On June 13, the UK witnessed the official launch of its inaugural E-Commerce Trade Commission, aimed at facilitating online trade and export opportunities for 70,000 small British businesses. The commission, composed of esteemed industry experts, will serve as an advisory group directly reporting to the Department for Business and Trade (DBT).

The primary objective of the commission is to empower small UK businesses, which constitute the backbone of the economy, to capitalize on the potential of e-commerce trade and leverage the recently established trade agreements. Spearheaded by the Institute of Export & International Trade (IOE&IT), the leading membership body for international trading entities, the commission will be chaired by Marco Forgione, the Director General of IOE&IT.

During the launch event, Commission Chair Marco Forgione emphasized the significance of the E-commerce Trade Commission, stating, "The E-commerce Trade Commission is a unique opportunity to make positive changes that truly support small British businesses and comes at an important time for the UK. Buying goods online has fast become the norm for consumers, and UK businesses have the opportunity to take advantage of new trade agreements being signed by the government which have specific provisions, including those relating to e-commerce."

Forgione further elaborated on the commission's purpose, highlighting the need for increased international trade among businesses. "The reason for encouraging more businesses to trade internationally is that all the evidence shows that these businesses are much more sustainable, more resilient, more innovative, with more people and more profit. The only way we're going to tackle the significant challenges of the current economic and social challenges we're facing is through international trade – it is an essential economic imperative that we achieve this," he stated.

To ensure comprehensive representation and expertise, the commission has assembled some of the world's largest e-commerce platforms, including Amazon, Alibaba, eBay, Google, and Shopify, as board members. Moreover, it includes prominent organizations such as the Federation of Small Businesses, Institute of Chartered Accountants in England and Wales (ICAEW), and Association of International Courier & Express Services (AICES).

The inaugural board meeting of the commission took place on June 13th at County Hall, London. The event witnessed the presence of the Rt Hon Kemi Badenoch MP, Secretary of State for Business & Trade, who delivered a keynote opening speech and engaged in discussions with business leaders regarding the most effective strategies to support UK businesses in harnessing e-commerce export opportunities.

In her address, Secretary of State Kemi Badenoch highlighted the significance of the newly formed E-Commerce Trade Commission. She stated, "I'm really pleased to be launching our E-Commerce Trade Commission this morning. I set a very clear priority that we need to increase UK exports to a trillion pounds by 2030. And helping more UK firms to trade digitally will help us to reach this ambitious target. We're already growing exports by knocking down trade barriers so that UK businesses can access new markets, and we are working to sign new free trade agreements. Our new free trade agreement with Australia, which came into force just a couple of weeks ago, is a good example of that."

Lord Offord, the newly appointed Exports Minister, also made his first public appearance in his role during the event. Emphasizing the importance of exports, he stated, "Companies that export tend to be higher margin, have higher productivity, and pay higher wages. We've just signed a new deal – the CPTPP – with really exciting countries like Canada, Mexico, Peru, Chile, Malaysia, Singapore, Australia, New Zealand, Japan. They've got the fastest-growing middle class and they're all consumers who want to buy products made in Britain – and we have to help SMEs get there."

The establishment of the independent E-Commerce Trade Commission was based on recommendations from a 2022 report by the Social Market Foundation, commissioned by Amazon and supported by IOE&IT. The report highlighted significant untapped potential, projecting that an additional 70,000 UK small businesses could engage in exporting, resulting in a potential boost of £9.3 billion gross value added (GVA) across the economy. It also revealed that e-commerce exports generate an average of £100,000 in annual revenues for retail businesses selling overseas through a website, while firms with 10 or more employees average about £950,000.

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Sources: https://www.themanufacturer.com/articles/industry-leaders-unite-to-unlock-9-3bn-sme-export-potential-with-new-e-commerce-trade-commission/