The United Kingdom’s (UK) population is 66.5 million, 85% of which stay in the city. The average net-adjusted disposable income per capita in the UK is 29.600 GBP. The income distribution is not even. In fact, income inequality in the UK is higher than in many other developed countries.
What do we know about UK customers?
The UK consumer markets are undergoing a lot of changes, through the Brexit, through Covid-19 and also lower oil prices. At the moment of writing this article, it is still unclear what the longer term effects will be for specific product groups.
What does the United Kingdom import?
- People in the UK mainly import crude petroleum, cars, refined petroleum, packaged medicaments and computers.
- The UK’s main import partners are Germany, China, the Netherlands, France and Belgium-Luxembourg.
What are the major ports of the United Kingdom?
To enter the UK, you can consider the main gateways listed below.
Top five biggest ports by tonnage in the United Kingdom are:
- Grimsby & Immingham
- London
- Milford Haven
- Tees & Hartlepool
- Southampton
Five busiest airports in the United Kingdom are:
- AAA
- London Heathrow
- London Gatwick
- Manchester
- London Stansted
- London Luton
What are the customs and tariffs regulations in the United Kingdom?
- Duty rate (import tax) is between 0% to 17%.
- Import duty and taxes are applicable for businesses outside the EU.
- Depending on the country of origin, other taxes may be applied.
- You can use the Online UK Trade Tariff Tool to search for the codes, taxes, duty, etc. related to your products. This a government run online guide to facilitate the import process.
What is the distribution structure in the United Kingdom?
The UK market consists of individual wholesalers and retail outlets. while the wholesalers group consists of cash and carry wholesalers, delivered grocery wholesalers and delivered foodservice wholesalers, while the retail sector is being pushed with technological advancement. In 2014, the UK retail sector accounted for 11% of the total economy output.
The transportation system in UK is efficient and well developed to ensure that goods are distributed far, wide and in time. Its rail and roadway network is amongst the best in Europe.
Knowledge of the customer base, major gateways, legal matters as well as the distribution structure will be beneficial to your expansion. Having a well-managed distribution will help you ensure optimal results for your exports to the United Kingdom.
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