Canadian Forest Service Publications

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Abstract

This report is designed to give interested exporters of secondary wood products to the US market an understanding of the distribution and marketing of secondary wood products in the US. The report summarizes the results of a literature survey and interviews conducted with twelve existing BC exporters. Both the literature and the interviews revealed that the US market must be viewed as a group of independent regional markets. These regional markets have their own characteristics. The insights presented by the existing exporters could give prospective exporters a reality check on their efforts and is intended to help shorten their export learning curve and reduce the inherent risk. Most of the firms interviewed for the project are owner-operated with the owner often taking personal responsibility for the export venture. The consequence of this is that the relationship established with the distributor is of critical importance. The distributor plays a key role in marketing and promoting the product and in providing local market intelligence. In addition, it is important to have a strong relationship with distributors of the product to help sort out problems that will inevitably arise.