Case Study

White Labs reduces Australian customs holds by 84% with MetroConnect

ServiceExport/Logistics Consulting

ServiceMarketing/Visibility

San Diego-based White Labs is a yeast manufacturing company that provides yeast cultures, fermentation and laboratory analysis services, and education to the alcoholic beverage industry.

In White Labs’ efforts to export live yeast cultures, it encountered a number of challenges with worldwide distribution, including lengthy customs and logistics holds in critical markets, and difficulty translating technical materials to ensure appropriate product use.

COMPANY

CHALLENGE

A yeast and fermentation innovator, San Diego-based White Labs needed support navigating customs and logistics regulations for exporting live cultures to target countries such as Australia, where it continued to encounter product returns.

White Labs also faced challenges in translating its materials and understanding local cultures in target markets, particularly in explaining the technical specifics of its product to consumers outside the United States.

WTCSD SOLUTION AND SUPPORT PROVIDED

White Labs applied to World Trade Center San Diego (WTCSD)’s export accelerator MetroConnect and was one of 15 small to mid-sized companies accepted into its fifth cohort.

As the company sought to streamline its existing international efforts and expand to target markets, it leveraged MetroConnect’s resources, including:

$5,000 MetroConnect grant and executive workshops to augment its ability to navigate foreign-speaking markets and streamline its global logistics efforts
Systran to translate user manuals for customers in Korea, Scandinavia, and France
JAS Forwarding for exporting advice pertaining to customs holds in Australia
YCP Solidiance for export market strategy consulting in Asia
…and more.

VALUE DERIVED

Equipped with expert knowledge from MetroConnect workshops, new partners, and access to critical tools, White Labs successfully tackled its biggest logistics challenge—decreasing its annual customs holds in Australia by 84 percent since the start of the program.

Additionally, as a top-performing company, White Labs was chosen to participate in WTCSD’s 2021 MetroConnect promotional video and later deemed a finalist in the Grand Prize PitchFest where the company competed for an additional $25,000 grant.

Over the course of MetroConnect and as a PitchFest finalist, White Labs received top promotional billing, garnering mentions and links on EDC webpages (3K+ visitors) and in newsletters (5K+ audience), as well as in trade media placements.

? Meet @whitelabs, which produces environmentally friendly yeast and fermentation products for brewers, distillers, and winemakers ?
Hear its pitch and cast your vote for your favorite #MetroConnectSD $25K prize finalist! ?️https://t.co/XZwwfuIFr1 pic.twitter.com/igoz0Em7SM
— World Trade Center San Diego (@WTCSanDiego) November 17, 2021

“The global market has always been an important one for White Labs, and our goal is to continue to grow it every year. With the significant resources we received and relationships fostered through the MetroConnect program, we have been able to support expansion, and identify areas of further global development for our company.”

—Chris White, President/CEO, White Labs