Getting an EU order is exciting. But don't proceed without an EU Authorised Representative.
We have been doing some research this week into what is actually involved when a brand expands internationally, and I want to raise this now because it is something that is often missed in the excitement of landing an order from a European buyer, and it can trip a brand up. This is the up to date position based on the regulations as they stand today, which can of course evolve and change, but it is the situation as it is right now, and I think every brand looking at international growth should have it in view before they get too far into the excitement of a new market.
Since 13th December 2024, the EU's General Product Safety Regulation has required that a product can only be placed on the EU market if there is an economic operator established in the EU responsible for it. That can be an EU manufacturer, an EU importer, or a mandated Authorised Representative. If none of those exist for your product, you are not able to sell into the EU compliantly, however good the order is.
Here is the point almost everyone gets wrong. Selling on DDP terms, delivered duty paid, does not make a UK company an EU importer. Incoterms are a commercial arrangement about who pays what and who carries what risk in transit. Under the regulation, an importer is specifically defined as a person established in the Union. A UK business cannot become established in the EU by choosing a delivery term, no matter how the contract is written.
This is not only a compliance box to tick either, it is genuinely commercial. Without an appointed representative in place, each EU retailer you approach risks becoming the responsible economic operator by default if something goes wrong. That is a real reason for a retailer to hesitate or say no. Turning up to a conversation with a representative already appointed removes that hesitation before it is even raised, which makes it a door opener rather than only a cost.
One thing a representative does not do is take on your liability as the manufacturer. You remain responsible for the safety of your product. What the representative takes on is their own set of statutory duties: they become the authority-facing interface, they hold and provide documentation, and they carry out checks under the regulation. It is a genuine second pair of eyes, not a transfer of responsibility.
This is a challenge I see often, and it is the real reason I wanted to raise it. A brand gets approached by an international retailer or buyer, and understandably, that is flattering. The excitement of growth into a new market can be so strong that the research into what it actually obligates you to do gets skipped, or rushed, or left until later. And what tends to happen next is that the brand offers a price that looks competitive but does not actually include the full cost of the process it has now committed to. That price feels like a win in the moment. It rarely is one. You end up busy rather than profitable, doing real work for a customer relationship that raises your brand's visibility but does not actually pay for itself. It gets worse from there too, because if you go on to sell to other buyers in that same territory, the price you already gave the first one is now the price the market expects, and you cannot easily raise it without damaging the relationship that got you there in the first place. So the advice is simple, even if it is not always easy to follow when an exciting order lands in your inbox. Hold back before you say yes. Get advice, do the research, and go into a new territory with your eyes open rather than your head turned.
FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS
What is an EU Authorised Representative, and do I need one?
If you are a UK brand placing products on the EU market and you do not have an EU manufacturer or EU-established importer, you need a mandated Authorised Representative established in the EU. This has been a requirement under the General Product Safety Regulation, Article 16, since 13th December 2024. Without one, you are not able to sell into the EU compliantly.
Does selling DDP mean I do not need an EU representative?
No. Delivered duty paid is a commercial delivery term about who pays costs and carries risk in transit. It does not make a UK company established in the EU. Under the regulation, importer status specifically requires establishment in the Union, which a delivery term cannot create. This is the single most common misunderstanding brands have about this requirement.
If I appoint a representative, does that remove my liability?
No. The manufacturer, which includes a brand that has a product made to its own design and sells it under its own name, remains legally responsible for product safety. The representative takes on their own statutory duties under the regulation, holding documentation and acting as the authority-facing contact, but they do not absorb the manufacturer's responsibility.
If you are weighing up expansion into the EU and want to understand what needs to be in place before you commit, that is exactly the kind of conversation we have at The Nest. Come and talk to us before the excitement of the order runs ahead of the numbers.
The Nest News lands every Tuesday: three insights shaping maternity, baby and children's products, and the actions you can take. Sign up at https://www.thenest.uk.com/the-nest-news-signup
Build BETTER. Grow CONSCIOUSLY.
Comments