A European buyer comparing you with a European supplier is comparing lead times as much as prices. A four-week advantage can matter more than a ten percent discount, particularly for anything that goes into their own production.
The three routes
- Sea. Cheapest per unit, longest, and the most exposed to congestion and rate volatility. The default for volume.
- Rail. Between the two on both time and cost. Useful for mid-value goods where sea is too slow and air too expensive.
- Air. Fast, expensive, and the right answer more often than people assume for high-value or low-weight products.
The option that changes the commercial position
Holding stock in a European warehouse. It costs money and it ties up capital — and it converts you from a supplier with a six-week lead time into one with a three-day lead time. For some categories that is the difference between being considered and being chosen.
Agree the Incoterm explicitly and early. Quoting EXW to a European buyer who expected DDP is the most common source of a deal collapsing after agreement.