Keeping Cool With Cross-Border Freight Solutions
"We listened to our customer’s unique pain points and collaborated to create a customized cross-border solution that met their needs. Working together enabled our team to do what we do best — coordinate cross-border freight — so our customer could focus their time resources on manufacturing coolers and drinkware.”
– Kelsie Kam, MX Director, Operations, Coyote Logistics
Quick Shipper Facts:
- $190 million+ premium cooler and drinkware brand
- Selling products in four countries
- Coyote customer for 2+ years
Challenge:
A premium cooler and drinkware brand made supply chain changes to reduce its production costs by fabricating part of its product in Mexico. The company had no experience shipping cross-border and needed a 3PL partner experienced in creating cross-border solutions for Mexico freight.
The Result:
By working with Coyote’s Mexico team, the cooler brand was able to establish a cross-border solution that enabled the company to deliver over 500 cross-border loads.
The Full Story:
Shifting production from the U.S. to Mexico has proven to be an attractive cost-saving solution for a number of U.S.-based brands. But despite the cost savings, the process of moving product over the border can be intimidating.
Shippers must take into account the potential for adjusted lead times, increased paperwork, cross-border fees, and extra security measures required for their product in any cross-border moves.
This was the case for one premium cooler and drinkware brand who decided to make a shift in their fabrication to produce a portion of their products in Mexico. While confident in their decision to update their processes, they were concerned that moving freight to and from Mexico wasn’t something they were familiar with.
They needed a global 3PL partner who knew the intricacies of cross-border shipping and how to create a comprehensive, efficient, cost-effective solution.
When they reached out to Coyote, their designated U.S sales rep immediately collaborated with the Coyote Mexico team — which includes people on the ground in Guadalajara — to start creating that solution. After a preliminary discussion, it became apparent the customer first needed a customs broker to help them comply with the importing and exporting laws of Mexico and the United States.
We connected this customer with a customs broker who helped them meet legal requirements for their shipment and handle the associated fees and taxes — they minimized costly paperwork mistakes and avoided fines that could have ranged from $500 to as much as $25,000. Thanks to our unique position as part of the UPS One SCS network of supply chain providers, we’re able to offer UPS customs brokerage as the broker of choice for a similar solution today.
In addition to a customs broker solution, the customer also noted the high value of their product. As an experienced and connected cross-border brokerage, we were also able to coordinate escorts to ease security concerns for this shipper’s valuable freight.
These specialized services, when combined with our core freight brokerage that matches over 10,000 shipments a day to trusted carriers in our network, allowed this customer to seamlessly move more than 500 cross-border shipments in an 18-month period.
Summary:
By working with Coyote’s Mexico team, this specific customer was able to develop a customized cross-border solution that met their unique needs. Our Mexico team evaluated ;every customer concern and developed tactics to help them mitigate risk and financial burdens while moving their product north and south of the border
The cross-border success stories don’t stop with this customer. We look forward to creating more specialized solutions for our customers who ship to or from Mexico or Canada.