Business Ethics

In any business relationship, but particularly so in Asian sourcing, ethics are paramount. Access International upholds a high ethical standard in all of our business dealings.

Confidential information is often passed to us from our clients. Any compromising of this confidentiality can be extremely destructive to the future of the product in question, not to mention the business relationship. We usually require a standard non-disclosure agreement (NDA) with any potential customer. Prior to signing an NDA, we can initially ask a variety of questions which do not relate to the product itself, but more manufacturing processes, materials, and other non-confidential matters. This pre-qualification process occurs without any discussion of the product or its scope.

Conflicts of interest are avoided at all cost. Access International will never provide sourcing for a given product category for two different clients within a given market area. After coming to agreement on a particular product or range of products with a client, any new inquiries from other potential clients for sourcing the same range of goods for the same trade territory will be turned away. We will never procure the same class of goods for your competitor while working with you. He must find another channel to source these items.

Intellectual property protection is always covered in any non-disclosure agreement we sign. We rely on our client to advise us if there is patent protection on any product which they are considering to source. In addition, we select manufacturers for review that respect the status of patents and trademarks. We will never knowingly violate any law relating to intellectual property protection and have great respect for those inventing new products or creating names for products. We further have no interest in simply skirting trademarks or patents narrowly. We give all intellectual property rights a very wide berth not only as a legal necessity, but as a professional courtesy.