Business News

Conduct your due diligence

ekrieger@smartcompany.com.au (Lynda Slavinskis) — Sun, 03 Oct 2010 14:00:00 +0000

I am often bemused at clients who fail to conduct proper due diligence on international companies prior to doing business with them. When I say due diligence I don't mean asking for a whole heap of financial information and documentation and trawling through boxes of it before making a decision but sometimes asking a few straight forward questions wouldn't go astray.

Who owns the product?

ekrieger@smartcompany.com.au (Lynda Slavinskis) — Sun, 05 Sep 2010 22:19:09 +0000

In exporting, it is sometimes difficult to determine when ownership, ie. "title" in a product will transfer to the importer, especially without a formal agreement.

Getting your distributor pricing right

jthomson@smartcompany.com.au (Lynda Slavinskis) — Sun, 01 Aug 2010 14:00:00 +0000

I have a new client in the hairdressing industry that imports a product from overseas and distributes the product to hair salons around Australia. They were approached by a person wanting to distribute their products.

Buyer beware

ekrieger@smartcompany.com.au (Lynda Slavinskis) — Sun, 27 Jun 2010 14:00:00 +0000

I have had a go at US International Trade Agreements before – poor drafting, poor understanding of legal concepts, litigious, disorganised - but after this week, I feel the need to have another rant.

Spotting a real distribution

ekrieger@smartcompany.com.au (Lynda Slavinskis) — Tue, 27 Apr 2010 00:21:03 +0000

I was reviewing what was supposed to be a Distribution Agreement from the US the other day.

Fix local to go global

ekrieger@smartcompany.com.au (Lynda Slavinskis) — Sun, 11 Apr 2010 14:00:00 +0000

I am often asked by journalists my opinion on the effect the fluctuating dollar, falling dollar, rising dollar and exchange rates have on exporters. I think that it all definitely has an effect, although in my experiences with exporters, there are a number of other less obvious traps that have an even bigger impact on their businesses.

Drafting tips when using incoterms

ekrieger@smartcompany.com.au (Lynda Slavinskis) — Sun, 21 Mar 2010 14:00:00 +0000

Off the back of my last blog it occurred to me that although many exporters understand that incoterms must be used and the importance of these, for those still indulging in the hand shake or bush lawyer drafted export agreement, how to express the incoterm in the contract may still be a mystery.

The new Incoterms

ekrieger@smartcompany.com.au (Lynda Slavinskis) — Sun, 28 Feb 2010 14:00:00 +0000

All current and potential exporters should be aware that new Incoterms are expected to take effect in 2011.

How much should I charge for an IP licence?

ekrieger@smartcompany.com.au (Lynda Slavinskis) — Sun, 14 Feb 2010 14:00:00 +0000

I have spoken before about licensing of intellectual property as an option both locally and internationally for those businesses who have a great idea but are terrible salespeople.

Doing business with China

ekrieger@smartcompany.com.au (Lynda Slavinskis) — Sun, 07 Feb 2010 14:00:00 +0000

I was in the Telstra shop getting a new mobile the other day and the sales assistant upon finding out that I was a solicitor and did international trade work took the opportunity to pick my brain.

Can a company who imports products in turn export those products to the UK?

ekrieger@smartcompany.com.au (Lynda Slavinskis) — Sun, 17 Jan 2010 22:11:45 +0000

Can a company who imports products, say cosmetics from China, in turn export those products to the UK?

Business without borders

jthomson@smartcompany.com.au (Lynda Slavinskis) — Sun, 10 Jan 2010 22:59:18 +0000

This article first appeared June 4, 2009.

Often when people speak about international trade, they immediately think of import and export. This narrow association can often be a trap for traders, especially when it comes to planning their legals.

Successful exporting doesn't necessarily mean that you have to do business across borders

jthomson@smartcompany.com.au (Lynda Slavinskis) — Sun, 20 Dec 2009 22:31:06 +0000

I have a client who is really good at designing new and quirky products especially for children. However, they are too busy with their other business to concentrate on commercialising their ideas and building a market share for their products. So, they thought of licensing their intellectual property (they have spent a fair bit of cash on trademarking, design registration and patent applications).

How can I protect my designs?

jthomson@smartcompany.com.au (Lynda Slavinskis) — Sun, 06 Dec 2009 23:33:49 +0000

Last time I talked about Design Registration, but I am often asked by potential exporters how they can protect their designs. More often than not the client's designs are already in the public domain so they therefore cannot get design protection.

Design registration could save you plenty of headaches

jthomson@smartcompany.com.au (Lynda Slavinskis ) — Mon, 16 Nov 2009 00:50:36 +0000

I have a client who designs and manufactures children's wall stickers. The designs are unique but simple. But they did not stay unique for long as one particular design has set the hearts of copycats worldwide racing. From alarm clocks in Poland to aprons in South Melbourne, identical copies of my client's designs are everywhere.

How to stop the copying

jthomson@smartcompany.com.au (Lynda Slavinskis) — Tue, 08 Jul 2008 16:27:57 +0000

A common question from my clients who have their product manufactured overseas is “how do I stop my manufacturer from making a lower quality version of my product and selling it off as their own?”

The truth about IP in China

Wed, 25 Jun 2008 11:44:28 +0000

Heard rumours about risky IP practices in China? Here’s the real story. LYNDA SLAVINSKIS

Business without borders

Tue, 03 Jun 2008 15:21:58 +0000

Just a slight conceptual tweak can make the idea of doing business overseas much easier to digest. LYNDA SLAVINSKIS

We all want to get paid

Tue, 29 Apr 2008 16:55:55 +0000

Somehow newby-exporters seem to assume that they will be paid – it's not always so, but here are some tips to make it more certain. LYNDA SLAVINSKIS

The export-ready checklist

Tue, 15 Apr 2008 16:47:06 +0000

Having a great product or service, and an interested market, does not spell success. There are other considerations. LYNDA SLAVINSKIS