Founder with Russian roots here. We’re planning a US entry with a simple channel mix: DTC (Shopify), Amazon FBA, and a small regional distributor pilot. The thing that’s tripping me up isn’t marketing—it’s the sequence of compliance tasks tied to each channel.
A few places we’ve already felt friction:
- Labeling/packaging updates needed before FBA inbound (country of origin, units, warnings). We nearly printed EU-style labeling that wouldn’t pass for US retail.
- Distributor asks for EDI, UCC-128 labels, and a chargeback schedule. I’m unsure how to price in chargebacks and free-freight thresholds without killing margin.
- Sales tax/economic nexus + marketplace facilitator rules vs our own DTC store. Where to register first and how to avoid creating a mess we can’t unwind.
- Returns/RMA flow: who owns reverse logistics in each channel, and what goes into a returns SLA that won’t drown the 3PL?
- Creator/UGC work: FTC disclosure and usage rights are clear in theory, but I’m not sure how to standardize this when some content is whitelisted and some is organic.
I don’t want to move fast and break things if the “things” are compliance and distribution relationships. If you’ve done this before, what’s your practical checklist to map channels to compliance and ops tasks (customs, labeling, taxes, insurance, contracts, returns, creator disclosures)? Who do you talk to first (customs broker, 3PL, counsel, distributor rep), and in what order? Any must-have clauses you insist on in an initial US distribution agreement to stay flexible the first 6–12 months?
You’re smart to lock this down early. I’d start with a “pilot memo” you can share with every potential partner so expectations align from day one:
- One-pager: product overview, compliance status (labeling complete? HTS code? any FDA/FCC/CPSC touchpoints), packaging specs, current barcodes (GS1?), planned volumes for 90 days.
- Ops snapshot: target 3PL location, cut-off times, routing guide draft, returns policy skeleton, chargeback tolerance.
- Legal/terms you prefer: non-exclusivity in first 12 months, performance targets (sell-through, reorder cadence), termination for convenience (60–90 days), MAP policy acknowledgment.
For outreach:
- Customs broker intro first (they’ll sanity-check HTS classification and flag duties; a wrong code hits margins later).
- Then 3PL shortlist (2–3), ask for SLAs and charge schedules. Make sure they can do FBA prep + DTC + potential retail ASN/labeling.
- Only after that, talk to distributors with your ops constraints in hand.
Happy to share a lightweight email template I use to open conversations with distributors and avoid a “send us your full catalog” black hole:
Subject: Pilot distribution inquiry – [Category] brand, 90-day test, non-exclusive
Hi [Name],
We’re planning a 90-day pilot in [region]. We can handle [monthly volume] with [3PL] and meet [routing guide basics]. Seeking: non-exclusive pilot, defined targets, and no long-term lock-in while we validate demand. Can we review your chargeback schedule and minimums this week?
— This sets boundaries and gets you real answers fast.
Screening questions for early distributor calls (keeps it friendly but focused):
- What’s your average chargeback rate by retailer, and top 3 reasons you see brands get hit?
- Can you share a redacted routing guide + example ASN flow so we confirm our 3PL match?
- How do you enforce MAP, and what happens when a marketplace seller breaks it?
- What’s your standard termination clause if velocity goals aren’t met in 2 quarters?
- Are marketing co-op funds mandatory in year one, and how is ROI tracked?
If they dodge, it’s a signal. The good ones will be transparent.
Build a margin model that forces you to “price in the pain” for each channel. Columns I’d include:
- Landed cost per unit (ex-works + freight + duties + brokerage + FBA prep where relevant)
- Channel fees (FBA fees or distributor margin; marketplace commission)
- Chargeback assumption (basis points on Wholesale Net; sensitivity +/- 50%)
- Returns rate by channel (DTC vs Amazon vs distributor; different costs for reverse logistics)
- Marketing/UGC allocation per unit (including whitelisting/usage fees amortized)
- Sales tax handling (if DTC: TaxJar/Avalara per-order cost; if marketplace: facilitator rules)
Run 3 scenarios: conservative/base/aggressive. Your “go” criteria should include a floor contribution margin (e.g., >25%) after returns and chargebacks. If you can’t clear that with conservative assumptions, renegotiate terms or drop the channel.
Compliance tracker (simple but effective):
- Tab 1: Regulatory by product type (e.g., cosmetics: INCI, FDA labeling; electronics: FCC, battery shipping; apparel: care labels, fiber content). Owner + due date + artifact link (PDF label proof, test certs).
- Tab 2: Taxes (states registered, thresholds, filing cadence, who files). Add a “trigger” column (e.g., 200 orders or $100k in state) and an alert rule.
- Tab 3: Contracts (3PL MSA, Distributor Agreement, Creator Contracts). Columns for exclusivity, termination, MAP obligations, insurance requirements.
- Tab 4: Returns flow by channel (RMA portal, prepaid label policy, refurbish/dispose rules). Metric column: refund time SLA, restocking fee, % resellable.
If you update this weekly, you avoid last-minute surprises.
We did EU→US last year (home goods). Two lessons:
- Pick your importer-of-record early. We tried to be our own IOR with a new broker—slowed us down. A broker with your category experience is worth it. They fixed our HTS code (duty dropped from 8.5% to 4.7%).
- Distribution agreement: don’t sign exclusivity without performance gates. We added: non-exclusive for 6 months, then conditional exclusivity if they hit rolling sell-through targets. Also a hard cap on marketing co-op in year one (we were getting nickel-and-dimed).
Sequence that worked: broker → 3PL pilot (small inbound + stress test returns) → Amazon (limited SKU set) → distributor (90-day trial). Marketing only scaled after ops proved stable.
From the marketing side, compliance creeps into briefs more than people think:
- FTC disclosure: bake it into the brief with examples (“Ad” or “Sponsored” up front, not buried; no ambiguous hashtags). Include a checklist creators sign off on.
- Usage rights: specify duration, whitelisting, and paid usage clearly. If you plan retail syndication (Best Buy, Target PDP), add that up front or you’ll renegotiate later at a premium.
- Returns reality: if your 3PL can’t handle spikes, stagger creator drops by state/time zone to smooth order volume. It sounds small, but it reduces same-day WISMO tickets and refund pressure.
- MAP vs promo: if a distributor is pushing promo-heavy sell-in, align your promo calendar so creators aren’t pointing to a price that changes every 48 hours. Confusion = refunds.
Get legal/ops to sign off on a master brief template once. Then every campaign becomes plug-and-play.
Contract clauses I push for when a client insists on a distributor early:
- Clear territory and channels (no blanket “US all-channels”). Keep marketplaces separate until you’ve proven control.
- Performance KPIs and a 60-day cure period. If they miss, you can reassign channels without a fight.
- Chargeback transparency: monthly reporting with line items. Cap on admin fees in year one.
- MAP acknowledgment + escalation path. If they won’t help police it, you’ll bleed margin.
- Marketing coordination clause: distributor can’t run rogue promos or creator outreach that conflicts with your rights/briefs.
This keeps marketing and distribution from tripping over each other.
Quick ops-marketing handshake doc (we keep it to one page):
- Channels live: DTC, FBA, Distributor Pilot
- Service levels: ship times, cutoff, support hours
- Promo calendar: green (approved), yellow (tentative), red (blocked)
- Content rights grid: organic, paid social, retail syndication, creator whitelisting
- Compliance: final label proof link, disclosure language examples, return policy URL
We share this with every creator and partner. It cuts email back-and-forth by 50%+.
Creator POV: give us a clean package so we don’t inadvertently create compliance issues for you.
- Brief: exact disclosure you want, plus 2–3 examples. Don’t make us guess.
- Rights: what you need (organic only, paid whitelisting, retail PDP) and for how long. If you might expand later, put an option with a rate now.
- Product safety/labeling: if I’m showing ingredients or specs, share the approved label screenshot. I don’t want to post something that’s not US-compliant yet.
- Shipping: customs-friendly (no surprise duties), tracking, and a clear replacement policy if unit arrives damaged.
- Timeline: a buffer for you to review content (24–48h) without pushing me past deadlines.
If you include this in a one-pager, you’ll get fewer revisions and no awkward “can you add #ad” after posting.
Use stage gates so you don’t scale chaos:
- Gate 0 (Reg readiness): HTS confirmed, labeling signed off, insurance COI in place, returns workflow demoed.
- Gate 1 (Ops pilot): 50–100 DTC orders through 3PL; measure pick/pack accuracy (>99%), on-time ship (>98%), refund cycle (<5 business days).
- Gate 2 (Marketplace): 2 SKUs on FBA; keep IPI healthy, no hazmat surprises. Monitor refund reasons.
- Gate 3 (Distributor pilot): non-exclusive, 90-day targets, chargeback cap. Weekly ops huddle with shared dashboard.
Only after clearing each gate do you turn up spend. This sequencing prevents a marketing win from becoming an ops failure.
People ask who to call first. My order of operations:
- Customs broker (category specialist) – avoid duty/classification mistakes.
- 3PLs – confirm capabilities (FBA prep + DTC + ASN). Run a micro-pilot.
- Counsel – light review: distribution agreement template, MAP policy, creator T&Cs (disclosure/usage). This is faster with ops constraints known.
- Distributor candidates – with your constraints and pilot memo, you’ll have leverage.
Create a simple RACI so owners are clear: Ops (3PL/returns), Finance (tax/resale certs), Legal (contracts/compliance), Growth (creators/usage). If a task has two owners, it has none.