Mitigate tariff and import duty exposure

Reduce duty costs without changing how shoppers buy

Trade policy moved. Most cross-border DTC models did not

The economics of selling internationally are changing structurally. The removal of de minimis exemptions in the US, tightening regulations across the EU and tariff increases as policy lever all point in the same direction. The cost of getting goods across borders is going up, and it is not going back. 

Most brands respond by calculating duties more accurately, displaying them earlier or absorbing the impact in margin. None of those moves change what the transaction is. Each consumer order still crosses the border at retail value, with full liability. The exposure compounds with every shipment. 

We restructure the import transaction itself

ESW changes the structural condition that creates your duty exposure. Instead of working around retail-value imports, we replace them with a different transaction model entirely. 

Your shopper sees no change. Your brand experience stays consistent. The structural shift happens at the import layer. 

This is not a calculation improvement. It is a different transaction. 

The capabilities behind a lower-duty model

  • B2B2C structure through ESW's local entity

    Your goods sell to ESW's local entity at wholesale, which becomes the import event into the destination market. The consumer transaction that follows is domestic, processed by ESW as Merchant of Record. Import duties are calculated on the lower wholesale value, not the retail price.

  • Trade compliance across the import lifecycle

    Trade compliance runs within Global Supply Chain, covering import documentation, customs declarations and regulatory monitoring.

  • Drawback assistance

    For eligible flows, we identify and recover duty and VAT refunds on returned or re-exported goods. Recovered amounts improve your net margin without adding internal claim management overhead.

Most providers calculate duty. We restructure the transaction.

Most providers offer tools that calculate, display or remit duties more efficiently. Your transaction stays the same. Your exposure stays the same. 

Structural change, not better math

We don’t make the duty calculation more accurate. We change the value the duty is calculated on. Your exposure drops because the transaction is different.

Built for policy volatility

The B2B2C model works regardless of where trade policy moves next. You get a structurally lower duty base, not a model tuned to a specific tariff regime.

The result is lower duty costs, improved margin and a model built for what comes next

  • Reduced per-unit duty exposure

    Your goods enter the destination market at wholesale value rather than retail, lowering duty liability on each unit. The reduction compounds across volume.

  • Improved margin on cross-border sales

    Lower duty costs translate directly to margin recovery on your international transactions. The improvement is structural, not promotional.

  • Predictable cost structure as trade policy evolves

    The B2B2C model gives you greater predictability than standard DTC import models. Tariff rate changes still apply, but on a structurally lower base.

Common Questions

Part of the ESW Platform

This is what one coordinated operating model looks like in practice: checkout, compliance and supply chain working through the same platform, so your duty exposure stays controlled as international volume grows. 

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