A Customs Broker RFP Run by a Firm With No Broker Conflict of Interest
Most importers want to run a broker RFP every three to five years just to be confident they aren't being overcharged or under-served — but they don't have the time, resources, or in-house expertise to run the process. That's where we come in. We've cut client broker fees by 30% or more by running the RFP they didn't have time to run themselves.
When It Makes Sense to Run an RFP
You've used the same customs broker for many years and aren't sure your rates are still competitive.
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Your business has grown or evolved to the point that a different broker would be a better fit.
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You're unhappy with your current broker's service quality and ready to make a change.
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Your broker has been acquired or has changed leadership and the relationship has shifted.
A Recent Result: Crisis-to-Opportunity Transformation
A leading manufacturer of industrial, commercial, and residential plumbing, HVAC, and irrigation equipment came to us when their customs Manager abruptly resigned. Their remote location meant replacing the role would carry a 25–30% salary premium. They were considering full outsourcing as an alternative.
Our review concluded that outsourcing wasn't the right answer for their situation. Instead, we ran a comprehensive Customs Brokerage RFP, identified a new broker partnership that delivered over 30% in fee savings against their previous broker, refined their existing customs systems and processes, and supported the internal promotion of a junior employee into the customs lead role. We provided ongoing strategic support to that employee for the first year of the transition.
The cost savings on broker fees alone funded the project. The internal promotion preserved institutional knowledge and avoided the salary premium. The streamlined processes outlasted the immediate crisis.
Our Customs Brokerage RFP team includes former customs brokers with a collective 150+ years of brokerage experience. We know what good service looks like, what fair rates look like, and where brokers tend to add fees that aren't always disclosed up front. Critically, we have no commercial interest in any broker, so our recommendation is genuinely yours, not a referral arrangement.
If you've already started an RFP and need help finishing it, we can plug into your process. If you want us to run the entire process, questionnaire design, broker outreach, response analysis, scoring, finalist presentations, and recommendation, we can do that too. You decide which parts to keep in-house and which to delegate.
Our reporting portal gives you full visibility into every step: RFP questionnaire development, communication with participants, response analysis, finalist scoring, and final-round presentations. You can stay focused on your day-to-day responsibilities while monitoring progress on your schedule.
Frequently Asked Questions
From engagement to broker selection, most RFPs take 90–120 days. Transition to the new broker typically takes another 30–60 days. We can accelerate either phase if your business need is urgent.
We work on a fixed-fee basis for the RFP itself, with the fee scaled to the scope (number of broker participants, jurisdictions covered, complexity of the existing operation). We share the proposed fee before any work begins.
Only if you choose to include them. Many clients include the incumbent in the RFP, partly for benchmarking, partly because the incumbent's response often improves materially when they know they're being competitively evaluated. Either approach is valid.