Andrew Baxter, Chief Executive of Europa Worldwide Group, today revealed how his company transformed a major Brexit challenge into a significant competitive advantage, despite fierce criticism and accusations of fraud from rivals.
In the years following the EU referendum, while many competitors complained about the complexities of leaving the customs union, Europa took a different approach. The business developed a groundbreaking solution to streamline the movement of goods between the UK and Europe, enabling thousands of UK exporters to maintain seamless trade.
“Life outside the customs union meant every shipment required export and import declarations, along with the need to onboard importers and charge them for duties, VAT and clearance fees,” said Baxter. “This had the potential to create major disruption. We tackled the problem head on and launched a solution that operated successfully for over a year before any competitor could replicate it.”
The result speaks for itself. Europa is now the clear market leader, moving more than double the volume of its nearest competitor and facilitating over £12 billion in UK exports via its innovative route.
The innovation that changed the game
Traditional shipping terms were typically Delivered Duty Uncleared (DDU), leaving the importer responsible for all clearance costs, duties and VAT. Europa instead created a Delivered Duty Paid (DDP) product – placing full customs responsibility on the UK exporter.
Many competitors dismissed the DDP model because UK exporters could not reclaim EU VAT, viewing it as commercially unviable. Europa saw a different path. By leveraging an existing EU customs regulation, the company clears all continental European goods through France (with French-destined goods cleared in Belgium). This allows zero-rating of VAT and enables a seamless DDP offering that protects customers from friction and delays.
“We developed something that many said was impossible,” Baxter added. “At first, competitors didn’t just doubt us – they accused us of non-compliance and even fraud. Some actively told our customers we would be shut down. The more they attacked us, the more determined we became – and the more market share we won.”
Baxter noted that it took competitors around three years to develop their own versions, which he says still lag behind Europa’s solution. Today, the majority of UK exports to Europe move on a DDP basis, either through Europa or its competitors. Without this mechanism, Baxter believes UK–Europe trade would have suffered far greater damage.
A committed Brexiteer driven by principle
A vocal supporter of Brexit, Baxter hosted the launch event for the Leave campaign alongside Boris Johnson. He is clear that his support was based on principle, not prior knowledge of any commercial workaround.
“I supported Brexit because I believed the UK should be an independent, self-governing nation,” he said. “I knew it would complicate my own business – and I had no special customs insight at the time. But that personal commitment to making Brexit work for our customers drove us to find a genuine solution rather than just complain about the problem.”
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As Europa enters its seventh decade in business, the company continues to invest in smarter solutions, customs expertise and international capability to support customers trading across more than 160 countries worldwide.
From its origins as a specialist European operator to its position today as a global logistics provider, Europa remains focused on helping businesses navigate complexity and release opportunity wherever it exists.
Ten years after the Brexit referendum, the company's conclusion is clear: businesses that embrace change, invest in innovation and maintain a global outlook will be best placed to succeed in the years ahead.