Import/export intelligence service

Importers have long wished for an easy way to keep tabs on the shipping and receiving activities of their competitors and suppliers, and two new services from ImportGenius give them instant access to such information in real time. Import/export data is collected by US Customs each day, and it is already publicly available. What’s been missing, however, is an easy way to search through it, rendering it virtually inaccessible. That’s where Arizona-based ImportGenius comes in, with an interface that gives customers immediate information on shipments as they cross customs. The company’s ImportScan service, priced at USD 399 per month, gives customers unlimited access to detailed information on every shipment entering the United States since 2006 for their industry vertical. Using ImportGenius’s simple interface, they can search by product type, importer, exporter, date of entry, port of entry, loading port, importer’s address, exporter’s address and more. Results include contact information for both the exporter and importer of the shipment, revealing where competitors are sourcing their products overseas and where overseas suppliers are selling in the US. For companies more interested in the activities of their suppliers, ImportGenius also offers SupplySpy, which monitors all shipments from a single supplier or importer. Priced at USD 199 per month, the service answers such questions as which competitors are doing business with a particular supplier, including their relative market position, and whether the supplier has been honoring exclusivity agreements. ImportGenius’s data is updated daily by US Customs, and real-time search results can be exported into Excel or CSV format. The result? In the company’s own words, “ImportGenius immediately eliminates any competitive advantage your competitors have derived from their superior knowledge of overseas suppliers.” Those in manufacturing, import, export, retail, marketing… Check out ImportGenius’s free demo. The lesson for all others: find a way to make public data more accessible, and you’ll import some tidy profits yourself! (Related: Bringing transparency to restaurant kitchens.) Spotted by: Amber York