For most importers, tariffs have moved from a line item to a liability. Section 301 duties on Chinese-origin goods, Section 232 steel and aluminum tariffs, and ongoing regulatory enforcement have increased the cost of importing — and the risk of getting it wrong. At the same time, supply chains have grown more complex, cross-border volumes have increased, and the margin for error has shrunk.
Trade compliance is no longer just a back-office function. For companies that import regularly, pay significant annual duties, or operate supply chains that cross the U.S.–Mexico border, it is a strategic lever — one that directly affects cash flow, inventory positioning, and competitive cost structure.
Navco’s Trade & Logistics Advisory is built around that reality.
What Is Trade & Logistics Advisory?
Navco’s Trade & Logistics Advisory integrates U.S. Customs advisory and compliance, tariff recovery, and logistics optimization into a single operating model. Most advisory services stop at regulatory interpretation. Navco goes further — delivering actionable strategies that connect trade compliance directly to warehousing, transportation, inventory positioning, and fulfillment.
The practice is grounded in 30+ years of experience as a licensed U.S. Customs broker and 30+ years operating 3PL, bonded warehouse, FTZ, and cross-border logistics programs across domestic, maquiladora, and nearshoring environments. Navco doesn’t just identify opportunities — it helps implement them.
Who Needs Trade & Logistics Advisory?
Any company that imports goods into the United States and pays duties has tariff exposure. The question is whether that exposure is being actively managed or simply absorbed as a cost of doing business.
Trade & Logistics Advisory is most valuable for:
- Manufacturers with global or multi-origin supply chains
- Maquiladora suppliers and reshoring or nearshoring operations
- Domestic distributors carrying large or seasonal inventories
- Retailers importing tariff-heavy SKUs, high-value products, or goods with long inventory turns
- Automotive, electronics, industrial equipment, and consumer goods importers
- Any importer with Section 301, Section 232, or country-of-origin exposure
- Companies operating or considering bonded warehouse, FTZ, or VMI programs
- 3PLs and port service providers supporting import-heavy clients
If tariffs are impacting your margins — or if you’re not sure whether they should be — this is where the conversation starts.
Core Services: What Navco’s Trade & Logistics Advisory Covers
1. Tariff Mitigation & Optimization
The first objective is reducing what you pay. Navco’s tariff mitigation practice identifies legal strategies to reduce, defer, eliminate, or recover tariff costs across your import program. This includes:
- In-house and remote bonded warehouse and FTZ programs
- Fulfillment-from-bond and fulfillment-from-FTZ strategies that defer duty until the point of sale or withdrawal
- Duty drawback, post-summary corrections (PSCs), protests, and reconciliation filings
- USMCA qualification and tariff engineering for goods with U.S.–Mexico supply chain involvement
Each strategy is evaluated against your specific import profile — entry volume, duty spend, product categories, and supply chain structure.
2. TERM: Tariff Exposure & Recovery Management
Navco’s TERM program addresses one of the most overlooked risks in trade compliance: the failure to preserve refund rights before filing deadlines pass.
When tariff classifications are under legal challenge or regulatory review, refunds are not automatic. Importers must file on the right entries, at the right time, with the right documentation. TERM provides the framework to do that systematically.
The program includes:
- ACE data extraction and consolidation across all entry activity
- Entry-by-entry tariff exposure analysis
- Identification of PSC, protest, reconciliation, and drawback eligibility
- A Refund & Recovery Map with specific deadlines and required actions
- Execution and tracking of all filings to protect recovery rights
For importers paying significant duties under active or uncertain tariff classifications, TERM is not optional — it is a deadline management program with direct financial consequences.
3. USMCA, Nearshoring & Cross-Border Strategy
Companies reshoring or nearshoring to Mexico need more than a trade compliance checklist. They need a supply chain design that accounts for rules of origin, transportation logistics, U.S. Customs entry requirements, and inventory strategy — all at the same time.
Navco’s cross-border advisory covers:
- Rules of origin analysis and Regional Value Content (RVC) calculations
- Bill of materials and costing alignment for USMCA qualification
- U.S.–Mexico transportation and Customs workflow design
- Vendor Managed Inventory (VMI) and U.S. gateway program development
- Integration of tariff mitigation strategies into the cross-border supply chain structure
Navco operates on both sides of the border, which means the advisory is grounded in actual logistics execution — not just regulatory theory.
4. National Network of Bonded & FTZ Warehouses
Bonded warehouse and Foreign Trade Zone (FTZ) programs are among the most effective tools available for reducing landed cost and improving inventory flexibility. When properly structured, they allow importers to defer duty payments, avoid duties on goods that are re-exported, and pay duties at the SKU level only when product is withdrawn for domestic sale.
Navco designs and helps implement:
- In-house in-bond and FTZ programs — built inside a client’s existing warehouse or distribution facility
- Fulfillment-from-bond and fulfillment-from-FTZ programs — allowing manufacturers and distributors to pay duties only as inventory moves, rather than at the time of importation
These programs often produce measurable improvements in cash flow, inventory position, and distribution efficiency — particularly for importers with high SKU counts, seasonal demand, or large safety stock requirements.
Why Navco for Trade & Logistics Advisory?
Most trade advisory firms are staffed by attorneys and consultants who interpret regulations. Navco is both a licensed U.S. Customs broker and an operating 3PL. That combination matters because the best trade strategy is only as good as the logistics infrastructure that supports it.
Navco aligns compliance, cost reduction, and logistics performance into strategies your operations team can actually execute — without adding complexity or requiring a separate implementation partner.
If your company imports regularly, carries tariff exposure under Section 301 or Section 232, or is evaluating a nearshoring or bonded warehouse program, a Trade & Logistics Advisory engagement is the right starting point.
Get Started
Contact Navco Logistics to schedule a Trade & Logistics Advisory consultation. We’ll review your import profile, identify your tariff exposure, and outline a practical strategy — specific to your supply chain, your products, and your deadlines.
Navco Logistics | U.S. Customs Brokerage & 3PL Firm
navcologistics.com