Liv-ex: Your Trusted Partner for Seamless Wine Logistics
Liv-ex moves wine from seller to buyer, checks and verifies wine in our high tech, bonded warehouses, and ensures sellers are paid correctly and on…
Buying and selling wine internally involves a maze of alcohol import/export laws, bonded warehousing rules, and customs documentation. Moving wine across borders, and trading with new regions increases operational costs and can lead to longer lead times for your customers.
At Liv-ex we handle every aspect of logistics. This includes moving the wine from seller to buyer, checking and verifying wine in our high tech, bonded warehouses, and ensuring sellers are paid correctly and on time.
Liv-ex reduces the complexity of buying and selling fine wine as we act as the single point of contact on the other side of every deal, meaning one invoice, one transportation partner, one payment, despite doing businesses with other wine businesses all over the world.
So how does it work?
- Once a seller accepts a buyers bid on their wine, the trade is matched, and the wine is sold
- We collect stock from the seller, or the seller delivers directly to one of the Liv-ex warehouses, in either London, Bordeaux or Belgium
- Our warehouse team validates the wine ensuring that it complies with the Liv-ex contract
- The seller is paid as soon as we validate the wine
- The buyer pays and we move the wine to them
How does Liv-ex reduce risk in the secondary market?
To keep our exchange safe, each prospective Liv-ex member undergoes a thorough vetting process; two trade references are required, and an Exchange Committee is in place to assess every prospective member.
Liv-ex trading contracts ensure buyers know the condition of wines, delivery parameters and packaging before they bid on wine, so buyers know what they are getting with no surprises. Our benchmark SIB contract (Standard in Bond) requires the wine to be in good condition, that packaging is original and in good condition, and that the duty status is In Bond, meaning the buyer can receive their wine in 30 days.
Our wine storage facilities include state-of-the-art security and climate control systems to ensure wines are protected around the clock. Members can store their wines in our warehouses pre and post trade, before deciding whether to trade again or ship onwards.
When thorough checks are required, we take the bottles out of cases to photograph them. We use ultraviolet torches to check the labels as well as checking them for other producer specific anticounterfeiting measures such as microprint, holograms and QR codes. We inspect capsules, including checking any prooftags. And we also check the cork, sediment and glass embossing or laser etching.
How does Liv-ex simplify buying and selling internationally?
Liv-ex arranges and handles the full process of bonded transport and storage, manages customs paperwork, and oversees chain-of-custody checks, cross-border transfers and warehouse reconciliation. We also use a trusted network of Liv-ex-approved storage partners to bolster these capabilities. For businesses managing high volumes of trades, we overcome common bottlenecks in invoicing, logistics, and fulfilment that would otherwise drain profitability.
We understand that sellers require prompt payment, and buyers expect fast delivery. We have a standardised payment calendar so that sellers know exactly when they will be paid. And an individual stock management portal so that buyers can access live updates on their purchases and arrange onward movement of their stock as soon as it hits their account.
If you’d like to reduce the logistic burden of trading wine on the secondary market, speak to us about becoming a Liv-ex member.
