Stile Associates

Stile Associates Ltd. has provided customs brokerage, freight forwarding and logistics services from Valley Stream, New York. Its official website is live and confirms the same Valley Stream address and main telephone number carried in this profile, and states that the company has been in business since 1968 — one of the largest privately owned customs broker and freight forwarder operations in its markets, run with a personal, boutique style of service. Its shipment tracking technology facilitates timely and accurate status reporting using the internet.

For apparel importers, the detail that stands out in Stile's record is a specialized warehouse for fashion apparel shipped in flat packs, in boxes or on hangers — warehousing arranged around the way clothing actually moves. This profile sets out the company's brokerage, communications, warehousing and transportation services as it describes them.

Customs Brokerage

As a full-service customhouse broker, Stile performs a broad range of functions essential for the timely entry and release of imported goods. The company points to a sizable roster of licensed customs brokers at its Atlantic and Pacific port offices — certified professionals who personally see to it that a client's customs-related needs are met in the proper manner.

Signature features of the brokerage service include the ability to obtain advance clearance of import shipments while they are still en route to the United States, project planning, and preparing and monitoring applications for duty drawback. The company's regulatory expertise covers the recordkeeping burden U.S. Customs places on importers, who must keep detailed records of all import transactions.

Automated Communications and Shipment Tracking

Stile provides computerized entry of imported goods through electronic data entry systems fully compatible with U.S. Customs' Automated Broker Interface (ABI) and Automated Manifest System (AMS) programs. Its EDI capability enables it to maintain a computerized interface directly with clients, speed delivery of goods, untangle complex paperwork, provide online status reports, and initiate and receive responses to quota queries.

The same systems let the company establish transaction libraries, develop tracing procedures and issue customized shipping reports for each client — the reporting layer an importer needs to see where entries and shipments stand without chasing paperwork.

Warehousing — Bonded, Non-Bonded and Fashion Apparel

Stile's warehousing facilities are approved for the bonded storage of goods slated for Customs release or clearance, or awaiting pickup by the importer. Its non-bonded warehousing services support logistics programs that call for repacking, distribution or pick-and-pack operations.

Alongside the general warehousing, the company runs a specialized warehouse for fashion apparel shipped in flat packs, in boxes or on hangers — three forms in which garments need different handling, hanging space and picking arrangements, and which a general-purpose warehouse is not set up to mix.

Multi-Port Presence and Transportation

Stile's profile lists facilities in New York, Newark, Miami, Los Angeles and San Diego; its current website names offices in New York, Miami and Los Angeles. At each port location, the company offers complete transportation services, including special pickups on both a scheduled and non-scheduled basis, import cartage, and airport, pier and long-haul trucking.

The company also coordinates with motor carriers operating refrigerated, low-boy, earth-moving, air-ride and other specialized equipment, so cargo that does not fit standard cartage can still be matched to the right vehicle. For a shipper choosing a forwarder, the guide to Selecting Freight Forwarders sets out the questions to ask about exactly these services.