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Shops working only in the EU? Why would this be?

I can give you the most likely reason.

If he (they) only sell within the EU then there is no paperwork to fill out. When I send outside the EU (almost always by Fedex) then not only does it cost much more to send but it's extra work filling out the required info.

If selling within the EU gives him (them) enough to do then why bother with the extra trouble? The EU does have 500 million citizens.
 
Are you wondering are there some kind of bureaucratic restrictions preventing him from working outside the EU?

He just wants to work in the EU. Free movement of goods and all that. No paperwork.
 
OK, sounds like a good reason. We have extra paperwork when selling outside of the US.

It has been said that going to the Moon was not so bad but the paperwork was rough. Or something like that.
 
So doing business inside of the EU, if you are in the EU, is like doing business inside of the US between companies in different States. Got it. Simple is usually less expensive.
 
It's not why he wants to sell only in the EU, it's why is it so hard for USA business's to sell to the EU? They charge import taxes to anyone in the EU on items with a declared value from the USA. This makes it nearly impossible to do business with the EU, on top of UPS and maybe USPS as well not being able to insure packages going to the EU, UK being one of them if I recall. I've missed out on decent sized jobs due to this. Got the small stuff that was worth it to them, but on bigger orders fell through because of this.

Why is it they can do it to us, but we don't do it to them?
 
A friend sent me this link which says this small shop only works inside of the EU. What would be the reason for this?

Apparently there is nothing preventing me from selling to someone in the EU.

Customer Work – Stefan Gotteswinter

Might want to educate yourself as too how large the EU trading block is, and the number of people therein.

Probably doesn't need to look outside of the EU, and for many reasons other than paperwork may not want to.
 
Back before the EU, he probably would have only wanted to deal inside his own country. With the EU common market, all the import/export and customs issues disappeared within the EU boundaries.
 
I know how large the EU is. I was just asking for the reasons why. I didn't think it would be any extra cost or much paperwork to sell outside, but it must be.

It does cost extra and there is paperwork involved. Not all like paperwork so if it's easy to avoid then why not?

When I look at what he makes it's good but with high delivery costs and paperwork he might feel it's more trouble than it's worth.

With the type of items he makes he's probably in the past got many RFQs and never a reply so it's his diplomatic way of saying "Not interested".

When I look at his location he's very close to the center of the EU and if he was "patriotic" I doubt if his homepage would be in English.

Worth a look too.

FAQ and Contact Informations – Stefan Gotteswinter

Seems like a man that knows himself and what he will and won't do. Most should be jealous :)
 
Is there a cost to someone in the EU to do business in the EU? Like dues or anything?
You might as well ask "Is there a cost to someone in Idaho to do business in Idaho?" Taxes, for sure. Quite possibly business licenses, too. Both will depend on the specific country/region/city within the EU.
 
Yes, Stefan seems to have things dialed in for a small shop. I like his videos.

Is there a cost to someone in the EU to do business in the EU? Like dues or anything?

The short answer is "No". Each EU country has its own laws, rules and regulations for running a business.

For the shop in this thread I can't imagine him having problems selling what he makes to any EU country. It'd be exactly the same as only selling in Germany but now with many more potential customers.

Sorry sfriedberg, you posted while I was writing.
 
I follow him on Instagram... he always seems busy and is doing interesting work. As a small operation answering the phone and emails is a big drag on your shop productivity doing actual machining, it makes sense.
 
I follow him on Instagram... he always seems busy and is doing interesting work. As a small operation answering the phone and emails is a big drag on your shop productivity doing actual machining, it makes sense.

If his shop was in the USA I can't imagine he'd need to go outside the USA.

Some shop owners have the goal of expanding and becoming larger while others like what they have and don't have the same ambitions. Big isn't always better. I think Herr Gotteswinter sleeps well at night :)
Be nice if we all did.
 
It's not why he wants to sell only in the EU, it's why is it so hard for USA business's to sell to the EU? They charge import taxes to anyone in the EU on items with a declared value from the USA. This makes it nearly impossible to do business with the EU, on top of UPS and maybe USPS as well not being able to insure packages going to the EU, UK being one of them if I recall. I've missed out on decent sized jobs due to this. Got the small stuff that was worth it to them, but on bigger orders fell through because of this.

Why is it they can do it to us, but we don't do it to them?

You are absolutely correct,but commenting on this truth would be hijacking this tread. The American taxpayer has been underwriting European socialism since the end of WW2. Selling a European product outside of the EU is no issue at all nor is it any where near as expensive as an American business selling in the EU.
 
You are absolutely correct,but commenting on this truth would be hijacking this tread. The American taxpayer has been underwriting European socialism since the end of WW2. Selling a European product outside of the EU is no issue at all nor is it any where near as expensive as an American business selling in the EU.

That'd be bad if it were true but it isn't.

steve-1 is an American living and working in Germany but still lives in his own world. When I sell to countries outside the EU some are easier than others. Same with selling to individual EU countries from outside the EU.

The EU does have import export rules and regulations for all EU countries but so does the USA that apply to all 50 states.

To some the neighbours grass is always greener.
 
So doing business inside of the EU, if you are in the EU, is like doing business inside of the US between companies in different States. Got it. Simple is usually less expensive.

This pretty much.
Doing business with US based customers from EU is lot harder.
For example banking and payment systems incompatibilities, wire transfer to US account is amazingly difficult compared to EU-EU wire transfer.
Takes 2 minutes for me to wire transfer from my personal account to Stefan's personal or business account in Germany with no extra costs.
AFAIK even US-US wire transfers are lot more complicated and costly.
 








 
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