Bridging the Trust Gap in Healthcare, SME Trade: UPS

Q: What are the main pain points SMEs face today in cross-border shipping, and what is UPS doing to solve them? 

A: SMEs naturally operate at a disadvantage when it comes to international trade. They often lack the dedicated staff required to navigate the complexities of global logistics, evolving customs laws, or even something as fundamental as proper product packaging. At UPS, our focus is on democratizing this knowledge through accessible education and technology.

We provide continuous training via specialized webinars, YouTube tutorials, and in-person consultations at our customer service centers. We even host practical workshops on packaging techniques. However, the most critical shift is moving from human-dependent advice to scalable digital tools. In the past, an SME’s success depended on hiring an expert who knew the specific tariffs for every destination. To solve this, we developed UPS Global Checkout. This tool automatically calculates the landed cost of a product, including duties and taxes, giving the seller and the final consumer total transparency on the final price at destination.

Our partnership with the Hecho en México (Made in Mexico) initiative is a prime example of how we provide practical, hands-on training to local entrepreneurs. Through collaborative events like PyMEs Sin Fronteras (SMEs Without Borders) and the bazaar, we offer specialized coaching on how to take a product beyond national borders. These sessions are not just theoretical; we provide the logistical roadmap and technical skills needed to scale a business internationally. By integrating our global shipping expertise with the local branding power of Hecho en México, we help SMEs overcome the internationalization fear and professionalize their operations to compete effectively in the global marketplace.

Q: With the AHG acquisition strengthening UPS Healthcare’s cold chain platform in North America, what are the first tangible capability upgrades Mexico-based healthcare shippers will notice?

A: UPS is firmly committed to becoming the world's leading provider of logistics services for the healthcare industry. To achieve this goal, we have executed several high-stakes acquisitions that strengthen our infrastructure across the Americas. While the acquisition of Bomi Group was a pivotal moment for our Latin American footprint, our more recent acquisition of Andlauer Healthcare Group Inc., a leading North American supply chain management company headquartered in Canada, significantly bolsters our North American capabilities. By integrating this Canadian expertise, we are enabling businesses in Canada to expand their reach through the United States and potentially into Mexico, creating a truly regional healthcare corridor.

A fundamental shift in our strategy is the move toward a comprehensive end-to-end service model. We have unified our various business units under a single leadership structure to eliminate operational silos. We had already integrated our Supply Chain Solutions (SCS) division with our small package operations; now, we have successfully added the UPS Healthcare unit to this unified structure in Latin America. This integration allows us to offer clients a single point of contact and a seamless experience, combining specialized temperature-controlled logistics with the speed and reliability of our global package network.

For the healthcare sector, including pharmaceutical giants and medical device manufacturers meeting global demand, the physical state of a hospital is only half of the equation. I often use this example: it serves no purpose for a hospital environment to be pristine and temperature-controlled if the integrity of the product arriving there is a mystery. The rigorous quality standards these companies maintain in their labs must extend throughout the entire supply chain.

One of the primary challenges businesses face in markets like Mexico is the fragmentation of their logistics. They might manage their own warehouse but then hire the most economical local carrier for transport, a provider that may not adhere to the strict compliance protocols required for this industry. At UPS, we eliminate these gaps by providing a seamless, compliant chain. This ensures that the cold chain and quality controls remain unbroken from the point of origin to the point of consumption.

Ultimately, a product is useless if it arrives expired or compromised because the cold chain was broken, especially considering these are products often destined for insertion into a human being. This is why our guiding principle is "It is a patient, not a package." To truly care for the patient, you must protect the product at every touchpoint of the journey, ensuring it remains valid and safe until the moment it reaches the hospital for human use.

Q: As the United States and Mexico tighten scrutiny on low-value shipments (de minimis), what is the biggest operational change you are seeing in cross-border e-commerce flows?

A: Historically, the United States maintained one of the highest de minimis thresholds in the world at US$800. This meant that any product exported to the United States with a value below that amount, benefited from a simplified and duty-free customs clearance process. However, the landscape has fundamentally shifted with the elimination of this exemption. Now, regardless of the value, even for shipments worth only US$30 or US$100, every single product requires an entry process in the United States.

This change represents a massive learning curve, particularly for SMEs. While a large corporation possesses the internal resources to manage a shift from 0% to a 16% VAT plus applicable tariffs, an SME is often overwhelmed by the technical requirements. For these smaller businesses, exporting now requires a precise understanding of Harmonized System (HS) codes and a clear way to communicate price increases to their customers. Without this expertise, they risk a significant drop in demand as their products suddenly become more expensive and difficult to deliver.

At UPS, we recognize that our role as an advisor is more critical than ever. The timing of the UPS Global Checkout launch was perfect; it provides these businesses with an automated way to navigate this new reality. By integrating directly into their sales platforms, the tool calculates the precise landed cost in real-time. This eliminates the guesswork and manual labor that used to define cross-border trade, allowing SMEs to professionalize their operations and remain competitive in a post-de minimis environment.

Q: Could you share a successful example of a local company that could navigate the de minimis barrier with the help of UPS?

A: A practical example of our commitment to SMEs is the case of Miriam Salas, an artisan who manufactures traditional Mexican art, specifically Xoloitzcuintli art. Miriam participated in our collaborative bazaar with the Hecho en México initiative. Her challenge is representative of many local creators: she produces authentic, high-quality Mexican goods that often have a higher demand and price ceiling in international markets, such as the United States, than they do domestically.

However, the elimination of the de minimis exemption created a barrier. Without a simplified customs threshold, Miriam needed to know the exact cost of taxes and duties to avoid penalizing her international customers with surprise fees upon delivery. Through our advisory services, she was able to automate these complex calculations. This transition from manual guesswork to digital transparency has allowed her to continue the internationalization of her business despite the more stringent regulatory environment.

The vast majority of businesses in Mexico are SMEs. For these entrepreneurs, internationalization is often the most viable path to significant growth. Yet, without the specific logistical and regulatory knowledge required to navigate modern trade borders, these opportunities remain out of reach. By providing artisans like Salas with professionalized tools and expert guidance, we ensure that their products do not stay confined within national borders but instead reach the global consumers who value them most.

Our commitment to SMEs extends beyond digital tools into deep-rooted strategic partnerships. We continue to offer preferential rates and specialized benefits through various business associations, ensuring that logistics costs do not become a barrier to growth. Moreover, we are actively positioning UPS as a consultative arm for Mexican businesses on the global stage.

A key example of this international outreach is our upcoming participation in Expo Mujer in Canada in June 2026. By maintaining a presence at such high-profile international forums, we reinforce our role as a bridge for Mexican SMEs. We are not just a delivery service; we are a strategic advisor helping entrepreneurs understand how to scale and successfully position their products in competitive markets like Canada and the United States.

Q: As 2025 brought multiple disruption cycles, which industries in Mexico increased their demand for UPS services the most?

A: The current trade landscape is defined by constant shifts, from new tariffs and the elimination of de minimis exemptions to significant changes in customs regulations. These factors have forced a visible change in customer demand across almost every industry. In such an environment, businesses must be agile enough to adjust their base operations to match these external pressures. Despite these challenges, 2025 was a strong year for UPS because we successfully recalibrated our capacity to focus on the sectors that offer the most resilience.

While we remain focused on the automotive, electronics, and high-tech sectors, the healthcare industry stands apart as our highest priority. There is a fundamental difference in how consumers treat these categories during periods of economic or regulatory uncertainty. A person can choose to postpone a computer upgrade or decide not to purchase a new jacket, but they cannot postpone a medical requirement.

Healthcare is essentially immune to many of the discretionary spending shifts that affect other markets. Because the demand for life-saving products must be met regardless of the trade climate, we must provide a specialized service that can navigate these complexities without interruption. We are continuously adjusting our operational capacity to lean further into this sector, ensuring that we are not just moving packages but maintaining the vital flow of products that cannot wait.

Q: In 2025, what route or corridor shifts did you notice most, and what emerging trends do you think those shifts are signaling?

A: Our business model operates in near-perfect synchronization with global trade patterns. While the United States remains Mexico’s most critical partner, we are seeing a significant transformation in how goods move across the world. Currently, the most notable growth is not coming from traditional trans-Pacific routes, but rather from the strengthening of lanes between Mexico and Canada, as well as increasing volume in our lanes connecting with Europe.

If you look at the global trade forecasts, you can physically see these corridors widening. The Stronghold North America dynamic, driven by the USMCA, is projected to add hundreds of billions of dollars in trade value over the next decade. 

At UPS, we are not waiting for these shifts to happen; we are proactively adjusting our operational capacity based on this patchwork world order. We are leaning into the sectors where we have a clear strategic interest, such as healthcare and high-tech, and ensuring our network assets are positioned to support these expanding corridors.

Q: Looking back at 2025, how did UPS Mexico and Latin America perform against your KPIs?

A: While financial performance remains a primary driver, our success is measured through a diverse set of KPIs that reflect our commitment to our people and communities. In 2025, several of our geographic regions reported exceptional financial results, but we are equally proud of our progress in health and safety. We track safety through frequency rates, measuring injuries or accidents against total hours worked, and we continue to set increasingly aggressive goals to protect our employees and the communities where we operate.

Furthermore, our focus on human capital has led to a consistent improvement in employee retention for the third consecutive year. We have also seen a significant increase in our community impact, specifically through the growth of volunteer hours invested by our teams. These internal successes provided the stability necessary to navigate what proved to be a remarkably challenging start to 2025.

UPS is a US multinational shipping and supply chain management company founded in 1907. UPS started its international expansion to Latin America in 1989 and established operations in Mexico in 1991, where it employs over 2,000 people.