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Use Case
7 min read

European D2C Brand Expands into US Markets

  • SPACEGOATS
  • Author SPACEGOATS
  • Published

Example

A popular lifestyle supplement brand, well-established in the EU, has garnered a strong following on social media and boasts a robust Shopify presence. Thanks to their impactful social media presence, the brand has attracted a dedicated fanbase in the USA. Driven by the opportunity to serve this burgeoning audience, the brand seeks to establish a foothold in the USA market.

Challenges

While the brand has a solid foundation, expanding into the USA presents several unique challenges:

  1. Regulatory Requirements: The brand needs to register as an FDA Food Facility, a critical step to sell supplements in the USA. This includes navigating biennial renewal cycles and the mandatory Unique Facility Identifier (UFI) requirement.
  2. Serving US Shopify Customers: The brand faces logistical hurdles when handling Shopify customers in the USA due to high shipping times and even higher logistics costs.
  3. Importer of Record: The brand must establish a responsible entity in the USA for customs declarations and duties, especially with evolving import certification requirements.
  4. Product Insurance: The USA market requires comprehensive product insurance to cover potential liabilities, which are increasingly scrutinized in the dietary supplement industry.
  5. Breaking into Offline Retail: The brand lacks contacts and a network to enter the offline retail scene in the USA, where local trust and connections are essential, though evolving retail trends now include hybrid omnichannel approaches.

Solution

SPACEGOATS offers a comprehensive solution to overcome the brand’s challenges:

  • FDA Registration Support: SPACEGOATS assists the brand in registering as an FDA Food Facility, ensuring compliance with US regulations. This includes support for the biennial renewal process, which occurs in even-numbered years (e.g., the 2024 renewal window from October 1 to December 31), and ensuring the inclusion of a mandatory Unique Facility Identifier (UFI) like a D-U-N-S number to prevent import blocks.
  • Optimized US Shopify Handling: By leveraging SPACEGOATS‘ infrastructure, the brand can now serve US Shopify customers more efficiently, reducing shipping times and logistics costs.
  • Importer of Record: SPACEGOATS acts as the importer of record for the brand, managing customs declarations and duties, ensuring compliance with all relevant laws and regulations. This includes navigating recent FDA and U.S. Customs initiatives, such as stricter oversight and new import certification requirements for specific food products (e.g., for shrimp and spices starting in October 2025).
  • Product Insurance Coverage: SPACEGOATS provides the necessary product insurance, safeguarding the brand against potential liabilities in the USA market, adapting to current consumer safety expectations and regulatory guidance.
  • Offline Retail Entry: SPACEGOATS leverages its network to facilitate the brand’s entry into the offline retail space, tapping into the American consumer preference for local purchasing. This also incorporates hybrid retail models that combine physical presence with digital tools such as localized online marketplaces and partnerships.
  • Compliance Consulting: SPACEGOATS‘ experts guide the brand through all compliance-related matters, ensuring the products meet the requirements of the target market. SPACEGOATS now supports registration renewals with UFI compliance, manages import certification processes, and offers streamlined logistics solutions responding to current customs and transportation updates.
  • B2B Inquiry Handling: SPACEGOATS can handle B2B inquiries, and potentially generate leads through their partner Paul, catering to the preference of Americans to work with American companies.
  • Local Point of Contact: With KD Global and SPACEGOATS, the brand has a local point of contact that can react quickly if needed.
  • Import and Pre-FBA Handling: SPACEGOATS manages the entire import process, ensuring the products meet Amazon FBA requirements.
  • Earnings in Euro: The brand receives its earnings in Euro through SPACEGOATS, avoiding the hassle of dealing with exchange rates.

Result

The collaboration with SPACEGOATS brought transformative results:

  • Quick and Smooth Market Entry: The brand was able to quickly establish a presence in the USA market without bureaucratic and logistical roadblocks, benefiting from SPACEGOATS’ updated compliance services addressing requirements like UFI for FDA registration and new import certifications.
  • Diversification: By adding a new region and sales channels, the brand diversified its revenue streams and reduced reliance on its EU market.
  • Test the Waters: The brand could explore the potential of the USA market without establishing entities, sales tax infrastructure, or other administrative overheads.
  • D2C Advantages: The brand could enjoy the benefits of D2C sales without actually transitioning to D2C, leveraging SPACEGOATS‘ infrastructure and network.

Conclusion

This use case highlights how a lifestyle supplement brand successfully expanded into the USA market. With expert support from SPACEGOATS, the brand navigated regulatory and logistical complexities, established a presence in offline retail, and unlocked new revenue streams. This partnership illustrates the power of leveraging specialized support to conquer new markets and drive sustainable growth, staying current with evolving FDA regulations, import requirements, and retail strategies.

Are you a lifestyle brand with a strong social media following, seeking to tap into the potential of the USA market? Regulatory, logistical, and strategic barriers can seem daunting, but they don’t have to be. SPACEGOATS offers a comprehensive solution to seamlessly expand into the USA, unlocking new revenue streams and audience segments, with services updated for current FDA biennial registration requirements, UFI compliance, and evolving import certification standards.

Benefit from a quick and smooth market entry, explore new markets without administrative burdens, and enjoy the advantages of D2C sales without the complexities. Book your initial consultation with SPACEGOATS today, and let’s chart a path for your successful expansion into the USA market.

SPACEGOATS
SPACEGOATS
http://spacegoats.io