How 3 Aussie businesses set themselves up for international success

Going global is good for business

Shoppers are constantly sourcing the best deals and products from all corners of the world. And this trend is set to continue with global retail eCommerce sales predicted to increase by a massive 39% by 2027.¹

With international markets beckoning, more Australian eCommerce businesses are seizing the opportunity to expand overseas. In the last year alone, the number of Australian merchants looking to sell online to new countries overseas almost doubled to 39%, up from 20% in 2022.²

In other words, it’s a prime time to be thinking about taking your business to the world.

Yet getting started with selling overseas can feel daunting. To help ease the stress, it’s important to choose the right logistics partner. Three Aussie businesses talk about why they chose Australia Post for their international shipping.

What to look for in an international shipping partner

Choosing the right international shipping partner is key to the success of your international expansion. When choosing one, consider every detail from sending locations and costs, to the level of service and support you’ll receive along the way.

When researching the pros and cons of potential logistics partners, ask questions like:

• Which countries and regions do they deliver to, and what is their network like in these regions?
• How will they take care of any fragile or bulky products end-to-end?
• Do they offer different delivery speeds and costs to suit different customer needs?
• Are there any hidden fees or surcharges on top of their quoted delivery rates?
• How are parcels tracked through the network? Is it easy for customers to track their deliveries?
• What’s their track record for on-time deliveries?
• How easily can you access customer support?

Remember, the best partner may not be the cheapest. But if it means that your parcels arrive on time, every time, then these benefits are worth the positive customer experience and reliable support.

Meeting your global customers’ need for speed

For Austin Ludwik, Supply Chain Specialist at Hismile—an Australian company that sends its smile care products to the US, Canada, New Zealand and south-east Asia—transparency around delivery times is key.

“Wherever the customer is based, getting an accurate reflection of how long delivery will take is really important to them,” he says. “Being able to click a link to see where their parcel is, that’s the most important part for them.”

And so Hismile decided on Australia Post as their international delivery partner for our option of three delivery speeds and transparent tracking throughout the parcel’s journey from Australia to its destination country.

“Our checkout is fully integrated with Australia Post so we can make sure that what we’re telling the customer at checkout is reflective of what’s actually going to happen,” Austin says.

“The accurate tracking data keeps customers happy knowing their parcel is on its way.”

Delivering the best rates for freight

Finding ways to bring shipping costs down can make all the difference when breaking into new markets. Laura Hall, founder of PHYLLI Designs, uses MyPost Business to help stay in control.

“We can send a hat to a tiny country town in Australia or a location anywhere in the world, knowing that we’re getting the best rate that we can for our freight,” she says.

“With a good bit of business savvy and a fantastic freight company, you can do anything and send it anywhere.”

We’ve now made sending overseas more affordable by removing the International Linehaul Surcharge. This surcharge was introduced to help cope with reduced air freight capacity during the pandemic.

As the situation improved, we decreased the surcharge for some destination zones between March and July 2023. In February 2024, we fully removed the surcharge for all destination zones.

Trusted support every step of the way

Shipping costs are just one factor at play with international postage. You also want to know that the process of getting parcels out the door and across borders is easy.

Our APIs take the hard work out of international shipping and help your parcels clear customs so they can be delivered faster. With our Shipping and Tracking API, you can:

• Lodge your international shipping orders
• Print labels quickly and accurately
• Estimate international landed costs
• Track your parcel’s progress from source to destination

And with our Export Tools API, you can:

• Use International Address Lookup to help with accuracy and minimise delivery delays
• Find the appropriate HS tariff code with an intuitive lookup function
• Estimate duties and taxes
• Outline any restrictions that apply to your shipment
• Access information on any packaging requirements for the country you’re sending to

For Austin D’souza from Ozzie Collectables, this support has been crucial as his business has grown into a global online retailer. “Australia Post provide us a business customer support portal which we can log our concerns or any queries,” he says.

“We also liaise directly with our account manager if we have any questions or concerns about missed deliveries. All these get handled directly through an online portal, and it's quite a seamless process.”

Ready to take your next step?

Keen to know more about how to start selling overseas? For more great tips and insights from businesses who have already taken the leap, explore our hub on selling overseas.

This checklist for expanding your business overseas could help too, with tips on everything from setting up your website to sorting out the payment side of things.