Issue link: https://read.dmtmag.com/i/459961
February 2015 | Boating Industry | 29 [ Building profi ts through export ] www.BoatingIndustry.com ditional shipping and warehousing costs, and potential costs to modify products or packag- ing for export, including regulatory compliance expenses. You're also at risk of cultural back- lashes. Happily, the risks can be signifi cantly minimized by taking advantage of free help through federal and state-level agencies like the U.S. Department of Commerce, U.S. Commer- cial Service and the Export-Import Bank of the United States. Each agency offers programs to help companies mitigate the fi nancial risks as- sociated with international sales. "I always tell exporters to identify a suitable banker and a freight forwarder who they feel comfortable with," advises Balzano. "Each will become their partners in international trade and ensure that they mitigate and navigate the inher- ent risks accordingly." Mission possible So exporting sounds like it might indeed be worth a look. But how and where do you start? The simplest way to get your feet wet is to take advantage of turnkey trade missions organized by NMMA. The organization offi cially launched its export development program in August 2012 and has since helped numerous members begin ex- porting or to grow their existing export efforts. In most cases, trade missions revolve around visits to key boat shows in overseas markets. "Shows are very important in terms of fi nd- ing suppliers, fi nding new dealers and showing the new product to our overseas distributors," said Mark Pelini, mechanical engineer and project manager with Bob's Machine Shop, who attended the 2014 METS in Amster- dam. "We sell outboard-related product and there are outboards all around the world, so we want to ensure we have representation in global markets. Exports now represent 23 to 24 percent of our business." By identifying markets that represent high trade potential and looking after the administra- tive details, these trade missions represent the easiest entry to exporting, said Balzano. "New this year, we are introducing a business development mission to Mexico, as no lead- ing boat show currently exists in that market," she said. "Planned for May 4 to 9, 2015, we'll visit three markets in Mexico with the goal of educating ourselves on market opportunities, key industry players and cultural nuances for doing business in Mexico." Savvy manufacturers ensure they tap every potential source of assistance for growing ex- ports, starting with the U.S. Department of Commerce. The agency exists to help U.S. com- panies sell their goods abroad through its Gold Key service and offers a vast range of services to make it easy. From providing help identify- ing agents and distributors, to providing detailed market analysis in the potential market of your choice, the agency makes exporting about as turnkey as it gets. In some cases, funding, guid- ance and administrative assistance is also avail- able at the state level. "We've used the Gold Key program exten- sively," said HydroHoist's Webber. "They do a lot of legwork and pre-qualifying for us, and it's made it a lot easier." "I think the reason more people don't uti- lize the help that's available to them is because they just don't know what's out there," observed Gator Guards' Smith. "The Gold Key program is great. Ours is a small company, but they don't care, they treat everyone the same, whether you have fi ve employees or 500. All they care about is seeing companies succeed." "We sell outboard- related product and there are outboards all around the world, so we want to ensure we have representation in global markets." — Mark Pelini, Mechanical Engineer and Project Manager with Bob's Machine Shop "I think the reason more people don't utilize the help that's available to them is because they just don't know what's out there." — Sue Smith, President and CEO, Gator Guard [ Building profi ts through export ] Shows are important for fi nding new suppliers, dealers and distributors.