Andrea Collins is a global trade specialist and the Managing Director of the Global Trade Department, a boutique consultancy which specialises in international trade, global and EU regulations and regulatory alignment.
Recently, the Global Trade Department has worked closely with the Department for Business and Trade and the local Chambers of Commerce to help businesses adapt to GPSR.
Best for Britain had the opportunity to sit down with her and ask her for what advice she would give to those struggling with GPSR...
On supporting businesses
"Quite often when you're dealing with SMEs or even micros where the ability to export is their livelihood, you know, if they switch off shipping to the EU, they can't pay their mortgage. So then you have to jump on a call with them, you can't just respond via email. You've got to really calm it down a little bit, get them to take a breath and explain the regulation in layman's terms."
"This feels like Brexit mark 2. And you can't help but think… you're talking about people's livelihoods here, you know, this is really serious. And we've worked with these companies to get them still plugging away in the EU, still trying to regain their foothold, still trying to navigate the VAT issue, the customs issue, regulatory issues. And then for some of them, GPSR just felt like the final nail in the coffin.”
On authorised representatives
“There are authorised representatives that have set up over years that will scrutinise technical files for CE-marked goods and obviously that comes at a cost because it's a human interaction. So you've got them at one end, and then you've got the plethora of companies that have just set up… we've heard some horror stories of companies that have just set up overnight and sent customers a PDF to fill out and you know, “Send us £250” and they're in Estonia or something like that. So there's no human involvement and our companies don't know whether it's fraudulent or whether it's legitimate. That's basically what our customers have had to deal with - either we pay thousands of pounds for a business that looks like it's been a viable concern for years and has a pedigree. Or we look at what our budget can afford and we go with an Estonian company and pay £200 but don't know whether they're still going to be in business next year when it comes to renewal.”
“The authorised representative basically takes on no product liability at all. It's always down to the manufacturer. So at a very basic level, the authorised representative or the responsible person is the conduit between the manufacturer and the market surveillance authorities. It's all to do with if there's a product safety issue, or if there's any kind of product issue in the EU, they want to be able to know that they can liaise with an EU-established business or individual rather than trying to chase the manufacturer that's based across the other side of the world.”
On the importance of accurate communication
“When SMEs have got time to prepare in visibility of what's coming, they don't make knee-jerk reactions, they don't incur costs that they don't need to. And importantly, they don't stop shipping to our closest neighbour.”
“We need to get better at arming our businesses to comply. First of all, make them aware that it's coming. And then break it down into bite-sized chunks. So ok, if you work to comply now, there will be other companies and countries that cannot comply and have to withdraw from the market, therefore there's further opportunity for you. It doesn't have to be a regulatory headache. It can be an opportunity for growth.”
On the impact of Brexit on small businesses
“The skills shortage around import and export was laid bare after Brexit - companies just didn't know what they were doing. They'd never exported before, they just traded with their neighbour. So I think there's a place for investment, absolutely it has its place, but it shouldn't be the be-all and end-all. We should be investing heavily in our micro businesses, our small businesses to help them carve out their niche internationally.”
“The regulation is very “regulatory speak”, which is difficult to interpret unless you live in regulation day-in day-out. Some companies felt like it was the EU punishing UK businesses for Brexit, which… I think we've dispelled that. It's a by-product of Brexit. If we were still part of the EU, we would have been able to have a voice for how disproportionately impacting this regulation was going to be to our craft sector, for example. We would have had a voice at the table, but being outside of the EU, we're classed as a third country and no different to those markets that might produce those unsafe, unsustainable, poor quality goods.”