The history of LLC Association of Exporters and Importers "ZED" begins on November 6, 2003.
The objective need to appear on the Ukrainian market a professional structure for the provision of comprehensive services in the field of foreign economic activity was the main idea of creating. The abbreviation ZED, used in the name of the company in Ukrainian language means "Foreign Economic Activity" (FEA).
A model was chosen to create a legal entity, which combines certain opportunities of such a form of activity as a public association with its membership base, with the traditional form of entrepreneurial activity - a limited liability company. The use of this form allows to significantly strengthen the functionality of the structure for the provision of a wide range of services in the field of foreign economic activity, which can’t be implemented in any public association.
Realizing that the issues of export and import of products and services in Ukraine will be difficult for a long time, given the transitional stage of economic development of Ukraine, we set the goal to facilitate the activities of Ukrainian and foreign companies in the field of export and import of goods and services and investment activities.
The main activities of the company are:
- separate and complex services in the field of foreign economic activity;
- export and import of products and services;
- promotion and implementation of international projects, including investment ones.
Our motto is to be the best company in Ukraine among those who provide services and implement large projects in the field of foreign economic activity.
Immediately the most difficult tasks in the field of foreign economic activity became the specialization of ZED Association:
- import to Ukraine and customs clearance of large technological complexes (plants);
- creation and ensuring the functioning of trade and transport corridors in certain areas of goods supplying;
- providing technical re-equipment of industrial enterprises in Ukraine on the basis of foreign equipment.
As a result, the largest Ukrainian and foreign companies paid attention to the activities of ZED Association and became customers, including:
- NJSC Naftogaz of Ukraine (supply of drilling equipment);
- International Communication Company LLC (ensuring the purchase of mobile communication stations);
- Obolon CJSC (transportation of oversized equipment from Germany);
- SA "Interbudmontazh" (logistics of complex construction in Turkmenistan);
- "Leman Commodities SA" ("System Capital Management") (logistical support for the supply of metal products);
- HC "AvtoKrAZ" (ensuring the supply for export of automotive equipment);
- «HUAWEI TECH. IVESTMENT CO., LTD »,« ZTE »(customs clearance of telecommunication equipment), and other companies.
With the participation of leading Ukrainian companies, the Turkmenistan-Ukraine gas contract managed to unite Ukrainian exporters who supplied products to Turkmenistan and obtain significant transit discounts, providing significant cost savings for logistics of supplies from Ukraine.
Some of our advantages in servicing large foreign companies (complexity, professionalism, competence) allowed us to provide high-level service to foreign companies on complex issues of supplying equipment and components to Ukraine, including such as "Hallibarton" (USA) and "KYB" (Japan).
Recognizing the importance of exhibition activities for exporters and importers, the Association became a contractor for “AVIASVIT-XXI” for the first time in 2008, and later such activities also became a priority. Today, the Association includes the Head of the Board, who acted as the National Commissioner at the EXPO World Exhibition "Energy of the Future" in Kazakhstan in 2017, and was responsible for the commercial part of Ukrainian pavilion abroad.
Aiming to become a public company, ZED Association became a member of FIATA, the Kyiv Regional Chamber of Commerce and Industry of Ukraine, the Ukrainian National Committee of the International Chamber of Commerce, the Association of Freight Forwarders of Ukraine, etc. Representatives of the ZED Association have joined many governmental expert groups and councils.
ZED Association is also developing cooperation with foreign organizations. An example is the signing in 2009 and 2010 of an agreement with the Council for the Promotion of International Trade and the Export-Import Bank of China (China Eximbank).
Guided by the desire to promote the implementation of international business standards in Ukraine, ZED Association in 2010 signed an agreement with the International Chamber of Commerce - ICC (headquarters in Paris, France) on translation, adaptation to the terminology of national legislation and distribution of Ukrainian-English edition "Incoterms 2010. ICC Rules on the Use of Terms for Domestic and International Trade. Having a license agreement with the ICC, the Association initiated amendments to 6 Laws of Ukraine and repealed the Decree of the President of Ukraine of 1994 on the use of the terms Incoterms, supporting the spread of the Incoterms Rules in Ukraine.
Since 2011, ZED Association has become, particularly, a publishing organization.
Based on the license agreements with the ICC, the Association translated and adapted the following ICC publications to Ukrainian terminology:
- “ICC Commentary to the Incoterms Rules 2010”;
- "International commercial transactions";
- ICC model contract for large turnkey projects and others.
In connection with the signing of the Association Agreement with the EU in 2013, the book "Principles of European Contract Law. Comments and recommendations ".
In addition, representatives of ZED Association were constantly published with articles on topical issues of FEA. Also new is the publication of ZED Association for the Ukrainian exporters’ participation in the International Import Exhibition in Shanghai in 2018, the book: "Ukraine is a unique trading partner of China" in Chinese.
Using its own experience and the availability of a large number of publications on topical issues, ZED Association since 2011 began to actively conduct or participate, delegating speakers, in training events for exporters and importers in the form of trainings, seminars. Up-to- date it was held more than 250 events.
In addition to training events, in 2018 the Association began to conduct field consultations and examinations for exporters and importers of Ukraine, as well as supports such events abroad. The association has organized several business tours, including to such countries as China, Norway, Sweden, Azerbaijan, Kazakhstan and others. In recent years, the Association has organized and held many conferences, seminars and round tables.
In 2019, ZED Association took part in the creation of the first Trading House on the African continent "Trading House Nigeria - Ukraine". Other trading houses are next in line. Today, ZED Association has numerous positive reviews, letters, thanks from customers, awards and encouragement of employees of the company by government agencies and NGOs. All this has become the norm of daily activities of our employees.