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Identify who sells the same thing as you in your market, with what share, price and advantages, and decide how to set yourself apart with data and not by intuition.
Goal: Calculate each supplier's market share and unit value and choose a position to compete: cost, differentiation or niche.
In foreign trade, your competition is not just the company next door. There are three groups. Direct competitors sell a product identical to yours in the same market. Substitutes meet the same need with a different product, such as rice versus quinoa. And competing countries arrive with advantages of their own: trade agreements, proximity or a harvest at another time of the year.
Start with the market. With trade statistics, look at who sells to the country, how much and at what price. Market share is the percentage a supplier has of the total imported: if the country imports US$ 100 million and a supplier sells US$ 25 million, its share is 25%. The unit value is the value divided by the quantity, for example US$ per tonne, and gives an idea of each supplier's average price.
Then do field work. Visit stores, online marketplaces, competitors' websites and fairs. Look at presentation, packaging, consumer price, certifications, brands and channels. Also compare costs and lead times: who pays the lower tariff? Who arrives in fewer days? Who gives credit to the buyer? Each difference is a clue for deciding where to compete.
There are models that organize the analysis. Porter's five forces review current competitors, new entrants, substitutes, buyer power and supplier power. A SWOT crosses your strengths and weaknesses with the market's opportunities and threats. Benchmarking compares your offer with the best competitor's, variable by variable. Use them as lists of questions, not as formulas.
At the end, decide your position. You can compete on cost (a lower price thanks to efficiency), on differentiation (something the buyer values and pays for: origin, quality, certification, service) or on a niche (a small segment the big players serve little). Choose the one your company can sustain, not the one that sounds best.
The market window also counts: the weeks of the year when your product arrives while the market has less supply. A counter-season harvest can sell better without changing anything else. Repeat the analysis every year, because the map changes: new suppliers enter, agreements change and prices move.
| Strategy | How you compete | When it works | Main risk |
|---|---|---|---|
| Cost | A lower price thanks to efficiency or scale | Standard product, price-sensitive buyer, high volume | Another country produces cheaper; price war |
| Differentiation | An attribute the buyer values and pays for: origin, quality, certification, service | Products with a story or attributes that can be verified | That the attribute goes unnoticed or is easy to copy |
| Niche | Serving a small segment with a specific offer | Small company, specialized product | A very small market or one with few buyers |
Result: Brazil leads with 40% and a low price; Colombia (25%) and Peru (10%) compete at a high value. Cafetal Andino decides to set itself apart with certified micro-lots instead of fighting on price with the leader.
13/06/2025
The USDA office in Lima's “Blueberry Annual” report, dated 13/06/2025, states that Peru exported 290,000 t of blueberries in the 2022/23 season, 242,000 t in 2023/24 (17% less) and estimated 320,000 t for 2024/25. In 2023/24 the value was US$ 1,982 million. The destinations were the United States (53%), the Netherlands (23%), the United Kingdom (9%), China (5%) and Hong Kong (5%). The report shows different average prices per tonne depending on the destination. It matters because each market has its own mix of competitors and price.
Analyze each destination separately: your product's share and price change from one market to another.
Source: USDA FAS Lima – Blueberry Annual (PE2025-0010), 13/06/2025
20/12/2022
The USDA report in Santiago, dated 20/12/2022, reports that Chile exported 106,148 t of fresh blueberries in 2021/22 (9.0% less than the previous season). Its fresh shipments run from October to April, peaking between January and February, and the United States received 50.5% of the volume. The text notes that competition from other countries, such as Peru, reduced margins and limited the increase in planted area over the last three seasons. It matters because it shows the competitor from its own side.
If your market window overlaps with another country's, expect price pressure: set yourself apart or adjust your calendar.
Source: USDA FAS Santiago – Blueberry Annual Voluntary (CI2022-0030), 20/12/2022
26/09/2002
On 20/03/2001 Peru requested consultations at the WTO against a regulation of the European Communities (EEC Regulation 2136/89) that, according to Peru, kept its exporters from using the name “sardines”. The Appellate Body circulated its report on 26/09/2002 and the Dispute Settlement Body adopted it on 23/10/2002. It confirmed that the regulation was inconsistent with Article 2.4 of the Agreement on Technical Barriers to Trade and recommended bringing it into conformity. It matters because a labeling rule can favor local competitors.
In your competition analysis, include the market's rules on names, labeling and technical standards: they can favor others.
Source: OMC – DS231: Comunidades Europeas, denominación comercial de sardinas
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