Mosque

The chamber's mission is to provide support to businesses, Moroccan and American, through advocacy, information, networking and business support services.

Home

Exporting to the USA

The US Market

Exporting to the American market is easier than it might seem.  With the implementation of the US and Moroccan Free Trade Agreement, American-Moroccan trade is more efficient than ever.  There are two main challenges when exporting to the US:

1. Adhering to American specifications

Any company exporting goods to the US market must follow the rules and regulations for those specific goods.  These "hard criteria" can block any attempt to export if they are not followed, no matter how successful the product may have been on the US market.  Different regulatory bodies exist in the US to create and manage these rules and laws, with examples being the Food and Drug Administration (FDA), the US Department of Agriculture (USDA), and the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), whose regulations are applied by the US Customs Service.  All the information concerning these rules can be found online. 

2. Appealing to the American market

Any company exporting goods to the US market should be aware of the broad diversity and the key selling points of the US market.  With these "soft criteria" in mind, you can better develop your business plan and achieve success on the US market. On this page, you can find a number of helpful sources which will assist you in increasing your exports.

Adhering to American Specifications: Hard Criteria

Please find links below to the sites you must consult in order to learn about the rules and regulations that will be imposed on your exported products.

Appealing to the US Market: Soft Criteria

The American Market at a glance
The American market reflects the diversity of the country. Due to its broad cultural composition, goods from all over the world can find a niche.  There are a few key aspects that must be considered when selling to the US.

Firstly, the US can be divided geographically into distinct regions with commerical hub cities.

The West Coast
Hub Cities: Los Angeles (CA), San Francisco (CA), and Las Vegas (NV)
Trends: Middle to High Income, focus on environment and human rights issues, technologies, and "start-up" companies.
Product desires: Expensive products with high value, "exotic" foods or consumer goods, "trendy" or "in" items
The Midwest
Hub Cities: Chicago (IL), Gary (IN), and Detroit (MI)
Trends: Low to Middle Income, focus on family and morals and a "simple" way of life, focus on industry and the blue-collar worker
Product desires: Middle range products with good value, "all-american" products, but with an underlying desire for "slightly exotic" products that do not alter their overall style of living, but that differentitate them from "the people next door"
The East Coast
Hub Cities: Boston (MA), New York City (NY), and Washington DC (DC)
Trends: Low, Middle, and High Income, focus on the business world and on the international economic and political community, the country's hotspot for politics (Washington DC is equivalent to Rabat in this sense)
Product desires: Wide range of product desires, due to diverse population, but "unique" or "trendy" products are usually successful
The West and The South
Hub Cities: Colorado (DV), Miami (FL), Houston (TX)
Trends: Low to Middle Income, strong internal focus (limited international awareness), "all-american" sentiment, strong industry in the South as in the Midwest, the West is sparsely populated.  Florida is somewhat of an exception to the South, and is generally more liberal, especially in the major cities such as Miami
Product desires: Simple products that do not deviate from the "norms", all-american products (except Florida, see Trends)

Wondering where your points of sale fit in these descriptions?  Find out here!

The second main diversity that can be seen in the US exists among the various generations of the consumer population - teenagers, working age, and retirees.  The "baby boomers" - those born soon after World War II - are approaching retirement age. This generation represents somewhere around 15% of the US population and goods targeting this market are bound to be successful. As for other generations, approximately 40% of the country is between 18 and 44 years old.  The great majority are working and have a readily available, and reasonably sized, disposable income.  Given the large area of the country, the travel and hotel industries are key.  In fact, approximately 50% of the American food budget is spent in hotels, restaurants, schools, and other institutions, making this a potentially lucrative industry to approach.

Thirdly, there are strong ethnic and cultural divides.  The primary groups are caucasians or "whites", african americans, hispanics, and asians.  Gradually, the ethnicities are spreading across the country, but you still find local population densities.  These ethnic trends may be a defining element in your product sales, and should be taken into account in any market study.

The final key aspect to take into consideration when looking at the American market is to understand that Americans are in general educated and love to compare and contrast similar products from different brands.  They prefer quality over quantity, and value is very important.  Any product must be prepared to face competition, but if you are successful, your efforts will be rewarded by strong followers.>

Exporting to the US: Logistics, Mindset, and Preparations

The FTA
The US-Moroccan Free Trade Agreement, signed into effect in 2005 and implemented starting 2006, has been a catalyst for facilitating and increasing trade between the US and Morocco.

This website includes a comprehensive list of steps to help prepare your company for exporting to the US, including information and links on how to calculate your company’s tariff, studies and reports on the FTA and its current success, and other pertinent information.

How to Sell in the US
Choosing how your goods get from the dock or airport to your customers is a matter of preference, and depends on profit margins and the amount of control you want over your company’s products. Moreover, when selling your goods, you can choose to sell directly or indirectly.

There are many ways to sell directly in the US. First, you can set up a store in the US. Second, you can make your sales through a catalog, in which people order from a magazine and your goods are then shipped to their homes. Third, you could send mass mailings advertising your goods and wait for orders to come in. Alternatively, you could set up an online store where customers browse your catalogue of goods and make purchases online. Finally, your company can participate in sales expos, where you can show off your products to buyers, distributors, and retail chains that are searching for new, reliable, and affordable products.

If selling directly does not fit your business strategy, there is also the indirect approach. The first manner of selling indirectly is to arrange a deal with an intermediary who will market your goods and arrange and place orders while you work out of Morocco. Second, you could sell to a distributor - the distributor buys the product from you and distributes it themselves.  This could be considered as a one-stop direct sale. Wholesalers are capable of stocking a large amount of goods, and are well-practiced in finding and delivering to buyers.  A close alternative is for your company to work with retailers such as Costco, Wal-Mart, and Target, which can bring potentially larger profits, given the product.  Houses of commerce are also present in the US to aid you in the exportation of your goods. 

Exporting Produce to the United States
The exportation of produce to the United States represents one of the many ways in which you and your company can access a growing and diverse market in the United States. Approximately 20% of Americans’ food budget is spent on fruits and vegetables.  US olive oil sales in 2002 alone were approximately $400 million.  Additionally, Moroccans can take advantage of the estimated 5-10% of Americans who are vegetarians.  The vegetarian food niche is already a billion dollar business and American vegetarians always welcome new types of vegetarian food.  The "organic" food niche is also developping rapidly, featuring foods that have been grown in entirely natural circumstances: no pesticides, and no chemical or genetic modifications.  Finally, in contrast to the organic food movement, biologically and genetically modified foods represents a large sector in American produce, and is supported by the majority of the American society.

In order to successfully export food to the United States, companies must adhere to strict guidelines set out by the US government. First, the Federal Food, Drug and Cosmetic Act verifies that imported goods comply with American standards of health. Second, the Plant Protection Quarantine (PPQ) determines the imported goods that need a permit for importation.  The Agricultural Marketing Agreement Act of 1937 states that goods must be of a certain quality, as stipulated in the aforementioned act.  Furthermore, the Federal Insecticide, Fungicide, and Rodenticide Act lists all the pesticides used in the USA and establishes the permissible amounts of chemical product residue found on US goods or imported goods.  Companies interested in exporting goods to the US must make sure that the pH levels of their products are less than 4.6. If your products have a pH level higher than 4.6, you must fill out form FDA-2541. Finally, the Perishable Agricultural Commodities Act encourages ethical business practices related to the sale of perishable goods.

In addition, with respect to laws on Bio Terrorism, certain exporters to the US must register with the FDA.  Exporters are required to find an agent to manage the correspondence between themselves and the FDA.  Companies that must register with the FDA are exporters of the following: fruits and vegetables, seafood, preserved and frozen food, alcohol and bottled water, supplementary and dietetic food, child food, milk and egg products, agricultural products, pastries, snacks chewing gum, live animals that will be consumed, and animal food.  If your company is interested in exporting any of these goods make sure to fill out the application form labeled 3537 from the FDA by accessing the registration form at http://www.access.fda.gov/, or send a CD-Rom or hardcopy via mail or fax to:

US FOOD and Drug Administration HFS-681
Fishers lane Rockville, MD 20857 USA
Fax: +001 301-210-0247

When exporting goods to the USA, the FDA must be notified in advance.  The advance notification to the FDA should be 4 hours for airports, 8 hours for container shipping, and prior to the shipment of the  goods by international shipping companies

Shipping Your Goods
Once you and your company have picked your market and decided on a business strategy, it is critical to find the method of exportation that best fits your business’ needs. Reliable and cost effective shipping is just as important as finding the market in which you will sell your goods.  If your goods do not arrive when and where buyers and customers would like, they will search for a new supplier and associate your brand with a negative image. That said, find more information below on shipping via plane and container ships.

Container shipping is inherently the most cost effective means of shipping goods. Today directly exporting goods to the US will cost about $1,700-$2,000/ 20ft and approximately $2,500-$3,000/ 40ft. Shipping directly to the US will take about 8 days and between 14-21 days if you ship indirectly to the US via Europe.

Although container shipping might be the most cost effective method of exporting your goods, it might not be the most time efficient for your customers and trading partners. Today, air shipping of goods is primarily done by Royal Air Maroc and its partners Air France and Delta. Air freight service with one of theses companies will cost approximately, $3.3/kg for a round trip flight. If you choose a combination of truck freight and air transport, the cost is approximately $1.6/kg.

The FDA must be given advanced notification of the arrival of your goods.  This may be accomplished by accessing the Automated Commercial System of the Customs and Border Protection Service by following this link: http://www.access.fda.gov/.

In addition, in order to trace the specific origin of products, companies who employ between 11 and 499 employees full time must have a system to accurately trace the producer of each good. Therefore, proper labeling is of critical importance when exporting your goods to the US. The guidelines for labeling can be found in Title 9, 21, 27 of the Federal Code of Regulations. In brief, the labeling must be visible, readable, and comprehensible. The label must include the products name, weight, height, country of origin, name and address of the manufacturer(s), ingredients, nutritional information, and special notes about health.

Some Helpful Links:

 

Powered by MTDS