Export markets
Our export focus is deliberately narrow: three Spanish-speaking markets, each covered by a trade agreement with the United States, each reachable directly from the Port of Miami. We would rather serve three markets properly than claim a map of thirty.
Why these three
Every market below has a United States free trade agreement in force. That matters to a brand owner for one concrete reason: goods of U.S. origin largely enter duty-free, so the landed price stays close enough to the domestic price that the product can be positioned properly instead of discounted to survive a tariff.
| Market | Trade agreement | In force since | Treatment of U.S. consumer & industrial goods |
|---|---|---|---|
| Dominican Republic | CAFTA-DR | 1 March 2007 | More than 80% duty-free on entry into force; remaining tariffs phased out over ten years. |
| Panama | U.S.–Panama Trade Promotion Agreement | 31 October 2012 | More than 87% duty-free on entry into force; remaining tariffs phased out over ten years. |
| Colombia | U.S.–Colombia Trade Promotion Agreement | 15 May 2012 | More than 80% of industrial goods duty-free on entry into force; remaining tariffs phased out. |
Sources. Office of the United States Trade Representative — CAFTA-DR, U.S.–Panama TPA and U.S.–Colombia TPA. Duty treatment is stated in general terms; the applicable rate for any given item depends on its HTS classification and origin, and we confirm it line by line before quoting.
The closest of the three and the largest United States trading partner in the Caribbean. U.S. goods exports to the Dominican Republic reached an estimated $12.9 billion in 2025, out of $20.5 billion in total two-way goods trade.
For home and housewares lines it is a straightforward market: a dense retail network concentrated in Santo Domingo and Santiago, a consumer that already recognises U.S. brands, and ocean transit from Miami measured in days rather than weeks. Cosmetics and personal care require a Registro Sanitario per product, which we handle jointly with the importer rather than pretend does not exist.
Trade figures: Office of the United States Trade Representative, Dominican Republic country page.
Panama is not only a market, it is a distribution position. The Colón Free Zone is the largest free trade zone in the Western Hemisphere and the second largest in the world after Hong Kong, with roughly 2,500 companies operating inside it — Elizabeth Arden, Calvin Klein, Bose, Black & Decker and Fisher-Price among them.
The zone exists to import and re-export without adding value, which is precisely how a regional distributor reaches beyond a single country. Cosmetics, perfumery, textiles and home linens are among the categories that move through it in volume.
Free zone data: International Trade Administration, Panama Special Economic Zones.
The largest of our three markets by population and the deepest consumer base. Under the Trade Promotion Agreement, over 80% of U.S. industrial goods exports became duty-free on the day of implementation, with the remainder phased out since.
Beauty and personal care is a mature, competitive category there, which is an advantage rather than an obstacle: the retail and distribution infrastructure already exists, and buyers know how to take on a new imported line.
Agreement detail: Office of the United States Trade Representative, U.S.–Colombia TPA.
How we export
Export is where brands get nervous, and they are right to be. Diverted product, missing paperwork and unauthorised territories are real problems. Here is how we handle each of them.
We ask, before the first purchase order, which territories you authorise. If a line is domestic-only, it stays domestic. We do not treat silence as permission.
Where you require it, we disclose the importer of record and the destination market for each consignment, so you always know where your product landed.
Commercial invoice, packing list, and certificate of origin where the trade agreement requires one. Every consignment is traceable back to the supplier invoice that fed it.
Goods are received and consolidated at our South Florida facility, inspected and palletised for ocean or air freight. Nothing ships that we have not physically handled.
Where a brand sets export pricing or channel rules for a market, we follow them, and we will confirm them in writing at account opening.
Cosmetics, supplements and personal care face registration and labelling rules in each destination. We check them before we quote, not after the container is loaded.
Tell us which of your brands are cleared for export and which territories you authorise, and we will come back with the markets we can place them in and a realistic first consignment.