Dynamic Export

Case study: IBBCO Trading

With just a handful of employees, IBBCO Trading has a reach spanning some 60 countries worldwide. Most impressive is their trade with Russia, which serves east and west alike. While St Petersburg accounts for about 60 percent of their Russian trade, about one-fifth goes to Vladivostok in the east, with other ports making up the rest.

IBBCO source meat, seafood and dairy products from Australia and offshore and facilitate trade between countries. Their foray into the former Soviet Union began by recognising a gap in the market.

“We knew the country had little agricultural infrastructure due to the harsh climate, so we used these as ammunition tools to penetrate the market and promote our commodity portfolio,” says Michael Niblett, IBBCO marketing manager. With no assistance in the initial stages, IBBCO took a punt and exhibited at a trade show just four years ago. They were the only Australian company there and “were absolutely overwhelmed with enquiries”.

When the credit crisis in 2008 negatively affected the market, with the rouble substantially devalued and Russian importers unable to pay for shipments as a result, Niblett says IBBCO persisted and showed faith: “We overcame the drawbacks by believing in our customers, and diverting containers to other markets if required.”

He attributes their success to “persistence, belief, presence and reputation” and says: “Importers will generally support you if you support them and show you have flexibility and access to various product ranges.”

The other aspect of their business is educational: ensuring that their supply chain, particularly offshore suppliers, understands the importance of being logistically efficient, and passing on trading knowledge.

“Because our trading is diverse and not concentrated to any one market or product, we have educated potential career marketing aspirants the finer points of trading: how to adapt to different personalities, overcome language barriers, and instil general confidence in promoting the product,” says Niblett.

—Adeline Teoh

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