When Craft Beer Meets Chinese Customs

Remember when a certain German craft beer brand first entered China in 2022, it was detained at port for 37 days due to classifying the beer as fermented beverage - this case is still frequently mentioned in industry training. AsImport Representation, the first challenge to overcome isthe battle of commodity classification:

• Core judgment criteria:
  • Whether alcohol content exceeds 0.5%vol (distinguishing beverages from alcoholic drinks)
  • Whether malt content meets traditional beer standards
• Special categories to note:
• Stout beers containing dairy ingredients require quarantine approval
• Oak barrel-aged versions may involve endangered species certificates

Hidden checkpoints behind licenses

Last year when helping a Belgian brewery with import procedures, we discovered their honey ale required additionalcertificate of origin from the beekeeping farmBesides routine checks on the List of Registered Overseas Food Manufacturers for Import, special attention should be paid to:

• Label compliance:
  • Chinese back labels must include ingredient proportions (e.g. barley malt percentage)
  • Special process descriptions (e.g. barrel aging) must comply with advertising laws
• Test report validity:
• Microbiological index testing must be completed within 60 days before shipment
• Plasticizer testing must clearly specify the testing method standard

The economics of transportation plans

Taking 40HQ containers as an example, cost differences between different transportation plans can reach 23%:

Recommended for new brandsLCL + bonded warehouse temporary storageThis model can both share logistics costs and flexibly respond to inventory fluctuations during market testing.

The golden ratio of channel layout

A U.S. craft brand achieved first-year sales of 6 million throughthree-phase penetration strategyin the previous year:

• Phase 1 (January-March):
  • Entered 5 bonded experience stores
  • Held 12 vertical tasting events
• Phase 2 (April-June):
• Expanded to 20 specialty supermarket counters
• Launched on 3Cross-border E-commercePlatform
• Phase 3 (July-December):
• Developed direct supply to 80 craft beer bars
• Established 3 regional sub-warehouses

The devil in the details of agency contracts

A recent dispute case showed that an agent had their full deposit deducted for neglecting theminimum promotion investment clausein the contract. Must be carefully reviewed:

• Market support terms:
  • Delivery time of promotional materials provided by the brand owner
  • Allocation ratio of joint promotion costs
• Exit mechanism:
• Price calculation formula for inventory repurchase
• Scope definition of customer list handover

It is recommended to request the brand owner to provideRenewal rate data of regional agents in the past three years, which is more valuable than any verbal commitment.

Overlooked tax landmines

A Canadian ice wine brand agent last year due toDeclared price deviationwas required to pay 1.3 million in back taxes, with the problem lying in:

• CIF price composition:
  • Currency conversion timing for overseas insurance fees
  • Whether temporary storage fees should be included in the dutiable value
• Royalty Fees:
• Whether brand usage fees are directly related to imported goods
• Taxation criteria for market assistance fees

It is recommended to conduct during the first importPre-classification + price pre-auditDouble protection, although it will increase 2 weeks of time cost, but can avoid over 90% of subsequent risks.