in the customs declaration information, and ensure smooth customs clearance.

However, in agency export, the enterprise mainly communicates well with the agency company about product information, order requirements, etc. The agency company will complete tasks such as looking for freight forwarders, customs declaration, and tax refund declaration according to the agreement. The enterprise is relatively easier, as long as it cooperates with the agency company to provide necessary materials.

When engaging in self-operated export, an enterprise has to bear almost all the risks. If the products are not popular in the foreign market and there is inventory backlog, the losses have to be borne by itself; if there is damage or loss of goods during transportation, the enterprise also has to negotiate with the relevant parties to solve the problem; and the risks brought by exchange rate fluctuations also have to be dealt with by the enterprise itself.

In the case of agency export, although the enterprise still has to bear some risks in terms of product quality, etc., the risks caused by the operational errors of the agency company, such as customs declaration errors and untimely tax refunds, are generally borne by the agency company. However, when choosing an agency company, the enterprise has to be careful and look for a reliable one, otherwise there may also be troublesome things.

The costs of self-operated export mainly include the labor costs of its own foreign trade team, the marketing costs of exploring the international market, the fees for handling various export procedures, and so on. These costs add up to a lot, especially for some small and medium-sized enterprises, the burden may be relatively heavy.

For agency export, the enterprise needs to pay a certain agency fee to the agency company. Generally speaking, this agency fee will be lower than the cost of the enterprise forming its own foreign trade team and handling all export matters by itself. However, if the agency company has some additional charging items, the enterprise also has to pay attention to identification.

After understanding these differences between self-operated export and agency export, when an enterprise conducts export business, it can choose a more suitable export method according to its own actual situation, such as enterprise scale, foreign trade experience, financial strength, etc. Fellow foreign traders, how do you choose? Welcome to leave comments and discuss in the comment area, so that we can go more smoothly on the road of international trade!