Do I need a local entity in each country?+
No - Tipple acts as merchant of record. That means we take care of excise calculation, filing, payment and destination VAT payment.
Do I need a European importer?+
No - Tipple is an importer, we can be your responsible party for European imports, and be named on your EU compliance labels.
What's the difference between your DTC and B2B coverage?+
DTC (11 markets): Ireland, UK, France, Germany, Spain, Italy, Belgium, Netherlands, Austria, Denmark, Finland, your branded checkout, our routing to a local fulfilment partner. B2B 9 markets): Ireland, UK, France, Spain, Italy, Belgium, Netherlands, Denmark, Finland, listings into on-trade, off-trade and the Nordic monopolies. Most countries support both; Germany & Austria are DTC-only today.
How do you handle the Nordic alcohol monopolies?+
Sweden (Systembolaget), Finland (Alko), and Norway (Vinmonopolet) all run state retail monopolies with very specific tender, listing and packaging rules. Tipple has the agent infrastructure in place for Sweden and Finland today, we manage the tender cycle, sample logistics, listing fees and ongoing replenishment. Norway and Iceland are next on the roadmap.
What about the UK post-Brexit?+
The UK is its own market, we operate with its own bonded warehouse in the UK. For non-UK brands shipping to the UK we handle import, customs, and duty suspension. For UK brands shipping into the EU we handle the inverse, duty suspended movement into a chosen EU bonded hub and onward distribution.
Is the platform GDPR-compliant?+
Tipple is GDPR native. Customer data is processed in EU regions, we sign DPAs as a processor. You stay the controller of your customer data, Tipple never markets to your customers.
Which language and currency does the customer experience use?+
The customer never leaves your storefront, so language and currency are whatever you've set up. We support EUR, GBP, and DKK settlement out of the box, and we'll add others on request.
How long from signed contract to first European order shipped?+
It depends on where you're shipping from, for an EU brand on Shopify launching in 6 markets it takes about a week. Most of that is waiting for stock to arrive to the European bonded hub. Adding a new country to an already live brand is just a click.
For a US brand it can take 4-6 weeks depending on sailing, and then a week to clear customs
