Thread by @pmdfoster

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Business after Brexit: a tale of red tape and higher costs - three tales from the #brexit frontline. Quick takeaways. Stay with me. /1 on.ft.com/3c4qe0p

These are the stories of three businesses that the @FinancialTimes decided to follow after #Brexit to see how they adjust to life outside Single market and customs union - a teamaker Hampstead Teas, a specialist haulier Chiltern Distribution and an aerospace co Produmax /2

First the teamaker Hampstead Teas, that packs and distributes out of plant in Milton Keynes...sells 100,000Kgs a year, including to big EU retailers like Esselunga, Monoprix and Alnatura....they've had a nightmare. Taken 8 weeks to clear one load of tea into Italy. SO.../3

Kiran Tawadey has, with heavy heart, decided to open a distribution centre in the EU (location tbc) to a) avoid multi VAT regimes b) absorb delays/agro herself, rather than inflict on her customers.

This is a pretty classic Brexit tale I think. Beat the border by moving to EU/4

Having seen the email correspondence of her trying to clear teas through Italian customs, I can understand why...totally might numbing and the delays are destroying relations with trusted clients. /5

“We’ve had such unbearable conversations with customers that we really love and cherish, and we can’t continue the negativity in this way,” she tells me /6

We’ll now have to see how the move to distribute out of the EU impacts Hampstead Twas footprint for manufacturing etc. That will one to watch for next instalment. /7

The onto second business @ChilternDist whose boss Paul Jackson tells me two interesting things, after finding first couple months hard work but doable /8

First is that lot more loads coming over unaccompanied (so no tractor, just the trailer) and being picked up in U.K. expects more of that as red tape at border changes supply lines/9

But also that the delays aren’t disappearing. So this month he spent 6 hours at border trying to get clearance for load of fruit...except the problem wasn’t the fruit. /10

“The problem, it turned out, was not the fruit but the fact that it was in a new trailer which couldn’t be matched on the system. There always seems to be something and if the ‘computer says no’, then you’re just stuck,” he tells me. /11

One last point is that Paul is keen for U.K. to start border checks so the pain runs both ways and EU stop getting a free pass. He reckons that might be good/upside for his business. Raising prices. /12

But he frets (rightly I fear) that EU business is unlikely to use the extra time to adjust/prepare. So may just get same delays, only in October. /13

And the last business, Shipley-based Produmax tells @DanielThomasLDN that stuff has been moving OK (except for teething probs to N Ireland) but at higher costs. /14

So far, the flow of parts for her factory imported from the EU have not encountered much delay, after an initial period of trials back and forth over the border with the EU...BUT volumes have been v low. So we’ll see how that plays out later /15

And lastly, Produmax hasn’t had to deal with U.K. border controls where EU exporters to UK will start to feel parallel pain to U.K. exporters - though again we’ll see how flexible U.K. borders are. More than EU’s I’d bet. ENDS