UKP Worldwide (UKPW), the international mail and parcel delivery specialist, is delighted to announce the opening of a new customs clearance hub for international parcels.

The External Temporary Storage Facility (ETSF) at Worminghall, Buckinghamshire offers a simplified in-house customs clearance service making significant savings for those customers who operate internationally, both importing and exporting, from the UK.

UKPW customers benefit from having just one point of contact for customs clearance. A further advantage for customers using UKPW service is that the entire customs process is speeded up as all the paperwork, duty payments and compliance is completed away from the UK border avoiding delays, disruption and additional costs caused by bottlenecks at the border, made worse by the challenges of Brexit and Covid-19. Goods reach their final destination in a fast, smooth and customs compliant way. In some cases, the paperwork can be completed in advance, making the delivery process even quicker.

As an HMRC accredited Authorised Economic Operator (AEO), UKPW is one of only a few delivery companies approved to offer customs clearance services. UKPW is also proud of its long-standing excellent working relationship with HMRC over the 20 years the company has been shipping goods internationally.

The process is straightforward: customers send a pre-alert and upload their shipping manifest to UKPW’s parcel system, Savvy. A customs record is created and the tax calculated.  Goods arrive and UKPW will collect the tax from the customer and pay HMRC on their behalf. UKPW then scans the goods and validates them against the manifest before releasing them to the final mile carrier. Savvy continues to provide 24/7 tracking of the goods until they reach their final destination, providing complete visibility and transparency to the customer. UKPW retains all customs records as proof for the customer, if later requested by HMRC.

UKPW feels privileged to offer a new tailored solution to a persistent barrier for cross-border online retailers.

Lee Bucktrout, Chief Executive of UKP Worldwide, said:

“It’s a very exciting time for us as our eCommerce business is growing substantially and we are investing resources into our customs clearance services to fulfil that demand. We offer our customers a simplified one-stop solution removing the hurdles that can come from moving goods through UK customs, particularly in these uncertain times for cross-border supply chains. Our new hub in Buckinghamshire will deliver significant savings for our customers and keep their supply chain moving, and most importantly, their customers satisfied.

We look forward to welcoming new business to UKPW in the weeks and months ahead.”

For further information on how you can take advantage of this service, please contact Guy Cliffe on 07747 271 676 or email guy.cliffe@ukpworldwide.com.

Hello,

I wanted to take the opportunity to thank you on behalf of everyone at UKP Worldwide for sticking with us and allowing us to support your business during these testing times. Covid has brought lots of challenges to businesses of every shape and size across various sectors, but we are coming through the other side and looking forward to working with you on the next phase of our business journey.

Normally this time of year, we would be getting ready to send out our Christmas cards and festive gifts to our customers, clients and supplier partnerships, but this year we have decided to do things a little differently and support a charity across the road from our head office, Thomley.

Thomley prides itself on being a place for all people of all abilities and disabilities. For some families Thomley is a lifeline, allowing parents and carers to catch up with other families, for disabled adults and children to socialise, take part in activities that might not be possible at home and help develop those life skills needed as children transition into adulthood. A community where everyone comes together and supports each other.

For more information on how you can support Thomley with their Christmas appeal click here.

We look forward to working with you in 2022. Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year.

Lee Bucktrout
CEO, UKP Worldwide

Since Brexit, the list of requirements to move parcels between the UK and EU has multiplied and with it the increased risk of delayed deliveries and unhappy customers. Add delays caused by Covid and you have the perfect storm for online retailers.

Savvy retailers needn’t put up with this. Instead, they can ensure their supply chain avoids any obstacles by choosing just one business partner, UKP Worldwide, to handle their eCommerce
parcel business and manage the whole customs clearance process for them.

Supply chain delays caused by customs clearance can be avoided by situating customs clearance away from the border, where the risk of bottlenecks are more likely to occur from the build-up of parcels being checked and duty paid before onward delivery.

At UKP Worldwide we have our own External Temporary Storage Facility away from the border – in leafy Buckinghamshire – where we process on-site customs clearance for UK exports and imports. The process is pain-free. Retailers onboard to our Savvy parcel system and then they can simply upload parcel details from their desk or mobile as and when needed. We then complete the customs declaration for them, arrange any duty payments to HMRC, obtain clearance and dispatch the parcels.

The result for our retailers is a fast customs process, in many cases completed before any goods are shipped, and a supply chain that keeps moving.

All shipment information is stored safely and securely, and we retain a record for HMRC should our customers need it in the future.

Importing into the UK is just as simple. Retailers supply us with an electronic manifest giving us details of what is being imported, including product description, quantity, sales value and information on how the goods will be arriving, as well as their origin country and UK final destination. With this information to hand we can manage customs clearance and release the goods for onward delivery.

The fact that we have been working with HMRC for many years and know a thing or two about customs rules and regulations means we can really help our customers avoid the pitfalls of international eCommerce. Combine this with the flexibility of offering our customers a range of international eCommerce solutions for shipping both high value and low-value goods we hope you’ll want to partner with UKPW.

The Postal Service, in addition to pursuing services changes that would slow 40% of first-class mail, is pursuing a new service standard that would slow delivery of about a third of small, lightweight packages. 

USPS executives told the Postal Regulatory Commission Monday that the proposed service change to its first-class package service (FCPS) — lightweight packages that weigh less than a pound — would cut costs by reducing the volume of packages that travel via contracted air delivery.

Read full article here: USPS still expects ‘modest growth’ for small packages as it proposes slower delivery | Federal News Network

Source: Federal News Network

A message from our CEO, Lee Bucktrout…

Having worked in the mailing and fulfilment industry for near on 30 years, I have been fortunate to gain a wealth of experience during this time.  Early on in my career, I developed a passion for the mailing industry and this buzz fuelled my desire to start my own business. Taking the plunge in 2000, UK Postings was born with a team of two, fulfilling and distributing magazines and direct mail all over the world.

Ten years on in 2010, Mail Right International was established in New Jersey, USA. With over 30% of our international mail traffic heading for the US, it made perfect sense! Having a local presence in the US allowed us to work directly with the United States Postal Service (USPS), creating an invaluable relationship but also access to local rates and direct injection services.  This was the start of our export journey.

Bringing these two successful companies together in 2014 under the banner of UKP Worldwide (UKPW), giving our international brand one name. That same year we also took our USPS partnership to the next level by becoming a Global Direct Entry (GDE) Wholesaler and launching our US eCommerce shipping and return services.

Continuing to grow our brand, develop UKPW and its staff in being the industry specialists we pride ourselves in being, we took the early opportunity of diversifying our service offering to become an Authorised Economic Operator (AEO) in 2016, before BREXIT was even a thing!   Being AEO continued to build on our reputation of being compliance specialists as well as providing additional benefits to our customers, such as total supply chain security and robust customs procedures.

Having worked in the mailing industry for near on 30 years, nothing makes me prouder than reflecting on the journey UKPW has taken and the colleagues that have helped us make it all possible. Our most recent success and string to our bow was the opening of our third site next to London Heathrow in 2019, this site manages all of our customs clearance for returned goods, inbound mail and parcels.  Our new partnership with Whistl UK, means we can offer a seamless customs clearance for imports, transhipment of mail and parcels to the UK and on into Europe and beyond.

I would like to take this opportunity to say thank you to my colleagues, customers, suppliers and industry partners many of whom are now personal friends who have helped make UKPW a success.

I look forward to the day we can celebrate with more than six people, travel for social reasons, meet with friends and family from another household and party long into the night, depending on where you all live!