Belgian Beer import options to the USA

Discussion in 'Beer Talk' started by The_Bujon, May 18, 2017.

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  1. The_Bujon

    The_Bujon Initiate (0) Dec 23, 2016 Ireland

    I have been considering opening a boutique bottle shop in Ireland, but due to deeply archaic 'religious' based laws, new liquor licences are a no go, and existing ones are £100k+, plus are nearly always contested in the courts when being transferred to new premises.

    My plan B is to now sell online from France meaning bypassing the need for a Northern Ireland licence, and any movement into the UK would be classed as part of the delivery/logistics.
    Selling wholesale is also allowed without need for any licence, providing the recipient has a licence. So I wondered what the laws in the USA are around this.....could I in essence source the Belgian Beers in person and then potentially ship personally to a seller in the USA? Or could I ship to individuals for their personal consumption, and that person transferred money to cover their purchase? Would there be an interest in this, not sure how expensive or rare Belgian beers are in the USA. I would be happy to do a twice yearly ship based on any orders taken, if I could provide a list of available beers.
     
    #1 The_Bujon, May 18, 2017
  2. aquabears

    aquabears Initiate (0) Mar 29, 2016 Connecticut

    Ask a lawyer.
     
    #2 aquabears, May 18, 2017
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  3. JackHorzempa

    JackHorzempa Grand Pooh-Bah (3,375) Dec 15, 2005 Pennsylvania
    Society Pooh-Bah

    I am not a lawyer but I will point out that each state (and District of Columbia and one other entity?) has their own individual alcohol laws. I do not know how this impacts importation. This is something for that lawyer person to answer.

    Cheers!
     
    #3 JackHorzempa, May 18, 2017
  4. moshea

    moshea Initiate (0) Jul 16, 2007 Michigan

    What he said. Good luck with your endeavor, but that is an awful complicated question.

    Do you really want strangers on the internet giving legal advice?
     
    #4 moshea, May 18, 2017
  5. The_Bujon

    The_Bujon Initiate (0) Dec 23, 2016 Ireland

    Good point, was kind of thinking that shipping to individuals would be no problem at all, as this is allowed through any courier. And was kind of hoping there may be some beer merchants on BA who may have an insight.
     
    #5 The_Bujon, May 18, 2017
  6. drtth

    drtth Initiate (0) Nov 25, 2007 Pennsylvania
    In Memoriam

    To reinforce the point made by @JackHorzempa think of the United States as being 51 one different legal entities, each with their own set of laws. Not even counting what the US goverment requires.

    A better place for you to pose your questions is to reach out to companies in Europe who manage to enaged in direct mail sales to individuals in the US or to some private company currently engaged in importing beers into the US. e.g., B United or Sheldon Brothers, to name only a couple off the top of my head.
     
    #6 drtth, May 18, 2017
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  7. Squire

    Squire Grand Pooh-Bah (4,385) Jul 16, 2015 Mississippi
    BA4LYFE Society Pooh-Bah Trader

    Legal advise from the internet is worth exactly what you paid.
    Abe Linclon
     
    #7 Squire, May 18, 2017
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  8. moshea

    moshea Initiate (0) Jul 16, 2007 Michigan

    I just reread this.

    Twice yearly ship? Yea.....good luck with that.

    Did you know that there are already many established business to order Belgian beer?

    They won't wait to ship your beers for 6 months. Here is one

    https://belgiuminabox.com/shop/

    We also get many many Belgian beers distributed in North America
     
    #8 moshea, May 18, 2017
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  9. The_Bujon

    The_Bujon Initiate (0) Dec 23, 2016 Ireland

    Ok guys many thanks. I wasn't suggesting twice yearly ship to businesses, but more to individuals who could wait. I think my main market would be uk customers generally.
     
    #9 The_Bujon, May 18, 2017
  10. The_Bujon

    The_Bujon Initiate (0) Dec 23, 2016 Ireland

    Also, because I can buy them for pretty much 1-1.5euro per 330ml bottle, figured that might prove a cheaper option than in the USA, even taking into account the cost of shipping and purchasing.
     
    #10 The_Bujon, May 18, 2017
  11. drtth

    drtth Initiate (0) Nov 25, 2007 Pennsylvania
    In Memoriam

    Have you run a speadsheet on the actually numbers such as would be needed for a viable business plan? Some of the mail order houses in Belgium pay reasonable prices for their supply, then add in some mark up, all before figuring out and adding to the total costs the actual costs of shipping. I don't do mail order but I've seen shipping prices mentioned as high as $135 on a case of beer through the mails/delivery services. Given what that will buy me here in the US I'm not likely to pay that on top of the basic price for the imports.
     
    #11 drtth, May 18, 2017
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  12. The_Bujon

    The_Bujon Initiate (0) Dec 23, 2016 Ireland

    Yikes that is a savage shipping cost!, probably not a viable market in that case............. I'll maybe just stick to being a consumer :-).

    Generally most boutique bottle shops in the UK are very limited on Belgian Beer choices, sticking firmly with the craft beer scene, hence why it planted the seed in my mind.
     
    #12 The_Bujon, May 18, 2017
  13. zid

    zid Grand Pooh-Bah (3,132) Feb 15, 2010 New York
    BA4LYFE Society Pooh-Bah Trader

    Speaking of which, what beer are you drinking in your avatar picture?
     
    #13 zid, May 18, 2017
  14. The_Bujon

    The_Bujon Initiate (0) Dec 23, 2016 Ireland

    It's a Zwick'l Veldensteiner served at a Berlin bier keller near the Brandenburg Gate
     
    #14 The_Bujon, May 18, 2017
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  15. The_Bujon

    The_Bujon Initiate (0) Dec 23, 2016 Ireland

    #15 The_Bujon, May 18, 2017
  16. JackHorzempa

    JackHorzempa Grand Pooh-Bah (3,375) Dec 15, 2005 Pennsylvania
    Society Pooh-Bah

    Have you considered the business case of operating like an importer? Shipping European beers in bulk and then distributing them to end consumers. Maybe establish a presence in New York City (e.g., use a contract warehouse business) and then distribute from there?

    You would have to run the numbers but maybe this would work?

    Belgian beers like Abbey/Trappist style ales are not very sensitive to age so periodic bulk shipments (e.g., quarterly) should be viable here. The 'trick' would be that unless you maintained an inventory at the US site the end customers would have to be patient with their deliveries. I can provide this input of if you could deliver to me bottles of Cantillon (or equvalent) at a significantly reduced price vs. vendors like Belgiuninabox.com I would be willing to wait a few months for delivery of that beer to my house.

    Something to consider.

    Cheers!
     
    #16 JackHorzempa, May 18, 2017
  17. The_Bujon

    The_Bujon Initiate (0) Dec 23, 2016 Ireland

    Very interesting, will have a look into that. Suppose the picking, packing and posting would be the key thing there.
     
    #17 The_Bujon, May 18, 2017
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