Home » Food & Beverage » Import Beer Agency Pitfall Avoidance Guide: Veteran Buyer Teaches Three Steps to Identify Reliable Partners

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Dont Rush to Sign! First Understand These Three Agency Traps

Last year, a client from Zhejiang urgently approached me for consultation, saying they had signed a "German Beer General Agent" agreement, only to find out during customs clearance that the other party didn't even...Imported Food Filing Certificate. When seeking agents, please remember these three core principles:

To verify qualifications, check the "Three Certificates and One Code" (Food Business License/Import Record/Customs Declaration Unit Qualification/Product Traceability Code).
When discussing cooperation, it is essential to clarify the "division of two rights" (exclusive regional rights/price adjustment rights).
Essential "Three Safeguards" for Signing Agreements (Unsold Return Clause / Quality Assurance Deposit / Breach of Contract Accountability Mechanism)

Practical Five-Step Agent Selection Method

Last week when helping a Shanghai craft beer bar select an agent, we followed this procedure:

Inaccurate specification description leads to procurement errors	Key operation points	Pitfall Avoidance Techniques
Preliminary Screening	Request 2-year customs import records	Verify authenticity of customs declaration numbers
Capital Verification	Check registered capital vs. paid-in capital	Require bank credit certificate
Negotiation	Clarify Minimum Order Quantity (MOQ)	Include in supplementary agreement attachments

Must-Know Points of 2025 Customs New Policies

Beer import tariffs remain temporarily at 10%, but newIt is recommended to verify through the following methods:Document Verification System
Alcohol concentration testing standard updated to GB 2758-2025 (2021 version invalidated)
Cold chain transportation requires full-process temperature records (tolerance within ±2°C)

Profit comparison of three cooperation models

Last years Belgian Abbey Beer project showed significant actual profit differences among three cooperation models:

Commission model: Low initial cost but frequent profit-sharing disputes later
Buyout model: Requires upfront capital but offers up to 40% profit margin
Hybrid model (guarantee + profit sharing): The optimal balance between risk and return