Stuart Irwin

Senior Customs Compliance Manager at Kimberly Clark Europe Limited (2022-03 – Present)

Manage risk: identify risks, prevent, and mitigate damages related to the customs laws of countries where the company runs.
Be all-inclusive: coordinate efforts and engage between different departments and supervise activities about customs and export control legislation.
Keep everyone on the same page: ensure proper import and export compliance training and education is provided to all stakeholders as needed.
Maintain and monitor the implementation of Import/Export compliance policies.
Monitor customs brokers' activities as they are in direct contact with the customs authorities.
Identify red flags in operations and prevent violations of customs regulations.
Research all applicable regulations to import and export operations. That includes domestic laws and international rules applicable to the matter. Maintain AEO and other customs regimes in place.

Customs Consultant (Tier 3) at Institute of Export (2020-10 – 2022-02)

Heading a team of 14 Customs Consultants, providing specialist customs and trade knowledge to support delivery of the Trader Support Service (TSS), and advising on the Northern Irish Protocol requirements
Training colleagues on all aspects of customs formalities in readiness for the end of the Brexit transition, enabling them to train Tier 1 and Tier 2 consultants in turn
Mentoring and supporting the team on a day to day basis, holding regular meetings to get feedback on any issues and to advise of any management/company updates

Interim Trade Compliance Manager (Contract) at Abcam Plc (2019-09 – 2020-08)

Similar to previous role at Abcam but also…

Set up Country of Origin process for ~275 suppliers/900k SKUs to Chamber of Commerce requirements
Managed a major classification project of ~45k current biochemical products and ensured the inclusion of Trade Compliance in future new product launches to capture the correct commodity code from the outset

Customs Consultant at Langdon Systems (2018-12 – 2019-09)

Advised various companies on HMRC matters and viable strategies for the various possible BREXIT outcomes
Assisted with HMRC applications for customs applications such as customs warehousing, CFSP and AEO
Supported the sales team on visits to potential clients for duty management software

Interim Trade Compliance Manager (Contract) at Abcam Plc (2018-07 – 2018-11)

Headed a team of 4 in UK, US and China, maintaining continuity following departure of the previous incumbent
Set up temperature logging procedures for sensitive products moving from the UK to China and Japan
Liaised with US brokers and FDA to remove inspection requirement for research only shipments
Managed maintenance of AEO approval, correct change documentation and adherence to procedures
Enforced all Export Control Organisation licensing requirements, keeping a clear audit trail for toxin shipments
Managed reconciliation of all international shipments with HMRC declarations, provision of compliant safety datasheets (SDS) across global jurisdictions and applied for veterinary/health certificates for EU exports

Head of Compliance at Matches Fashion (2017-11 – 2018-06)

Led a team of 5, addressing international trade issues to facilitate delivery of 3000-6000 shipments daily
Headed implementation and troubleshooting of Grosvenor International System's Customs warehousing software (Ricardo), liaising with Grosvenor, IT & HMRC to ensure full compliance with all UK legislation
Produced month-end Final Supplementary Declarations and consistently sent to HMRC well within deadlines
Liaised with the International Events Team for various overseas fashion shows/press events, adhering to extremely tight transit time lines, liaising with freight forwarders and HMRC to alleviate any possible delays

Replenishment Planner (Contract) at Treasury Wine Estate (2016-05 – 2017-11)

Placed bulk wine orders at US vineyards for delivery to bottling facilities in England, Italy and South Africa and ordered finished goods from Italy for delivery to UK third party logistics provider
Reconciled all stock at UK 3PL provider and Italian bottling facility, matching physical and JD Edwards figures

Logistics Manager (3rd/4th Party)(Contract) at Treasury Wine Estate (2015-04 – 2016-05)

Managed supply chain from providers in Bristol, Lutterworth, Sweden & Norway, ensuring efficient, timely deliveries, and monitoring all excise paperwork, escalating late ARC close offs
Raised excise duty reclaim paperwork for destroyed goods at company warehouse or the customer sites
Liaised with freight forwarders, making import declarations and overseeing submission of certificates of origin
Assisted overseas suppliers with Approved Exporter applications to reduce EU import documentation
Addressed issues with worldwide courier shipments of wine samples sent to potential customers duty paid
Oversaw correct filing and presentation of Food Standards Agency paperwork for subsequent movements of non-EU wines within EU and EFTA countries

Logistics Project Manager (Contract) at Zodiac Interconnect UK Ltd (2015-01 – 2015-04)

Reviewed and improved all import and export processes and procedures and applied for HMRC approvals
Established procedural improvements to achieve full compliance with Export Control regulations
Conducted internal training to promote a full understanding of licensing requirements for military goods
Applied for Open General Export Licenses for Zodiac, ensuring that all SPIRE conditions were met

Import Compliance/Logistics Mgr (Contract) at Meggitt Control Systems (2014-06 – 2015-01)

Site owner for the Import Compliance Plan, took on feedback from various departments to assist in drafting procedures and work instructions and audited international trade, issuing corrective actions recommendations
Assisted the Trade Compliance Officer with licensing for International Traffic in Arms Regulations (ITAR)
Monitored all import and export activity, providing ongoing targeted training as required

Export Manager (Contract) at A Nelsons Co Ltd (2014-01 – 2014-06)

Received and processed export orders, liaising with planning, production and the third party logistics provider
Booked export consignments with overseas customer's freight forwarders, raising required documentation
Wrote procedures to ensure full HMRC compliance, particularly UK and EU deliveries for VAT purposes
Trained an internal candidate up to full independent competency according to standards and procedures

Customs Manager at Grant Thornton LLP (2010-04 – 2013-12)

Advised clients on all aspects of customs processes and compliance, including impacts of 2013 changes, optimising supply chains to lean principles and minimising costs wherever possible while maintaining quality
Designed a training programme on International Supply Chain Risk Analysis (ISCRA) and delivered it internally to colleagues prior to Europe-wide roll out to international clients
Assisted clients with various excise warehouse buy-outs as going concerns, enabling leverage of all previous customs regimes and guarantee waivers, and ensured smooth transition with little to no impact on trade

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