What does Wigmore Trading do?

Wigmore Trading is West Africa's leading FMCG wholesale distributor and logistics company, based in Lagos, Nigeria. We supply food, beverages, household goods, and consumer products to retailers, supermarkets, restaurants, and businesses across Nigeria and Ghana. We also help international brands enter and distribute across the West African market.

Can Wigmore Trading distribute my brand in Nigeria?

Yes. We act as exclusive distributor and brand ambassador for international FMCG brands in Nigeria and West Africa. We handle market research, NAFDAC regulatory compliance, sample shipments, sales deployment, and ongoing distribution through our network of 1,500+ partner distributors and 2,500+ active customers. Contact sales@wigmoretrading.com or book a 15-minute consultation at wigmoretrading.com.

Does Wigmore Trading offer warehousing in Lagos?

Yes. Our Store and Sell package provides temperature-controlled pallet storage in Lagos including cold storage rooms for heat-sensitive products. We also assist with sales and distribution of your stored stock.

Does Wigmore Trading handle shipping and customs clearance?

Yes. We offer full import and export logistics including air cargo, sea freight (LCL and FCL), container handling, and customs clearance in Nigeria. Our shipping services are available at ship.wigmoretrading.com.

How do I buy wholesale products from Wigmore?

You can browse and order wholesale products online at wigmorewholesale.com. We deliver to Nigeria, Ghana, Kenya, South Africa, the UK, and the USA. For large or bespoke orders contact sales@wigmoretrading.com.

Does Wigmore Trading supply supermarkets and restaurants?

Yes. We supply supermarkets, hotels, restaurants, bars, pharmacies, schools, and government organisations across Nigeria. We work with all major supermarket chains in Nigeria and provide door-to-door delivery across Lagos with temperature-controlled vehicles.

Which international brands does Wigmore Trading work with?

We have worked with major international brands including Kelloggs, Heinz, Pringles, and Procter and Gamble. We are West Africa's largest supplier of international branded consumer goods and help brands establish their own on-the-ground operations in Nigeria.

Incoterms® 2020 visualizer

Who pays, and who carries the risk?

Incoterms are the three-letter shorthand — FOB, CIF, DDP — that decides who pays each leg of a shipment and where responsibility for loss or damage passes from seller to buyer. Get them wrong and you either overpay or find you were liable for goods you thought were the other side’s problem. Pick any of the 11 terms below and see the whole journey, cost and risk, laid out plainly.

Explore the 11 terms See the comparison table

Pick a term

See the shipment, leg by leg.

Blue is the seller’s responsibility, orange is the buyer’s. Watch how the cost line and the risk line don’t always end in the same place.

Any transport mode (incl. containers, air, road, multimodal)

Sea & inland waterway only

CIFCost, Insurance and Freight

Sea & inland waterway only

Cost — who pays each leg

Risk — who bears loss or damage

Seller’s responsibility Buyer’s responsibility

The seller

The buyer

Export clearance

Import clearance & duty

Main freight paid by

Insurance

The one thing people get wrong

Cost and risk are two different questions.

Confusing them is the single most expensive Incoterms mistake an importer makes.

Cost = who pays the bill

Which side pays for packing, haulage, terminal charges, freight, insurance, duties and delivery. This decides your quoted price and your cash outlay along the chain.

Risk = who suffers the loss

If the goods are damaged, lost or stolen in transit, whose problem is it? Whoever holds the risk at that moment absorbs the loss — insured or not.

The trap — the “C” terms (CPT, CIP, CFR, CIF). Under these, the seller pays the freight all the way to the destination port, so buyers assume they’re covered until it arrives. They aren’t: risk passes to the buyer back at origin, the moment the goods are handed to the carrier or loaded on board. You can be paying for freight on goods that have been at your risk since the other side of the world — which is exactly why cargo insurance matters on these terms.

All 11 at a glance

The full Incoterms 2020 table.

From EXW (seller does least) to DDP (seller does most). “S” = seller, “B” = buyer.

Term	Mode	Export clearance	Import clearance & duty	Main freight	Insurance	Risk transfers to buyer
EXW	Any	Buyer	Buyer	Buyer	Not required	At the seller’s premises
FCA	Any	Seller	Buyer	Buyer	Not required	On handover to the carrier
CPT	Any	Seller	Buyer	Seller	Not required	On handover to the first carrier
CIP	Any	Seller	Buyer	Seller	Seller — max cover (ICC A)	On handover to the first carrier
DAP	Any	Seller	Buyer	Seller	Seller’s own risk to dest.	At destination, before unloading
DPU	Any	Seller	Buyer	Seller	Seller’s own risk to dest.	At destination, after unloading
DDP	Any	Seller	Seller	Seller	Seller’s own risk to dest.	At destination, before unloading
FAS	Sea	Seller	Buyer	Buyer	Not required	Alongside the ship
FOB	Sea	Seller	Buyer	Buyer	Not required	Once on board the vessel
CFR	Sea	Seller	Buyer	Seller	Not required	Once on board the vessel
CIF	Sea	Seller	Buyer	Seller	Seller — min cover (ICC C)	Once on board the vessel

Know this too

What changed in 2020 — and practical tips.

2020 CHANGE

DAT became DPU

“Delivered at Terminal” was renamed “Delivered at Place Unloaded” and widened — delivery can now be to any place, not just a terminal. It’s still the only term where the seller unloads.

2020 CHANGE

CIP now needs top-level insurance

Under CIP the seller must buy the higher, all-risks cover (Institute Cargo Clauses A) by default. CIF stays at the minimum (ICC C) — a real difference if you rely on the seller’s policy.

CONTAINERS

Use FCA, not FOB, for boxes

You hand a container to the terminal days before it’s loaded, so FOB/CFR/CIF (risk at “on board”) leave a dangerous gap. FCA, CPT or CIP move the handover point to where you actually lose control.

WATCH OUT

EXW and DDP look simple, aren’t

EXW makes the buyer handle export clearance in the seller’s country; DDP makes the seller pay import duty and VAT in the buyer’s country. Both need a party that’s actually able to clear customs on the far side.

Set expectations

What Incoterms don’t decide.

Ownership / title. Incoterms move cost and risk, not legal ownership of the goods — that’s set separately in your sale contract.

How and when you get paid. Payment terms, letters of credit and currency are all outside Incoterms and negotiated on their own.

What happens on breach. Remedies for late delivery, defects or non-payment come from your contract and the governing law, not the term.

Anything without a named place. “CIF” alone means little — always write the term with the port or place and the year: e.g. “CIF Apapa, Incoterms 2020”.

This tool is a plain-language guide to the ICC Incoterms® 2020 rules for general education; “Incoterms” is a trademark of the International Chamber of Commerce. The summaries here are simplified and do not replace the official ICC text or professional advice on a specific contract. Insurance levels shown are the rule’s defaults, which parties may vary by agreement. Always state the chosen term together with a named place and “Incoterms 2020” in your contract, and take professional advice for high-value or unusual shipments.

Where Wigmore fits

Knowing the term is step one. We handle the legs.

Once you know which Incoterm you’re trading on, you know which parts of the journey are yours to arrange and pay for. That’s precisely what our shipping and customs desks do — freight, clearance and the paperwork for your side of the term. And because our landed-cost calculator asks for the Incoterm, this tool and that one work hand in hand.

Not sure which term protects you best on a specific deal? Ask — a quick conversation now beats an expensive surprise at the port.

Shipping & freight → Customs & clearing → Landed cost calculator → Vessel charter finder →

Straight answers

Common Incoterms questions.

What’s the real difference between cost transfer and risk transfer?

Cost is who pays each bill along the way; risk is who suffers if the goods are lost or damaged. They usually move together — but not under the “C” terms (CPT, CIP, CFR, CIF), where the seller pays freight to the destination while risk passes to the buyer right back at origin. On those terms the buyer can be liable for goods in transit that the seller is still paying to move, which is why insurance matters most there.

Which Incoterm should I use for a container shipment?

Generally FCA, CPT or CIP rather than FOB, CFR or CIF. The sea terms fix risk at the point the goods are “on board” the vessel, but with a container you hand it over at the terminal days earlier and lose control then — leaving an unprotected gap. The “any mode” terms move the handover point to where control actually changes hands.

As a Nigerian importer, is FOB or CIF better for me?

It depends on how much of the journey you want to control. On FOB you arrange and pay the main freight yourself, which often gives better rates and visibility but more to manage. On CIF the seller arranges freight and basic insurance, which is simpler but bundles their margin into the price — and remember the risk still sits with you from the load port. Neither is “correct”; it’s a commercial choice, and not something we can decide for you without knowing the deal.

Do Incoterms say who owns the goods?

No. Incoterms allocate cost, risk and tasks like clearance and carriage — but the transfer of legal ownership (title) is governed by your sale contract and the applicable law, not by the term. It’s a common and important misconception.

What actually changed in Incoterms 2020?

The headline changes: DAT was renamed DPU and broadened to any place; CIP’s default insurance rose to all-risks (ICC A) while CIF stayed at minimum (ICC C); FCA gained an option for an on-board bill of lading to help with letters of credit; and the rules spelled out security-related obligations and cost allocations more clearly.

What if we forget to name a place?

You invite a dispute. “FOB” or “DAP” on their own leave the exact hand-over point unclear, which is where arguments over who pays or who was liable begin. Always write the term with a specific named port or place and the edition — for example “FOB Apapa, Incoterms 2020” — so both sides read it the same way.

Incoterms® is a registered trademark of the International Chamber of Commerce (ICC). This page provides a simplified, general-education summary of the Incoterms® 2020 rules and is not the official ICC text, nor legal or professional advice. Responsibilities, insurance levels and transfer points shown are the rules’ defaults and can be modified by agreement; always refer to the current official ICC publication and take advice on specific or high-value contracts.

From term sheet to terminal

Trade on the right terms.

Tell us what you’re importing or exporting and we’ll talk through which Incoterm protects you, then handle the legs that fall on your side — freight, clearance and paperwork.

Talk to the shipping desk Work out your landed cost

Incoterms 2020 Visualizer