How to find buyers abroad for your product

The most reliable way to find buyers abroad is to start from companies that already import your product: they need it and know how to import it. Pick target countries by real demand and your price, build a list of importers from foreign trade shipment data, keep the ones that buy regularly and work with several suppliers, then write to them with an offer that matches what they already buy.

Directories, marketplaces and trade fairs still help, but they mostly show who wants to be found. Shipment data shows who actually buys. Below is the process step by step, with what you can do for free and where a paid plan is needed.

Step 1. Get the product code right

Everything else depends on this. Foreign trade data is organised by the HS code, the international product code used in foreign trade. Its first 6 digits mean the same in almost every country. Each country then adds its own digits: 8 to 12 in total.

• Take the code from your own export documents or ask the person who handles your shipping paperwork.
• If you are not sure, describe the product in words on the Find buyers or Analyze markets by product page and, after free sign-in, the site will suggest matching codes.
• Check the neighbouring codes. Similar products often sit under different codes, and buyers of a close product may also be buyers of yours.

Step 2. Choose countries where you can compete

Do not start with the country you know best. Start with the countries where your product is bought in volume and where your price fits.

1. Size and trend. How much of the product the country imports and whether it is growing. A large market that shrinks every year is harder than a mid-sized one that grows.
2. Price. Compare your price with delivery included (for example CIF, which covers cost, insurance and freight to the buyer's port) with the prices at which the product is actually imported. If almost nobody buys at your price, the market will be hard whatever you do.
3. Competition. If a few suppliers hold most of the market, a newcomer has to take customers from them. If demand is spread across many suppliers, it is easier to get in.
4. Duties and rules. Import duty, VAT, bans, anti-dumping duties (extra duties on goods sold below their home price) and required documents can make a market unprofitable.

On Orion Markets the Find new export markets section does this comparison for you. You enter a 6-digit HS code and your cost per kilogram; freight and country of origin are optional. The result is a ranking of markets, each with a score, a short verdict and the reasons: demand, competition, how your price compares with actual import prices, duties and restrictions. For one country and one product you can also open a full market analysis in Analyze markets by product.

Step 3. Build a list of real importers

Now you need company names. In Find buyers you enter a 4–6 digit HS code and, if you want, the buyer's country. The search looks at foreign trade shipments of the last 12 months in the 14 countries where Orion Markets has data. The list includes importers in these countries and also the foreign companies these countries export your product to, wherever they are.

Before the search runs, you confirm the national codes for each country. This matters: one 6-digit code often covers several products, and each country splits it into its own national codes. By confirming only the codes for your product, you leave out companies that buy something close but different.

Example: buyers of olive oil

On 17 October 2026 we searched for buyers of olive oil (HS 150920) in all covered countries, with no limit on the buyer's country. The search found 751 buyers. Twelve national codes were confirmed, and Mexico had the most buyers. The Find buyers page shows this search as its example, and you can repeat it with your own code.

For each buyer the results show the country, how many markets it buys in, and, once the report is open, the amounts, number of shipments, average price per shipment and per kilogram, and contacts. The results also show each buyer's current suppliers. These are the companies you will compete with at that customer, and their countries tell you whether the buyer already works with suppliers from your region.

Without signing in you see the list of companies with names, countries, registration details and brands. Amounts, number of shipments, average prices and contacts become visible once you open the report on a paid plan. Once the report is open you can filter by amount and number of shipments and export the list to Excel.

Step 4. Decide who to contact first

A list of several hundred companies is too long to call one by one. Sort it so that your first twenty calls go to the most likely buyers.

• Regular purchases. A company that imports every month is a better target than one that made a single purchase.
• Several suppliers. Importers that already buy from three or more suppliers are 2–2.5 times more likely to take on a new one, according to the historical shipment data behind the Find new export markets section. A buyer tied to one supplier is harder to win.
• Right size. Match the buyer's typical shipment to what you can produce. A buyer of full containers will not wait for your pilot batch; a small importer may not handle your minimum order.
• Price level. If the average price per kilogram a buyer pays is far below yours, you need a strong reason why it should pay more.
• Who supplies them now. If competitors from your country already sell to this buyer, it knows your country's product and logistics. If none do, you may be first, but you will have to explain more.

Step 5. Check the buyer before you ship

Before you agree on deferred payment, check the company: registration, sanctions lists and its import history. Our guide How to check a foreign company before a deal covers this step by step. On Orion Markets a company profile on the Company profiles page shows what the buyer imports, from which countries and how regularly.

Step 6. Make an offer that fits what they already buy

• Be specific. "We see you import sunflower oil in bulk from two suppliers; we produce the same grade" gets more replies than a general catalogue. Do not quote figures from their trade data back to them; show that you understand their range.
• Quote a clear delivery basis. State the price on agreed delivery terms (Incoterms, such as FOB, port of loading, or CIF, port of destination) so the buyer can compare it with its current price.
• Make it easy to try. Offer samples, a trial lot or a first order on terms that reduce the buyer's risk.
• Reach the right person. In an importing company that is usually the purchasing or category manager, not the general inbox.
• Use help from your own country. National export promotion agencies, trade missions and fairs give you meetings with buyers you have already identified. Go to a fair with a list of target companies, not to look around.

What to keep in mind

• Shipment data is not available for every country. Orion Markets has it for 14 countries; the list and periods are on the data coverage page. A buyer that imports only into other countries will not appear.
• Some importers are agents or logistics companies that buy on behalf of someone else. Their history looks large, but they do not decide which supplier to use.
• Data has a time lag: the latest month differs by country. Recent new buyers may not be visible yet.
• New suppliers often leave a market quickly. In historical shipment data for Kazakhstan and Uzbekistan, about 1 in 4 new suppliers is still shipping to a market six months later. Plan for follow-up orders, not one sale.

To start, enter your product code on Find buyers. If you have not yet chosen a country, start with Find new export markets.