Brexit and E-commerce: Who Does it Impact?

In our previous blog we went over some of the basics around Brexit in this edition we are focusing on the details of who is affected by the process.  

Clearly if you are trading domestically and sourcing all products locally then the process should have a significant impact on your business. 

 

But Brexit will impact e-commerce merchants around the globe. Any British company that sells globally will be affected as well as British companies already selling in Europe, and foreign brands currently selling in the UK and across the EU. The actual impact will only be known once all the details are finalised but if you fall into any of these categories it is important that you prepare your business.

 

British e-commerce companies that sell outside the UK will have to follow new regulations when shipping outside of the United Kingdom and vice versa. In this situation any new restrictions and prohibitions would need to be considered, there may also be new tariffs and import duties to be paid which will have a knock-on effect on prices of products. There may also be restrictions on the products, or some may be prohibited. It is important to check whether or not these trade barriers relate to your business. 

 

If you are a British business selling cross-border to the EU, there may be new tariffs when importing into the EU and various shipping restrictions and regulations when selling cross-border to EU countries. This could raise the prices of products being sold and cause potential delays when shipping to EU customers. It is important that this is built into the delivery timeframes for your customers as it will be an important time to retain existing customers and not the time to have disappointed customers.

 

As an international company selling to customers in Britain and the EU shipping and selling policies will need to be aligned with an independent UK in a post-Brexit world. This will likely mean that there will be separate UK-specific shipping and selling rules.

 

Although Brexit might impact your e-commerce business and may entail implementing some changes these should all be done with the customer in mind. The customer experience should still be as easy and convenient as possible as this is why people shop online. The customer should not be the party which is affected by poor planning. Any negative consequences should be mitigated and any changes that need to be made done so as soon as possible so that when new rules relating to online activities including e-commerce are live your business is ready.

 

How the London Bridge Project Can Help to Deliver Success 

The London Bridge Project (LBP) is a leading sales and management consulting firm that provides both amazon consulting services and amazon sales support for businesses looking to grow exponentially within the biggest marketplace in the world. We offer a complete end-to-end service for Amazon based businesses, which includes providing valuable insights into Amazon sales data and a pipeline of under-explored opportunities within your niche.

If you would like to learn more about how the London Bridge Project can help your online business, make sure to contact a member of our team today to discuss your requirements.