If I buy from a supplier in America or China a licenced product to wholesale to the retail market, do I then in turn need a licence to sell the product in my country or is the licence automatically bestowed on the wholesaler?

We are a large import business in South Africa but by international standards are not huge and therefore I feel it would be most effective for me to purchase from an existing wholesaler in America or China, but am not sure how this legally would affect us and am receiving incredibly conflicting opionions

Thanx

Hi Carolynn Kelly,

Welcome to Wholesale Forum

When buying from a legitimate wholesale exporter of licensed merchandise, you can legally resell that stock without the need to obtain a license yourself. However, you should always verify with the company you are buying from, and ask if there are any specifics you need to know about reselling their product in your country. It's also a good idea to contact the brand holder to find out if the supplier you are dealing with is legitimate and allowed to export their licensed products to South Africa.

Be careful when sourcing licensed merchandise from China. China has one of the world's largest black markets for counterfeit goods, so by sourcing from China you increase the risk of losing your investments on counterfeit stock. Many companies will outsource their production to China, but the Chinese manufacturer won't be allowed under contract to sell to anyone other than the license holder.

Wether sourcing from the US or China is going to be the most cost effective way for you to obtain your stock depends on what the product is and how much it will cost for you to import it into South Africa (taking into account shipping, import taxes and duty). It might be even more cost effective to become a brand licensee yourself and have the product manufactured by a local South African manufacturer.

If you want to tell us which product you are after, we can try to help you further. If you prefer, you can also send us a private message.

Hope this helps

Hi Carolynn,

The first thing I would do would be to check there isn't already a license holder in South Africa, please note there are different license for different products i.e. one for plush, one for footwear, one for clothing etc.

If there is a company holding the license you want to import you will not be able to import them unless you get a prior agreement with the licensor.

If there isn't anyone in South Africa with the license you will be able to import, but the licensee would still need to get agreement from the licensor as license agreements are normally set by country.