The US is the largest importer of British goods, but UK exporters need to find a reliable stateside shipping and logistics partner to generate real value out of their transatlantic trade.

Despite nearly three decades of experience in the shipping industry and a client base of over 1,000 regular monthly customers in the United States, UK-based non-vessel operating common carrier (NVOCC) Globelink Fallow has never had a strong American presence.

Largely by appealing to the unique needs of small and medium enterprises (SMEs), Globelink Fallow has become the third-largest NVOCC exporter by volume in the UK. This past spring, the company decided to make a concerted effort to push into the US market.

In order to accomplish their stateside goals, Dean Reynolds, Globelink Fallow’s Commercial Director, knew he needed to find a US-based partner with extensive experience in the UK market, as well as one that shared his company’s unique business values and operational priorities. Dean was familiar with Primary Freight and knew they’d be a perfect fit — and the partnership is already paying off in a big way.

“At the start of our work with Primary we were at next to zero in terms of exports to America,” says Dean, “but within the span of three months we’re already orchestrating the delivery of multiple weekly shipments to major ports all along the eastern seaboard.”

Putting Their Customers First

As a “neutral consolidator,” Globelink Fallow appeals primarily to wholesale SMEs who are looking for a one-stop shop for all of their logistics needs. According to Dean, the company places a premium on superior customer service and designs its client-facing operations to be as efficient and intuitive as possible. “For the ‘little guys,’” Dean explains, “if the rates are fair, they just want to get their shipment booked and move on.”

To facilitate this book-and-go approach to LCL shipping, Globelink Fallow created a custom online platform called QuickQuote, which offers clients in the UK a door-to-door rate for shipments to the US — or any other country in which Globelink Fallow operates — with only a few keystrokes. If the client approves of the rates — which are regularly updated throughout the day — they can book their shipment with only a few additional keystrokes.

“Other LCL shipping companies offer a similar booking platform,” Dean confesses, “but it’s usually quite cumbersome and customers often have a difficult time actually getting a quote for their shipments.”

This, ultimately, is why roughly 90% of Globelink Fallow’s client base is comprised of SMEs, compared to only 30% to 40% of the client bases of its two major competitors — both of which are mammoth multinational corporations. When efficiency and ease-of-use are a client’s top priorities — as they often are for SMEs — nothing beats a customer service-oriented infrastructure like the one Globelink Fallow and Primary Freight have worked so hard to build.

Finding the Right American Partner

Finding an American partner that shared its customer-first ethos was of the utmost importance to Globelink Fallow. As it happened, Primary Freight already had a longstanding relationship with Globelink Australia, and when Dean made an inquiry about Primary with his counterpart down under, he liked what he heard.

“I was told that they were very customer service-oriented, which in all honesty is very rare among companies in our industry in the United States,” recounts Dean. Given the immense volume of trade that occurs between the UK and the US, there is absolutely no reason that either company shouldn’t have a substantial presence in the other’s market, Reynolds continues.

But in order for a transatlantic relationship like this to work, the two companies must place a great deal of trust in one another. “We do a lot of work to get the rates set for our clients,” Reynolds explains, “but once the cargo is in the containers, the responsibility falls with the freight forwarder and, ultimately, with Primary Freight to make sure that everything is unpacked and gets where it needs to go.”

In the end, for UK-based exporters like Globelink Fallow, an American partner like Primary Freight is critical to their success. The US provides consistent business to wholesalers in the UK, and as Dean points out, “If you get the customer service right, you get the repetitive business, and then there’s no ceiling to your growth.”

At Primary Freight, our mission is to combine integrity with personalized service and cutting-edge technologies to provide our clients with as smooth and worry-free an LCL shipping experience as possible. As Globelink Fallow’s incredible success has demonstrated, Primary Freight is the perfect partner for any UK-based NVOCC hoping to get a foothold in the high-value American market.

If you’re interested in learning more about Primary Freight’s award-winning shipping and logistics services, give us a call at (800) 635-0013 today.