Tomorrow is a dark day for small businesses in the UK

[lostmybuttons]

I run a small business, mostly selling on Etsy. But as of tomorrow, Friday 13th December the introduction of the new GPSR legislation is creating such a huge headache for businesses like mine.

We can no longer sell to the EU or Northern Ireland, without paying for an appointed representative to ensure our products are safe. The cost for this is completely unachievable for most businesses like mine. Obviously, we all want our products to be as safe as possible but is it right that it'll cost me at least £2,000 a year to tell me my paper stationery is safe!!

Our only choice is to stop selling to the EU and Northern Ireland, which is a huge loss in income for those already struggling.

We feel like we are shouting into the void and absolutely no one is listening.

This is compounded by the fact that Etsy refuse to separate Northern Ireland in our shipping settings, so by default we are all breaking the legislation and risking fine of up to £20,000.

All Etsy have advised is to cancel any NI orders, which frankly is terrible customer service.

If there was ever a time to shop independent, your small business friends need you now.

I'm surprised there has been nothing in the news that I have seen. I mean, there has been a lot of other stuff going on recently so maybe that's why. But the Government have also been pretty crap with information.

I run a small business too, but thought this was for products brought to the market after 13th Dec - and items you sold before 13 Dec are fine? Or are you making new products?

No, it's bad! Trade makes both parties to the deal richer, otherwise the deal wouldn't happen. Trade between countries makes both countries richer. International trade is something that rational countries prioritise.

Sorry to hear that this will hit you so hard, OP. Unfortunately, the country voted for Brexit so all of us have to suck up the consequences of that. We'll all be paying for it for years. And our kids will too. But at least we've got our blue passports back, eh?

Honestly that's part of the issue, that NI is of course part of the UK, but is also included in this new legislation which means we cannot sell to there without complying with new legislation.

Most tiny to small businesses will not have built their own systems, they'll be using either a marketplace like Etsy or a website that's something like Shopify or wordpress with WooCommerce. Unless they are also a developer, they will be limited to the options those providers allow.

Quite aside from the fact that limiting your market to just one country is not great business sense, but is what we are all now being forced into overnight.

@QueenCamilla
The phrase ‘beyond the pale’.

I was about to say this - it sounds like Etsy are being overly cautious wrt NI. The legislation has a ‘transitional’ component that allows anything that was already for sale to continue to be sold:

“Article 51 of the GPSR ensures that products already on the market in the EU or NI and which are compliant with the 2005 UK GPSR, as it applies or applied before 13 December 2024, shall continue to be made available. This includes existing stock of product lines that are already on the market. No action needs to be taken for products that have already been placed on the market in NI before 13 December 2024.”

from www.gov.uk/government/publications/general-product-safety-regulations-northern-ireland/eu-regulation-2023988-on-general-product-safety-detailed-guidance#:~:text=Article%2051%20of%20the%20GPSR,continue%20to%20be%20made%20available.

We were last in NI over the summer. My friend asked if we could pick up some peppercorn sauce from Aldi because his wife loves it and Aldi don't stock it here in GB. The packet said something like "Made in Ireland" or "Product of Ireland" so I guess it would count as an import to GB but not NI?

Likewise most bars had a much reduced selection of drinks to choose from. Made me wonder if there was some reason certain brewers wouldn't send their drinks there.

Lots of small things but even all these years later rules are still being introduced to make Brexit a reality.

Urgh. I can't upload any screenshots.

No, the General Product Safety Regulation (GPSR) does not affect products for sale before December 13, 2024, if they comply with the 2005 UK GPSR:
Existing products
Products that were already on the market before December 13, 2024, and comply with the 2005 UK GPSR are exempt from the GPSR. This includes products that are relisted after December 13, 2024.
Products that are changed or relisted
Products that are changed or relisted after December 13, 2024, are subject to the GPSR.

Existing stock - but if each order is made to order? Or stock runs out and they make or order another batch?

And are we suggesting that no small business affected by this launches any new design, product or creation until they can afford to comply? Restricted to selling only the stock they already had up to midnight tonight?

I love small businesses but I sometimes despair at how the general population perceives them vs the reality.

The thing about Etsy though is it's supposed to be handmade, isn't it. So although products on the market before tomorrow are OK, this means that someone running a small shop can't make any more to restock.

NI has been decimated by Brexit, even Amazon had (has?) problems with it.

Minimum wage, NI changes and now this ... small and medium size businesses are the backbone of the country and are being hung out to dry. How us this contributing to increasing our GDP?

Why is it arrogant for the EU to do trade deals with S America? Why are you saying the EU are beyond the pale? Brexit isn't their fault!

So you think the loss of significant sales to Ireland and EU from UK businesses is a good thing? Really?

I bet it is. Poor Jenny.

We want as much money coming INTO the country as possible.

Are you suggesting that the EU shouldn’t be allowed to make deals with whomever they want? The UK is a third country now. The EU will only make deals with us if it’s in their interests.

Article from Sky News is explaining some of the issues:
https://news.sky.com/story/british-businesses-stop-shipping-to-northern-ireland-due-to-updated-rules-13271068

It is going to have a disproportionate effect on small businesses who may be run by one person who just doesn't have the capacity to deal with this at the moment - whoever scheduled it to take effect 10 days before Christmas?

No not racist. But the welfare of those animals. The antibiotics and other drugs in the meat would make them unsaleable in this country. Ditto the pesticides, fertilisers, even the water used there again would make them unsaleable.

You really don't know how lucky we are with the checks on our food chain.

What does an appointed representative need to have- ie do they have to be in the country you are selling to? If they are here you’d expect people to be setting up as businesses and doing this as low cost as possible for people like yourself.

With something like a greetings card what do they need to know- the factory the paper is made in?! Who has printed it ie you? What gets printed where? What safety info would need to be shown. I’m just trying to wonder how basic this can be broken down to. Could it be a paper slip that goes in with each card etc

See my comment above.

I had no idea about this. It’s dreadful for small businesses and the people of NI are being shafted.

The EU are not beyond the pale. They have been trying to bring in this legislation for ages.

Since we all started shopping on line, we have all individually been deemed the “importer” who previously was responsible for checking product safety.

(A few sensitive categories like toys have their own safety legislation. But generally it’s been a free for all.)

This allowed giant global businesses like Amazon to get away with shirking the responsibility for checking the safety of their products and putting that responsibility on us.

The EU has now stopped that happening, which is beneficial to all EU citizens.

It’s not the EU’s fault that the UK voted Leave before they got this legislation passed and put in to practice, and I’m really sorry that it’s impacted you so negatively op. It’s very unfair when your products are safe and of a high quality.

Sadly, it was always predicted that Brexit would precipitate a long and slow succession of trading difficulties. And the more the UK’s trade regulations diverge with those of the EU, the more they will continue.